It is proposed to take No. 7. By agreement there will be no interruption today to take Private Members' Business. Also, by agreement, the Dáil will sit later than 9 p.m. today and the hour at which business is to be interrupted will be 10.30 p.m.
Order of Business.
I take it that the Order of Business is agreed?
Yes. It would be helpful if the Chair repeated for us the divisions of the remaining Committee Stages of the Finance Bill as they were agreed yesterday so that we can adhere to them today.
The following is the arrangement that was made an order of the House for today's Item No. 7: Part 2 to be concluded by 5.30 p.m.; Parts 3 and 4 to be concluded by 9.30 p.m.; Parts 5 and 6, Schedules and Title, to be concluded by 10.30 p.m. today. We will now resume the debate on section 65 of the Finance Bill.
As a matter or further elucidation I should like to point out that it is likely that these various stages will be put in the form of a composite motion to the House. If something is rolled up in that composite motion that the Chair will put to us and defeated that will not prevent an amendment on that point being put down on Report Stage.
I was thinking about that point. I understand that an amendment which had not been reached and which is caught up in this omnibus resolution may be repeated on Report Stage. That gets over that difficulty.
I should like permission to raise on the Adjournment the dredging of Burtonport Harbour.
I will communicate with the Deputy.
With the permission of the Chair, I should like to give notice to the House that I propose to bring forward three further amendments on Report Stage to Parts 2 and 3 of the Bill. Two of the amendments are designed to clarify the powers being granted to Customs and Excise officers in relation to av-gas in section 70 and VAT officers in section 86. These are to show that the provisions are solely concerned with the taxes involved in those two cases. The third amendment will affect sections 88 and 91 and will provide for continuing zero rating for VAT purposes of sanitary ware.
Another about turn. Do the Government know what they are doing?
We will now debate section 65 of the Finance Bill.
I wish to raise a question on the Order of Business.
We have left the Order of Business.
I do not think so.
We have. We have been discussing the Finance Bill for the last few minutes.
Deputy Haughey rose to get clarification on the order the Bill will be dealt in arising on the Order of Business. I tried to get in at that stage but I was ignored.
I called Item No. 7 and then Deputy Haughey asked for clarification as to the omnibus resolution. If Deputy De Rossa has some question to put concerning the Finance Bill he may put it.
I must protest. Deputy Haughey rose on the Order of Business and the Chair asked him if it was agreed and he replied "yes". He asked the question about how the Finance Bill would be dealt with today. I tried to get in at that stage also. I did not hear the Chair calling Item No. 7.
I should like to make the position clear. Deputy Haughey was on the Finance Bill and dealt only with that Bill. Then, with the House on the Finance Bill, the Minister for Finance made announcements concerning amendments he proposes to introduce on Report Stage. If Deputy De Rossa wishes to raise something in connection with the Finance Bill it would be unreasonable of the Chair not to allow him to do so and, of course, I will allow him to raise it. However, I am not going to allow him to bring in some extraneous matter that does not have anything to do with the Finance Bill.
The matter I wish to raise does not have anything to do with the Finance Bill. I will leave it until tomorrow's Order of Business and raise it then.