Pat Rabbitte
Question:7 Mr. Rabbitte asked the Taoiseach his Department's proposed legislative priorities for the remainder of the 29th Dáil; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [19722/03]
Ceisteanna–Questions. - Legislative Programme.
Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin
Question:8 Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin asked the Taoiseach his Department's legislative programme for the remainder of 2003. [20275/03]
Trevor Sargent
Question:9 Mr. Sargent asked the Taoiseach his Department's legislative programme for the remainder of 2003; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20405/03]
Enda Kenny
Question:10 Mr. Kenny asked the Taoiseach his legislative priorities for the remainder of the 29th Dáil; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [22033/03]
Joe Higgins
Question:11 Mr. J. Higgins asked the Taoiseach the legislative priorities of his Department for the current session of Dáil Éireann. [24879/03]
I propose to take Questions Nos. 7 to 11, inclusive, together.
My Department has dealt with two Bills for the 29th Dáil, the National Economic and Social Development Office Bill 2002 and the Interpretation Bill 2002. The National Economic and Social Development Office Bill is currently on Second Stage. The Interpretation Bill 2002, which has passed all Stages in this House, is awaiting Second Stage in the Seanad.
There is not much that one can ask about that heavy legislative schedule. I will have to try some lateral thinking. Did the Taoiseach notice the recent public address by the president of SIPTU counselling the desirability and necessity for the old Department of Labour to be re-established? Does the Taoiseach have a view on that?
I have seen those remarks. I held the post of Minister for Labour for the longest period of any Minister since the foundation of the State, and then the Department was abolished. Those matters are dealt with differently nowadays in that negotiations come under my Department and other sections such as pay are within the Department of Finance. The Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment has the labour sections division. The SIPTU leaders and others have made the point that the old system was better. However, at that time people argued that having the central negotiating element in the Department of Finance or the Department of the Taoiseach would be a better way of doing things. I am not sure that if one changed it back, one would satisfy the case being made.
Does the Taoiseach envisage legislation regarding the Office of the Attorney General? A number of issues have arisen, including the repeated call for the Attorney General's advice to the Cabinet to be made public. Under the code of conduct for officeholders that we discussed at some length yesterday, I have noted what I regard as an anomalous situation whereby the Attorney General is not deemed to be an officeholder for the purposes of the code of conduct unless he or she is a Member of the Dáil or the Seanad. The Attorney General is currently excluded from the code of conduct.
The Deputy is going well outside Questions Nos. 7 to 11, inclusive.
This concerns legislation. Is legislation proposed to address this anomaly? The situation is—
Sorry, the Deputy has made his point. He cannot make a Second Stage speech on the matter at this stage.
I do not intend to do so.
The Deputy should allow the Taoiseach to answer the question.
This is one of the rare occasions on which we have the opportunity to focus on a significant deficiency.
Sorry, Deputy, we are dealing with Questions Nos. 7 to 11.
With the Chair's constant—
Assistance.
—attempts to close me down, I will have to conclude.
The Chair has been more than generous.
Will the Taoiseach tell the House whether legislation is proposed to address the issue of the Office of the Attorney General? I refer specifically to the fact that the Attorney General is neither a Member of the Dáil nor a Member of the Seanad.
Sorry, Deputy—
He or she is not duty bound under the code of conduct regulations.
I suggest that the Deputy should submit a question on the issue.
The Attorney General is not a parliamentarian but he or she is totally duty bound by the regulations and rules as a member of the Cabinet. He or she is totally bound by the criteria in respect of the financial and other declarations. The relevant legislation is the Interpretation Bill 2000 which simplifies the reading of statute law and deletes large amounts of standard principles for interpretation. The Attorney General is dealing with that legislation in order to simplify the entire legislative base and build on the work done by the Minister, Deputy McDowell, in recent years. The Bill is before the Houses.
I would like to speak about matters related to yesterday's questions on the code of standards.
We cannot go back to yesterday's questions.
I am putting it in context.
The Deputy should relate his questions to Questions Nos. 7 to 11.
We are talking about the Department of the Taoiseach. The code of standards gave rise to an expectation—
We are not debating the code of standards.
—that there would be legislation.
We are at the end of Taoiseach's Question Time.
I realise that.
We have to move on to the Order of Business.
I am trying to bring it to an end as quickly as possible. The Irish Times reported on 27 October that legislation may be brought forward by the Department of the Taoiseach to regulate lobbyists. Is such legislation one of the legislative priorities about which we are to here to ask? Does the Taoiseach have a role in the ordering of legislation in terms of priority? In other words, will the national monuments Bill be given priority over the infrastructure Bill which will allow regulations to be put in place before development can take place?
The Deputy has made his point.
The legislation referred to by the Deputy is not being brought forward by my Department but by the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment. A Cabinet decision will be taken on legislation in respect of regulating. The Cabinet examines its legislative priorities at the start of every session and the Chief Whip produces a schedule which lists the order in which legislation will be taken. The legislation to be taken in a given session is the subject of a collective decision on the part of the Government.