It is proposed to take business in the following order: Nos. 1, 14 (Vote 50, resumed) and 6.
Order of Business.
The Taoiseach has not mentioned Private Members' Business. What is the position?
I think the Leader of the Opposition is aware that the practice in Private Members' Business is to nominate a motion which gets priority. The Opposition have not done that within the prescribed time. Therefore, there is no motion with priority.
I do not want to challenge the veracity of what the Taoiseach says, but we did not nominate a motion for priority because a Government Deputy had already nominated motion No. 47 for priority; that being so, the Opposition did not do so. Subsequently, on an amendment being submitted by Opposition Deputies, the motion for priority was withdrawn. In the circumstances, it was not possible for the Opposition to nominate in time a motion with the necessary priority. At this stage I am looking for an indication from the Taoiseach as to what motion will be taken. I understand that, in accordance with Standing Orders, some of the motions that are already standing in their respective places of priority would not be in order because, for example, in the health motions, they would be anticipating the debate on the Estimate. My purpose in raising the question now is that various Members of the House have their names to different motions and it would be helpful if some indication were given of what motion is likely to be taken.
I think the Leader of the Opposition may have been misinformed by someone on his own side in regard to the motion from a Government Deputy that he refers to. It is true that there was a motion from a Government Deputy for which I requested priority, and I subsequently withdrew that request. However, at that point the motion which the Opposition wished to have discussed today could not have been given priority because the motion itself was not in within ten days let alone the priority notice. The plain fact is, if we can get away from the tap dancing on this subject, that the motion put in by the Government Deputy for which I requested priority was one which, but for the Opposition amendment, would not necessarily have resulted in a vote confrontation.
The amendment was put in for the sole reason of forcing us to have a full team of Deputies here tomorrow night. In those circumstances, I withdrew the priority nomination, but I still do not know what motion the Opposition propose to move. They want the one in Deputy O'Malley's name, or so I think, because that certainly was——
The Parliamentary Secretary said——
Deputy Browne said that was the one they wanted but they have not taken the necessary steps to give that motion priority, and it could have been taken today only by agreement; agreement is forthcoming virtually every week as everybody listening to the proceedings of this House knows. However, agreement is not forthcoming in the circumstances of this week, as I have explained. In the absence of agreement, the only way the Opposition can reach that motion is by making up their minds what they are going to do with the motions in front of it, and I have not been told what their intention is in that regard. The Government are in the situation that they do not know which motion they will have to deal with this evening.
May I say for the record and without prevarication that, when it was discovered that the Government Whip withdrew the motion for technical reasons—and may I say that the amendment to motion 47 is quite a substantive amendment—I asked then that motion No. 46 be given priority. That was a week ago. That request still stands if the Government are willing to accede to it.
May I say there ought to be no discussion on Private Members' Business as such?
It is on the Order of Business.
I quite agree, but on Private Members' Business as such that would arise at 7 o'clock this evening.
The Opposition are not coming within a mile of being reasonable; they are not even coming half way to meet us, considering how we go the whole way to meet them in taking Private Members' Business every other week here almost never with a Government Deputy, almost always with an Opposition Deputy, at times when it does not suit us as well as at times when it does. The one week when it would have suited us to have a Government motion here with no amendment from the Opposition, that is the week in which we have this discussion. I consider they are not playing the game.
Will you agree to motion No. 46?
No——
So that we can order our own Deputies, could we know if it is the Government's intention to move any motion when Private Members' Business is reached?
The Government have no say in this. These motions are in the names of private Deputies.
May I crave your indulgence, Sir, to raise a matter which is of vital and urgent importance to me and on which I can get no guidance other than what you may be able to offer. The party political broadcasts start today and will continue for the rest of the week. May I ask you how the discrimination, which is purely accidental, that is taking place in regard to this matter can be avoided, in that the party of which I am a member has a political broadcast tonight at 9.55 and tomorrow on the radio at 1.20, and we cannot use the caption of our party which is "the Independent Fianna Fáil Republican Party". That caption is refused because of some misinterpretation. This affects me and my constitutents; I think it is wrongly interpreted, and I do not know where to go to get anything done about it. The Minister for Posts and Telegraphs does not seem to have anything to say; the Minister for Local Government has no control in this matter. Let me say in fairness to the people at Montrose that what I am complaining of is not being done by them.
The Deputy gave me no notice of his intention to raise this matter nor did he seek my approval. I cannot comment on the matter he refers to. It would seem from what he has said to be a matter for RTE.
Might I apologise for raising the matter without due notice to you in the manner that would be expected? I went out of the House while questions were on to try again to elicit the information I am seeking. I should like guidance as to where I can go to try to get this matter redressed before we go on the air tonight at 9.55 p.m. without a caption on which we have been campaigning for the last week and on which we shall continue campaigning next week. It is very unfair. I am not blaming anyone but I am trying to see how I can get the matter rectified.