It is proposed to take Nos. 3 and 4. It is also proposed, not-withstanding anything in Standing Orders, that the following arrangements shall apply to No. 3: (i) opening statements shall be made by a Minister or Minister of State, the main spokespersons for the Fianna Fáil Party and the Progressive Democrats Party; (ii) other Members may be called upon to contribute to the statements; and (iii) a Minister or Minister of State shall be called upon to make a statement in reply. Private Members' Business shall be No. 20.
Order of Business.
Are the arrangements for dealing with statements agreed? Agreed.
When it is proposed to take the Fisheries (Amendment) Bill? The Taoiseach will probably be aware that a number of important projects with substantial employment potential in the western counties are being delayed pending the legislation. We on this side of the House will facilitate the taking of this legislation. It is extraordinary that licensing legislation which has been around for several months is holding up several hundred jobs in coastal counties in the west.
I understand the Bill will be presented within the next two to three weeks.
In view of the concerns of people in this sector and their frustration with Government inaction, will the Taoiseach endeavour to get this legislation through?
Yes.
In the context of the education legislation will the Taoiseach give a commitment that information pertaining to the cost of the White Paper will be made available to Deputies? I am somewhat perturbed that the Ministers for Education and Finance have refused to make that information available in parliamentary questions. Given that I have to prepare for the Education Bill that will be debated later this session, it is incredible that this very important information is not made available.
Put down a question.
I have put down a question.
I wish to raise with the Taoiseach the fact that many of the questions I tabled to him on Northern Ireland today were either transferred to the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs who will not respond in the Chamber for five weeks, or were ruled out of order, even though they were not repeat questions. This is not appropriate from a Taoiseach who promised accountability and openness. We should be able to ask relevant questions on Northern Ireland.
When will the Book of Estimates be published?
The Book of Estimates will be published when it is ready.
On the matter of answering questions, I answer questions on Northern Ireland in this House every week but whether questions are in order is a matter that is decided by the office of the Ceann Comhairle——
In the Taoiseach's office.
——independently in its function and not subordinate to anyone. In general on Northern Ireland matters, there is a shared responsibility between me and the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and obviously it is appropriate that the matters which fall within his area of responsibility should be answered by him.
The Taoiseach decides that.
Questions disallowed or not selected should not be raised on the Order of Business. The office of the Ceann Comhairle would have been in touch with the Deputy.
There does not seem to be any consistency in the nature of the questions the Taoiseach transfers. It seems that if it suits on a particular week they are transferred because the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs will not have to answer questions for about five weeks, but if it does not suit, they are not transferred. That is not satisfactory.
We should not pursue this matter.
It is much easier to ask questions in the House of Commons than in this House and this is not helpful. Will the Taoiseach accept legitimate questions on Northern Ireland for discussion every week?
I agree with Deputy Harney. The Taoiseach was trying to be rather smart when he stated his office had no input into what was allowed or disallowed.
That is not what I said. The Deputy should not misquote me in that way. Of course my office will make a submission if it feels a question is a repeat or out of order, but the decisions are taken independently by the Ceann Comhairle. That is what I said. The Deputy should not twist what I said.
All I can say is that we find out on Tuesday morning what the Taoiseach knew on Friday morning, and no effort is ever made by the Taoiseach's office to inform us regarding changes or amendments to questions. We have tried for several months to check that procedure.
That is not the case.
It is.
The Deputy may not pursue this now.
Decisions of the Ceann Comhairle on particular questions are communicated to my office at the same time as they are communicated to the Deputy. No favouritism is shown towards either side of the House by the Ceann Comhairle. The Deputy should not reflect on the Chair as he is doing.
There are prior consultations.
We will have a debate on this issue this week. However, I find it hard to believe that there is no contact on these issues.
I did not say there was no contact. The Deputy should not attempt to twist what I say. Of course my Department makes representations regarding particular questions.
Departments have undue influence.
What I said was — and I will keep saying it until the Deputy eventually understands it — that decisions are taken independently by the Ceann Comhairle and communicated by him to my office at the same time as to the Deputy who tabled the question.
The Deputy should not pursue this matter now.
Is the Taoiseach saying there is no contact before that? That is the trouble.
According to item No. 23 in the programme for renewal, it is stated that the remit of the Joint Committee on Commercial State-sponsored Bodies will be widened to enable the committee to investigate any matter involving unethical behaviour by a particular State-sponsored body in the conduct of its business by any of its board members or employees. When does the Taoiseach propose to implement that item of the programme for renewal?
