Seanad Éireann debate -
Wednesday, 5 Nov 1969

Vol. 67 No. 1

Election of Cathaoirleach.

Tomás Ó Maoláin

Tairgim:

"Go dtoghfar an Seanadóir Micheál Yeats sa Chathaoir agus go rachaidh sé i gceannas an tSeanaid anois mar Chathaoirleach."

Tá sé de onóir agam ainm Micheál Yeats a chur os comhair an tSeanaid chun é a thoghadh mar Chathaoirleach ar an Teach seo.

I have the honour to propose the name of Senator Michael Yeats as a fit and proper person to occupy the Chair of Seanad Éireann. I have no doubt that the name of Michael Yeats is well known not alone to the Members of the Seanad but to the people of Ireland generally and to people far from the shores of Ireland. He is a man of great dignity and culture and he has taken a great interest in the parliamentary work of this country. He is, in my opinion, that rarity of being a born parliamentarian, that is that he not alone attends to his parliamentary duties but he takes an active and a vigilant interest in every piece of printed material which emanates from the Stationery Office and from either House of the Oireachtas. Michael Yeats is a regular attender at meetings of the Seanad of which he has been a Member for many years.

For the information of Senators, I recall that he is the distinguished son of a distinguished father. His father, William Butler Yeats, was a member of the first Seanad and his reputation is world wide. I am happy to say that just in the same way as his distinguished father did, Michael Yeats has made a name for himself not alone in Ireland but in countries in the New World, on the Continent and as far away as Japan. He has a knowledge of law, having graduated from Trinity College, Dublin and he has studied the procedures and Standing Orders of this House.

I am satisfied that Michael Yeats is competent to administer the duties of Chairman in a manner that will give satisfaction to every Member of the House. He has the levelheadedness, the even temper and the broadness of vision which are required of a chairman who is to be the impartial comptroller of discipline and good order in this House.

In electing Senator Michael Yeats to be Cathaoirleach of the Seanad for the next period of this Seanad, we shall not alone be doing an honour to the Senator himself but we shall also be doing a good day's work for the House in electing the man who I believe to be one of the best possible choices that we could make for that position. It is with confidence that I ask the members of Seanad Éireann to elect Senator Michael Yeats as Cathaoirleach.

Mr. Nash

Ba maith liom cuidiú leis an dtairiscint seo. Níl aon dabht ar domhan ach go ndéanfaidh Micheál Yeats a dhícheall dualgaisí na h-árd oifige seo a chomlíonadh mar is ceart. Tá mé cinnte go n-oibreoidh sé go dian, dícheallach, dúthrachtach chun go mbeidh cothram na Féinne le fáil ag gach éinne. Tá súil agam go gcuideoidh gach Seanadóir leis an tairiscint seo, agus guím gach beannacht ar obair an Chathaoirligh.

May I, in the course of seconding this resolution, pay a personal tribute to Senator Michael Yeats? He has the incisiveness of mind, the clarity of expression, the firmness of purpose and, above all, the tolerance which are essential for a good Cathaoirleach. I hope that the Seanad will accept this resolution unanimously. I have no doubt that Senator Michael Yeats will win and retain the respect of all of us as Cathaoirleach and that, therefore, we shall one and all, at all times, and without question, accept his rulings, thereby adding to our own stature and winning and retaining the respect of the nation for our Seanad.

Mr. O'Higgins

I understand that it has been the practice in recent years in the Seanad that the Cathaoirleach be drawn from among those Members in the House who support the Government. I should like to say quite clearly that we in the Fine Gael Party do not regard that as a precedent which should be binding in all circumstances but we appreciate that the practice exists and it is not a practice that we propose to interfere with on this occasion.

I understand also that the procedure of this House differs somewhat from the procedure in the other House in that when divisions are taken here it is not the invariable practice that the Cathaoirleach should be in the Chair but that it is the usual procedure and understanding that if a vote is concerned with a matter of confidence in the Government or an important matter involving Government policy that the Chair on all such occasions will be occupied by the Cathaoirleach. As far as I am concerned and as far as Fine Gael are concerned we must record that that is the procedure and that that procedure should continue in practice during the lifetime of this Seanad.

