With your permission, a Chinn Comhairle, I should like, for the information of the House, to refer to certain matters at this stage.
I informed the President that Dáil Éireann had approved of my nomination of the members of the Government and he appointed them accordingly on the 18th instant. On the same day I nominated Deputy William Norton to be Tánaiste. On the same day I assigned the Departments of State to the members of the Government as follows:—
Department of Social Welfare, William Norton;
Department of Education, Richard Mulcahy;
Department of External Affairs, Seán MacBride;
Department of Lands, Joseph Blowick;
Department of Posts and Telegraphs, James Everett;
Department of Agriculture, James M. Dillon;
Department of Finance, Patrick McGilligan;
Department of Justice, Seán MacEoin;
Department of Defence, Thomas F. O'Higgins;
Department of Industry and Commerce, Daniel Morrissey;
Department of Local Government, Timothy Joseph Murphy;
Department of Health, Noel C. Browne.
On the 24th instant the Government, on my nomination, appointed the following members of the Oireachtas to be Parliamentary Secretaries to the Ministers which I will mention:—
Deputy Liam Cosgrave to be Parliamentary Secretary to the Taoiseach and to the Minister for Industry and Commerce;
Deputy Brendan Corish to be Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Local Government;
Deputy Michael Donnellan to be Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Finance.