All matters referring to the terms of reference of committees will be dealt with as part of the package of Oireachtas reforms currently being considered.
When will this package be put before the House?
Is it at an advanced stage of preparation. I expect it will be available within the next three weeks.
Will the Taoiseach blaze a trail by suggesting that the members of the Joint Committee on Commercial State-sponsored Bodies steal a march on the Government by proposing at today's meeting a widening of their remit to investigate the so-called unethical behaviour in semi-State bodies?
I wish to seek the guidance of the Chair as to when precisely the Taoiseach is answerable and accountable to this House regarding the Attorney General's office. I tabled up to 17 questions to the Taoiseach dealing mostly with the role of the Office of the Attorney General in connection with an action, or actions, taken against the Minister for Transport, Energy and Communications.
I must halt the Deputy there. The Ceann Comhairle has written to the Deputy about this matter. He is welcome to take it up with the Ceann Comhairle's office but it should not be raised here now. That point has been made on a number of occasions today.
At Question Time the Taoiseach indicated to the House that he was quite prepared to answer questions relating to the office of the Attorney General regarding this matter. However, all the questions, or most of them, were denied an answer on the basis that the Taoiseach was not officially responsible to the Dáil for this matter. The Taoiseach has an obligation to meet in this regard.
The Deputy cannot proceed this way.
The Government of openness, transparency and accountability which hid behind the sub judice rule is now hiding behind the Chair.
It is getting crowded behind the Chair.
I hate to interrupt, but is the right of interruption part of the package of reforms which is to be brought forward within three weeks? Will the Taoiseach undertake to consult the other parties in the House on the substance of this package before he publishes it?
I assure the Deputy that the matter is being dealt with as part of a package of reforms and it will be brought forward on that basis.
I asked the Taoiseach if he intends to consult the other parties before publishing this package of reform of the procedures in the Dáil.
He will consult just a few people; it is very private.
I understand the Whips have or will receive copies of the proposals for their consideration. There will be consultation.
Given the Taoiseach's outstanding contribution to logic in his reply to Deputy Harney that the Book of Estimates will be published when it is ready, can he tell me if it will be published this year or must we await the budget?
I am tempted to say it might or it might not, but I expect it will be published this year. It will be published when it is ready and we hope to have it ready as soon as possible.
The Taoiseach may recall the document known as the Programme for Government. He may also recall a document which he himself published ten or 15 years ago entitled A Better Way to Plan the Nation's Finances.
That was a fairy tale.
The Taoiseach may recall that document with greater relish than the Programme for Government. In it he promised that Estimates would be published in the autumn every year but autumn is nearly over.
I hope the Deputy's works will be quoted 15 years from now as the Deputy so generously quotes mine.
He is consistent, whether in Government or not.
The Government will produce the Estimates as soon as possible. However, I am not in a position to give a date in response to an extemporaneously proposed question of this nature.
Would it have anything to do with the Taoiseach's little bout of temper today because he cannot get agreement on the Estimates for 1996?
The Minister for Social Welfare, Deputy De Rossa, thinks our taxes are too low.
There were repeated attempts by the Leader of Fianna Fáil to misquote what I said. I do not like that.
When is it intended to implement the provision in the programme for renewal that the Attorney General will attend all relevant Dáil committees as appropriate and subject to the legal constraints of his office to answer serious questions which the Taoiseach consistently refuses to answer?
Is this something that arises from the programme for renewal?
Perhaps the Deputy recalls a question tabled by Deputy Harney in answer to which I gave an indication as to the Government's long-term intentions regarding the matter. Regarding questions tabled to me, the decisions taken by the Ceann Comhairle as to whether particular questions are admissable are taken independently. The Government does not have any power over the Ceann Comhairle regarding his decisions any more than any previous Government did.
(Interruptions.)
I wish to ask the Taoiseach a straight question to which he can give a straight reply if he wishes. Did the Taoiseach's office make representations to the Ceann Comhairle's office concerning questions I tabled relating to the Attorney General's office about allegations made by the Minister for Transport, Energy and Communications?
The Deputy may not pursue that matter now.
I submit that he did.
On the Order of Business a few weeks ago, the Taoiseach promised that the Courts and Court Officers Bill would be published in October. May I take it that we will see it in published form before this day week?
It will be published this month or early next month.
When will legislation be introduced to provide accommodation for the decentralisation of the Department of Agriculture, Food and Forestry and the Environmental Protection Agency at Johnstown Castle, County Wexford?
I am not aware legislation is required for the decentralisation of offices.
This relates to promised legislation.