Before the Order of Business, I would like formally to give notice that, with your permission, Sir, I intend to raise the subject matter of Question No. 6 on the Adjournment.
Order of Business.
Major de Valera
With your permission, Sir, I would like to raise the subject matter of Question No. 13 on last Wednesday's Order Paper.
I shall communicate with the Deputies in the course of the afternoon.
Business will be taken in the following order: Nos. 1, 2, 3, 4, 9, 10, 5, 11, 6, 12, 7, 13, 8 and 14. If not already reached, it is proposed to interrupt business at 6.30 to take Items 5, 11, 6, 12, 7, 13, 8 and 14 and, when completed, to resume the order of business. Private Members' Business will be taken at 9 p.m.
I would like to know in regard to the business if the Taoiseach would tell us whether it is possible to rearrange the sittings and instead of sitting at 3 p.m. to-morrow to sit at 10.30 a.m.
That has been arranged.
From now on?
Yes.
With the likelihood of the business of the House collapsing, as it has on the last two occasions, would the Taoiseach consider giving Private Members' time in order to get the remainder of the motions off the Order Paper?
In regard to the question of business collapsing, I want to draw the attention of Deputies to the fact that we have done 16 Bills and, I think, three hours of Private Members' Business as well. We cannot turn out Bills as if they were coming out of a sausage machine.
What Bills? What major measures have been brought into the House?
Bills of the utmost importance and the Deputies opposite might provide some critical attention to those Bills rather than making observations of that kind.
If we did in relation to the Greyhound Industry Bill, we would be accused of obstruction.
The matter I am raising is not in connection with Government business but with regard to Private Members' time. I am not laying the blame on anybody's shoulders but on the last two Thursdays business collapsed in the House and we finished very early. In view of the fact that that may happen again would the Taoiseach consider giving an opportunity to those Deputies who have motions on the Order Paper to have them heard on Thursday?
We shall see. There is plenty of business to be done. I do not like the phrase "collapse of business" and the implication that there is any fault on the part of the Government in not providing business. We have done 16 Bills and three hours of Private Members' Business.