asked the Minister for Social Welfare if he will state in reference to a question on 19th November regarding the holding of a crusade of rosaries in the Custom House, (1) if in fact permission to hold this crusade had been applied for to the establishment section of his Department prior to the commencement of the crusade; (2) if the necessary permission was given by the establishment section; (3) the reasons given to the participants for its later cancellation; and (4) if any official of his Department has been interrogated in writing or verbally as to responsibility for the asking of questions in Dáil Éireann on this matter subsequent to their publication; and, if so, what is the reason for this interrogation.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Rosaries in Custom House.
Permission to use the Department's premises in the Custom House annexe for the purpose was sought over the telephone and was given by an officer of establishment branch who exceeded his authority, and who failed to notify his superiors subsequently of the fact that he had given such permission. As regards the main part of the question, I have nothing to add to the replies I gave on the 19th November to the previous questions on this subject. As to the last part of the question, the position is that certain officers of my Department were requested to give an assurance that they were not responsible for the departure which has occurred in this instance from the recognised procedure for raising matters concerning internal administrative control of the staff of the Department. All of them have given such an assurance.
There is a touch of Prague about that.
The Deputy knows all about that.