Dáil Éireann debate -
Friday, 1 Jul 1949

Vol. 116 No. 11

Electricity (Supply) (Amendment) Bill, 1948—From the Seanad.

The Dáil went into Committee to consider an amendment from the Seanad.

Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Industry and Commerce (Mr. Cosgrave)

I move that the Committee agree with the Seanad in the following amendment:—

SECTION 2.

1. In sub-section (8) Section 2 the following words added at the end of the sub-section:—

and if a resolution is passed by either House within the next 21 days upon which that House has sat after the Order has been laid before it annulling the Order, the Order shall be annulled accordingly but without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done thereunder.

The amendment provides that the Orders made and confirmed by the Minister when laid on the Table may be annulled after the usual period of 21 days if a motion is put down to that effect. It is in the usual form and it follows the practice in a number of Statutes.

Mr. de Valera

What was the original position?

Mr. Cosgrave

That it would be laid on the Table, which meant that it could be debated by a motion. The Seanad amendment means that it must be debated within 21 days.

Amendment agreed to.

Amendment reported and agreed to.

Seanad Eireann to be notified accordingly.

Mr. Cosgrave

Perhaps I should say at this stage that I agreed, during the Committee Stage of the Bill in this House, to move an amendment in the Seanad which would give power to the Electricity Supply Board to take into consideration a period during which the Pigeon House station was closed and for which period gratuities had already been paid to certain employees. I undertook to move that amendment provided the persons concerned were prepared to abate their gratuity on ultimate retirement by an amount equal to the gratuity already paid. Since the passage of the Bill through this House the Electricity Supply Board interviewed these men with a representative of the Department of Industry and Commerce. All of them were prepared to have the position remain as it is. In other words, they preferred the status quo rather than to have the ultimate gratuity abated by an amount equivalent to the gratuity they received before. Consequently, I did not move the amendment in the Seanad and the case made here by a number of Deputies was not supported by the men concerned. Therefore, there is no amendment to the section.