Seanad Éireann debate -
Wednesday, 18 May 1927

Vol. 8 No. 30

MOTION TO SUSPEND STANDING ORDERS.

Mr. BROWN

I move:—

"That the Standing Orders be suspended from the 18th to the 23rd May, 1927, inclusive, for the purpose of allowing more than one stage of any Bill to be taken on the same day."

I have set down this notice of motion for the purpose of facilitating the discharge of business by this House for the rest of the Session. As is indicated on the Order Paper, there are a large number of Bills to be dealt with. Most of them are non-controversial, but it would facilitate matters, and, in fact, will be necessary and expedite the business, to take two Stages of some of these Bills, perhaps all of them, on the same day. Under our Standing Orders two clear days' notice is necessary to suspend the Standing Orders, and if we had to suspend the Standing Orders for each of these Bills it would require five or six separate notices of motion to do so, with two clear days' notice between each one. If this motion is carried in the form I have put it down, one motion will be sufficient for all purposes, and the advantage will be that we will be able to arrange our business to suit our own convenience as to the way these Bills will come before us. It is quite obvious that the motion is one which would greatly facilitate the business of this House.

Sir N. EVERARD

I second.

Mr. GUINNESS

I take it the motion will allow all stages to be taken, including the Second Reading, on the one day.

CATHAOIRLEACH

Why make it more drastic than is necessary? I am quite sure that in its present form the motion will enable us to complete our business satisfactorily. I do not think it ought to be made more drastic than it is.

Colonel MOORE

I rise to oppose this motion, as I cannot see any reasonable case for it. Crowds of Bills have been, on many occasions, sent up to us for discussion or, perhaps I should say, to be passed without discussion, and on each occasion during the last two years I have objected to this method of doing business. It is only a few months since our Standing Orders were changed to try to prevent that state of affairs. No doubt there have been occasions when matters of great national importance necessitated something being done. The Seanad on these occasions, I think, smilingly agreed to carry out the wishes of the Dáil. There were other occasions on which the Seanad did not approve smilingly, but nevertheless they complied grudgingly. Before agreeing to a motion of this sort we ought to ask if there is any national reason or any great emergency.

CATHAOIRLEACH

That does not arise. The question of national emergency only arises when it is sought to suspend the Standing Orders without giving the necessary two days' notice.

Colonel MOORE

Apparently no reason at all is given for this motion. We are not to think of national things, but if anybody choses he can get up and propose such a motion. Will the Senator tell us why he proposes it?

CATHAOIRLEACH

He has made an effort. I do not know whether it is complete or not.

Colonel MOORE

A very poor effort, one, at all events, to which I cannot agree. We have Standing Orders and unless there is some emergency we should not suspend them. If Senator Brown said that some of these matters were very important there might be some reason for doing so. We have a number of Bills to come before us that are of the greatest national importance. There are two Finance Bills, an Electricity Bill and the Agricultural Credit Bill. All these are important and we are asked to swallow them practically without reasonable discussion. I must say that I cannot see any reason for that except that the Government has chosen to set down a certain date for the election, for which they can give no reason. If they said this election was necessary for some extraordinary reason, that would be something to go on, but they have not given one word of a reason. They simply say: "We are going to have an election on a certain date," and probably they have chosen that period for some reason that they have not given; that they are keen on. Public opinion and the Press have agreed that it is most improper that Bills should be passed without proper consideration. For that reason I oppose the motion. As far as I can understand it, the only reason Ministers have for proposing a sudden dissolution is that their association is beginning to get nervous at the idea of their policy being criticised all over the country for a lengthy period and that a calamity is likely to happen to them. Perhaps there is some other reason. If so, why do they not give it? They take three or four of the most important Bills that ever came before this House and ask us to dash through them and pass them. I am rather astonished that Senator Brown proposes such a motion. I always regarded him as a very independent Senator. That is the reason he was elected. Still, he comes down and, for what seems to me party reasons, wants to get Bills through in a great hurry and wipe out all he has ever said about proper discussion of Bills. I protest against any such thing being done.

Motion put and declared carried.