It is proposed to take item No. 3. By agreement, the speech of every Member contributing to the debate on item No. 3 will not exceed 45 minutes. There will be no Private Members' Business today and business will not be interrupted to take questions today or tomorrow.
Order of Business.
This does not prevent Deputies from having written replies to their questions.
I wish to raise on the Adjournment the question of the closure of the Irish Polysacks Company in Blarney, with the loss of 135 jobs.
The Chair will communicate with the Deputy.
I wonder why such an important issue as the debate on the health services should not be allowed, that the hour-and-a-half which would normally be allowed this evening to conclude and decide the debate on the health services should not be allowed.
I should like to comment on the Labour Party point of view having regard to the matter raised by Deputy Sherlock. In fact the Labour Party did request and urge that we be facilitated by allowing our Private Members' Motion on the health cuts to continue and conclude today. We urged that on many occasions but that request was turned down by the Government Chief Whip.
The Chair knows as well as I do that a motion of no confidence or a motion of confidence takes precedence over every other business. My own view is that the Fine Gael Party did not wish to have to vote on the Labour Party amendment and that is why they rushed in with their——
(Interruptions.)
(Dún Laoghaire): I just want to assure the Taoiseach that we were not running away from a vote.
Was it the constitutional amendment you were running away from?
(Interruptions.)
(Dún Laoghaire): We actually said we would support the Labour Party but at the request of the Chief Whip of the Government who asked us to dispense with this, we agreed to do so. We were not running away.
Even at this late stage, may I put it to the Taoiseach that we are anxious to continue and conclude the debate on the Labour Party Private Members' Business? We would be prepared to agree, if the Taoiseach would agree, to conclude it at the end of normal time for business this evening. We would be anxious to do that.
After this vote of confidence in the Government is passed we will give you all the time you want for your Private Members' Motion.
May I have answers in written form to the questions that I have on the Order Paper today since I probably will not get them any other way?
Yes.
The Taoiseach referred to the Constitution Amendment Bill, 1982. Is it usual to circulate just the English text of the Bill only? When will the Irish text be available?
That is the Referendum Bill which the Deputy has, not the Constitution Amendment Bill, I believe.
I am grateful for your correction but this Bill as circulated, the Referendum (Amendment) Bill, 1982, has been circulated entirely in English. I think I am entitled as one of those who regularly speak Irish here to ask if it is going to be the practice in future that Bills will be circulated in English without the Irish version being available? As you know, there are legal consequences which follow from which version of the Bill is being invoked.
All Bills are circulated in English with certain exceptions. That is not one of the Bills that must be circulated in Irish.
It is a far more serious matter than merely the system of the House. It so happens that I have only now seen this Bill. If the Bill is passed as it stands and submitted to the people as it stands we will only be amending the English version of the Constitution. A conflict will therefore arise between the Irish and English versions. The Irish version must prevail and the old law will be the new law. This happened in 1939 in the heat of the middle of the war and never since. It is the clearest possible sign of a rushed job, a slovenly, rushed job with the election in mind.
The only rush is on your side.
The Chair knows and the staff of the House know that absolutely normal procedures are being followed in regard to this legislation. As regards Deputy Kelly's point the Bill includes the Irish version of the amendment of the Constitution and that is the way constitutional amendments have always been brought forward. There is no departure whatsoever from normal practice on this occasion. This is only a diversion of the attention of the House from the main business of the House. Let us get on with the main business.
I want to get written replies to Questions Nos. 189 and 190.
All Deputies may have written replies to their questions if they seek them at the General Office.
I should also like to know why those questions were transferred from the Office of the Taoiseach to the Office of the Minister.
We cannot debate that now.
As regards my Private Notice Question, could I raise it on the Adjournment because it relates to the deterioration in the prison officers' dispute?
The Chair will communicate with the Deputy.