Tairgim:
Go gceapfar an Teachta Séamus Ó Tonnaigh mar Leas-Cheann Comhairle.
Is maith is eol dom go bhfuil Séamus Ó Tonnaigh oilte go maith—is féidir liom a ráa, sár-oilte—chuig an post seo. Ní amháin go bhfuil togha na Gaeilge aige ach tá an-chleachtadh aige ar chúrsaí agus gnó an Tí seo ó ceapadh mar Theachta Dála é i 1969. Ní dóigh liom go raibh sa Teach seo aon Teachta níos dúthrachtaí ná mar a bhí an Teachta Séamus Ó Tonnaigh agus táim cinnte, freisin, go dtabharfaidh sé cothram na Féinne do gach thaobh agus do gach Teachta má cheapfar é.
I am proposing Motion No. 9 standing in my name, that Deputy James Tunney be elected Leas-Cheann Comhairle. I do so because I know that he is well qualified for this post. His Irish is excellent; his knowledge of procedure by reason of his diligent attendance in the House since he was elected in 1969 is more than adequate for the post and by reason of his background I am satisfied also that he will give absolute fair play and cothram na Féinne, not only to each side, but to every individual Deputy in carrying out his functions.
It was not my intention to do more than formally move the motion until the Ceann Comhairle indicated that Nos. 9 and 10 would be taken together from which I gather that the Government propose to vote against my motion and then propose their motion that Deputy Denis Jones be appointed Leas-Cheann Comhairle. If the Government do this they will be, as they know, breaking completely with precedent. I, therefore, propose to speak at some greater length than I would otherwise have done on this motion. I expect some members of my party will also have something to say about it.
It has been the invariable custom and practice of this House that when the Ceann Comhairle is nominated by and elected from the Government benches the Leas-Cheann Comhairle is nominated by and elected from the Opposition benches. There have been some changes in this inasmuch as that on a number of occasions the Ceann Comhairle happened to be a Deputy from the Opposition but on those occasions the Leas-Cheann Comhairle was then appointed from among Government-supporting Deputies. I should have thought that on this occasion the same tradition and procedure would have been followed and that there would have been no objection to the nomination of a Fianna Fáil Deputy, Fianna Fáil being the only Opposition party comprising almost 50 per cent of the Dáil.
On a previous occasion when the Leas-Cheann Comhairle's position was being filled I referred to the tradition which I have mentioned that the Leas-Cheann Comhairle in the circumstances when the Ceann Comhairle is elected from the Government benches should come from Opposition benches. As reported in the Dáil debates of 15th November, 1967, column 168, when Deputy Denis Jones was being nominated from the Fine Gael Party and Deputy Seán Dunne from the Labour Party, also from the Opposition, was being nominated, I said and I quote:
It has been well established by tradition and invariable precedent that when the Ceann Comhairle has been elected from amongst the Deputies representing the Government side of the House, the Leas-Cheann Comhairle is nominated from amongst Deputies representing the Opposition. For that reason, my party have decided not to propose any candidate for this post and to leave the selection of the Leas-Cheann Comhairle to the parties in Opposition.
I might say that at this stage Deputy Corish objected to the fact that Fianna Fáil were not going to vote on the motion and by doing so were, in fact, voting to have a Fine Gael Leas-Cheann Comhairle at which stage Deputy Coughlan said, and I quote:
It is about time the workers of the country knew that the two Conservative Parties were coming together.