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Dáil Éireann debate -
Friday, 4 Jul 1947

Vol. 107 No. 8

Committee on Finance. - Appropriation Bill, 1947—All Stages.

Leave given to introduce a Bill entitled an Act to apply certain sums out of the Central Fund to the service of the year ended on the 31st day of March, 1947, and the year ending on the 31st day of March, 1948, and to appropriate to the proper Supply Services and purposes the sums granted by the Central Fund Act, 1947, and this Act.—(Minister for Finance.)
Agreed to take the Second Stage now.

I move that the Bill be now read a Second Time.

I wish to put a question in regard to what is now known as the Marshall Plan. As Deputies are aware, the United States Secretary of State, speaking at Harvard recently, announced that the policy of the United States Government now was to offer its assistance to the sovereign States of Europe, on condition that those sovereign States would themselves undertake the preparation of a plan acceptable to themselves and furnish that to the United States Government, so that that Government might feel that, in providing the wherewithal to make it possible for this plan to operate, no question could arise of the Government of the United States having alleged against it, with any pretence of verisimilitude, that they were making their assistance conditional on the abrogation of any of the sovereign rights of the European States who wished to avail of the assistance offered.

Pursuant to that generous and historic declaration on the part of the United States of America, Deputies will remember that Mr. Bevan, Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs in Great Britain, took the initiative and invited M. Bidault and M. Molotov, of the French and Russian Governments respectively, to meet him in Paris. That meeting has taken place and, as a result of the manifest desire and intention of the Soviet Government to wreck the enterprise, the Soviet representative made no constructive proposals at all, but declined even to discuss any of the proposals that were advanced and returned to Moscow.

Fortunately, that manoeuvre has not resulted in the other nations—France and Great Britain—abandoning the attempt to prepare a coherent scheme for the rehabilitation of Europe. I understand that they have jointly declared that it is their intention at an early date to extend an invitation to every sovereign Government in Europe to consult with them as to the preparation of such a scheme. I think it is right, in any case, to afford the Minister for Finance an opportunity for saying (1) whether his Government anticipates such an invitation would reach us and (2) whether his Government, having examined the probabilities in connection with the matter, are prepared to inform the House what the intention is in the event of a certain invitation reaching them.

I agree that, under ordinary circumstances, it would be preferable if an inquiry of this kind could be postponed until the invitation had reached us, but inasmuch as it looks very much as if the invitation, should it come at all, will come when this House is in recess, and inasmuch as it is very important, from every point of view, that every sovereign State taking part in these deliberations should be free to proceed with all despatch, I think it is necessary to raise the matter now, so that the Government may feel that it is free to pursue the policy it has determined upon in regard to this matter, in the knowledge that it is fortified with the views of the members of this House, in the light of such information as the Government may see fit to impart.

The invitation referred to by Deputy Dillon has not reached the Government formally, but I understand it is on its way. As the matter arose only this morning, the Government has not had time yet formally to decide the answer to the invitation. I cannot commit the Government as to what the answer will be, but the Deputy himself can see that, in the past couple of years, conferences of all sorts and kinds have been called to which an Irish delegation has been invited.

Whenever these conferences were for the purpose of doing anything for the reconstruction or relief of Europe the invitations were warmly accepted and a delegation went. I suppose this invitation will be considered by the Government, to-day or to-morrow, as soon as it reaches us.

I suppose a reasonable comment upon that would be to say that a nod is as good as a wink to a blind horse. In this case the nod is very welcome.

Question put and agreed to.
Agreed to take the remaining stages now.
Bill put through Committee and reported without amendment, received for final consideration and passed.

This Bill is certified by the Ceann Comhairle as a Money Bill in accordance with Article 22 of the Constitution.

An Ceann Comhairle took the Chair.

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