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Dáil Éireann debate -
Thursday, 7 May 1953

Vol. 138 No. 11

Local Elections Bill, 1953—First Stage.

I move that leave be granted to introduce a Bill entitled an Act to alter the times for holding elections of members of certain local authorities and to make provisions consequential on or incidental to such alteration.

This Bill is being opposed. The purpose of the Bill, apparently, is to defer the holding of the local elections which were to be held this year. When the last local elections were held three years ago it was then assumed that local elections would be held this year in the ordinary course—that is the normal procedure —but, for some reason, not so far adequately explained, the Government have decided to postpone the local elections. Judging by what has beensaid in a fragmentary fashion so far, the reason is that it is intended that the local authorities should hold office for longer periods in future. Whether they should or should not is a matter we can discuss at a later stage but that is no reason why the local elections due to be held this year should not take place. The country should have an opportunity of electing new members to the various local authorities and when the election is over we can then decide whether their period of office should be for three years, four years or five years, as the case may be.

We ought not at this stage postpone local elections almost on the eve of the date on which they are due to be held. No adequate reason has been given by the Government so far as to why the House should be asked to take this step.

It seems to me, Sir, that this Bill, while it is described as a Local Elections Bill, 1953, might be described as a Bill to protect the Government against the anger of the electorate.

We also oppose this Bill and there will be plenty of notification for the Government to hear why we do so.

On a point of order. Would the Ceann Comhairle mind explaining the procedure when the First Stage of this Bill is proposed?

Only one member.

"The person opposing" it says but I think it is within the discretion of the Chair to allow a statement from the Parties opposing, if there is more than one Party.

A brief statement only.

We have just witnessed a little exhibition of the spirit behind this, that is, a throttling of every Party and every section.

Opposition to a First Stage is an attempt to prevent a debate on the Bill. That is what you are doing now.

The position with regard to opposition on a First Reading of a Bill is perfectly clearly stated in the Orders and if the Minister for Industry and Commerce and the Minister for Finance were more interested in the proper carrying out of the business rather than in the throttling of expressions of opinion either in the House or the country——

It is you who are trying to prevent a debate on the Bill.

There will be plenty of time, if we cannot stop this now, to debate this Bill. I simply want to state again that we oppose this Bill and we oppose it as a throttling of the electorate when the electorate have a very important duty to do and a very important problem to settle in every aspect of local affairs.

May I ask one question?

On the old Blueshirt principle—the bludgeon and not debate.

If the Minister for Finance wants to go back over the various things that have brought this country to the state in which it is to-day, there is plenty of time to do it, but there are very vital and very urgent things that require to be done. It would appear that the Minister for Finance is stepping into a position that, when the bell is tolling for the end of Fianna Fáil humbug, we will expose the roots from which the dirty humbug has arisen originally. I would advise the Minister for Finance, if he is concerned with either the economic or the financial or the social aspect of our country's affairs, to keep his mouth shut because a lot of us have kept our mouths shut in the past and have hesitated either to document or to decorate pseudo-Irish history. None of us wants to do it.

You are in bad humour to-day.

If the Deputy isashamed of his past he cannot expect us to forget it.

Stick to yourproblems to-day and take your hands off the people's throat.

Question put.
The Dáil divided: Tá, 48; Níl, 39.

  • Bartley, Gerald.
  • Beegan, Patrick.
  • Brady, Seán.
  • Breen, Dan.
  • Brennan, Joseph.
  • Breslin, Cormac.
  • Browne, Noel C.
  • Buckley, Seán.
  • Burke, Patrick.
  • Butler, Bernard.
  • Carter, Frank.
  • Colley, Harry.
  • Collins, James J.
  • Crowley, Honor Mary.
  • Crowley, Tadhg.
  • Cunningham, Liam.
  • Davern, Michael J.
  • Derrig, Thomas.
  • de Valera, Eamon.
  • de Valera, Vivion.
  • Fanning, John.
  • ffrench-O'Carroll, Michael.
  • Flanagan, Seán.
  • Flynn, John.
  • Gilbride, Eugene.
  • Harris, Thomas.
  • Hilliard, Michael.
  • Humphreys, Francis.
  • Kenneally, William.
  • Kennedy, Michael J.
  • Killilea, Mark.
  • Lemass, Seán.
  • MacCarthy, Seán.
  • McEllistrim, Thomas.
  • MacEntee, Seán.
  • McGrath, Patrick.
  • Maher, Peadar.
  • Ó Briain, Donnchadh.
  • O'Reilly, Matthew.
  • Ormonde, John.
  • Rice, Bridget M.
  • Ryan, Mary B.
  • Sheldon, William A.W.
  • Sheridan, Michael.
  • Smith, Patrick.
  • Traynor, Oscar.
  • Walsh, Laurence J.
  • Walsh, Thomas.

Níl

  • Blowick, Joseph.
  • Browne, Patrick.
  • Cafferky, Dominick.
  • Carew, John.
  • Cawley, Patrick.
  • Corish, Brendan.
  • Cosgrave, Liam.
  • Costello, John A.
  • Crotty, Patrick J.
  • Desmond, Daniel.
  • Dunne, Seán.
  • Esmonde, Anthony C.
  • Flanagan, Oliver J.
  • Giles, Patrick.
  • Hession, James M.
  • Hickey, James.
  • Hughes, Joseph.
  • Keyes, Michael.
  • Lehane, Patrick D.
  • Lynch, John (North Kerry).
  • McAuliffe, Patrick.
  • McMenamin, Daniel.
  • Madden, David J.
  • Mannion, John.
  • Morrissey, Daniel.
  • Mulcahy, Richard.
  • Murphy, William.
  • Norton, William.
  • O'Donnell, Patrick.
  • O'Gorman, Patrick J.
  • O'Higgins, Thomas F.
  • O'Leary, Johnny.
  • O'Sullivan, Denis.
  • Palmer, Patrick W.
  • Reidy, James.
  • Roddy, Joseph.
  • Rogers, Patrick J.
  • Spring, Dan.
  • Tully, John.
Tellers:—Tá: Deputies Ó Briain and Killilea; Níl: Deputies D. O'Sullivan and Mac Fheórais.
Question declared carried.

That shows you what can happen.

It is a bit of a shock battle.

The position is not very secure at all. It could happen any day. I think the Minister for Finance will be in serious trouble one of these days.

Ordered: That the Second Stage be taken on Thursday, 21st May.
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