Senator Ó Maoláin referred quite properly to the distinguished father of Senator Yeats, who is the Government nominee for position of Cathaoirleach, and I subscribe fully to what he said with regard to the Senator's distinguished father. It might also be relevant to recall, as Senator Ó Maoláin did, that he was a Member of the first Seanad and that Senator Yeats' distinguished father was nominated as a Member of the first Seanad by the distinguished father of the Leader of my Party.

Dr. Sheehy Skeffington

This is the fourth occasion on which I have been present in this House at the election of a Chairman. The other occasions were in 1954, 1957—I missed 1961 owing to circumstances over which I had no control—and in 1965. Looking back, I find that on each of those occasions I voted for the Fianna Fáil nominee.

Senator O'Higgins has said that it has become the practice here to have the election of Chairman uncontested, but in 1954 when we had a coalition Government, Fianna Fáil were the Opposition and did contest it. On that occasion, for reasons that I need not go into now and although I was not connected with the party, I voted for the Fianna Fáil nominee and I also voted for the Fianna Fáil nominee in 1957 and in 1965 in the knowledge that the nominee on those occasions had not only a splendid knowledge of the procedure but was quite notably impartial in the Chair.

I have known Senator Michael Yeats for about a quarter of a century—I know him well—and I like to think that he might still be a friend. I certainly think of myself as being a friend of his and I agree with much of what Senator Ó Maoláin has said about him. He is certainly an excellent, attentive and conscientious parliamentarian and a useful, practical, effective one.

I see two objections to his filling this Chair in the way I should like to see it filled. One is that I have found— and other Members of the House may remember also—that not infrequently questions of procedure seemed to defeat him. Not infrequently he found himself lost in a muddle of procedure. The second point is much more important. He is a deeply-committed party politician. I do not think he believes his party have ever been wrong in any detail on anything. I fear that in the Chair this will be a serious disadvantage, not only to him but to many of the rest of us.

I realise that there were other possibilities in the Fianna Fáil Party. If Senator Eoin Ryan had been willing to accept the nomination—as I know he was not and I hasten to say that I know he is more than satisfied with the present nomination—I should have voted for him for his knowledge of procedure and also for his known impartiality. I had hoped also that possibly the name of Senator William Sheldon might have come before us. Of all the Members of this House he is the parliamentarian with the greatest knowledge and experience of parliamentary procedure. Notably, as Acting Chairman many times, he was impartial. Personally I think he would have made an admirable choice. He suffers from the disability in this nonpolitical House of not belonging to the Government party.

Senator Michael Yeats belongs to the Government party and I feel he is so committed to the party that he will find it difficult to bring the degree of impartiality to the conduct of the business of this House which is so important to us. My hope, is, consequently, in saying these things that to some extent my words may influence Senator Yeats not to regard himself too much as being in the Chair mainly to protect Ministers. I would ask him to bear in mind when he is making other decisions such as whether a particular matter is in order for being raised on the Motion for the Adjournment, that he will not be too much conditioned by party loyalties. As a result of my feelings in regard to these two matters, and in particular the second one, I find myself bound to vote against the nomination of Senator Michael Yeats. I believe that in the body of the House he will prove a far more effective and useful Member than sitting in the Chair.

Mr. Horgan

Ba mhaith liom freisin cuidiú leis an dtairisgint atá romhainn, ní toisc go n-aontuím le poilitíocht an tSeanadóir Micheál Yeats ach go gcreidim go bhfuil sé fíor-oiriúnach bheith in a Chathaoirleach ar an Teach seo.

Mr. Brosnahan

Aontaím leis an Seanadóir Ó Maoláin. Tá me cinnte go gcomhlíonfaidh an Seanadóir Micheál Yeats a dhualgaisí sa Tí seo le héifeacht agus le díogras.

I should like to support the motion by Senator Ó Maoláin that Senator Michael Yeats be appointed Cathaoirleach of this House. I am satisfied that Senator Michael Yeats will fulfil his obligations here with dignity, effectiveness, efficiency and impartiality.

Dr. Alton

I should like to be associated with Senator Ó Maoláin and Senator Nash in the motion that Senator Michael Yeats be appointed Cathaoirleach of this House. I have no doubt that such a distinguished man will quite easily fill the office with all the qualities and attributes which it should possess.

Question put.

Dr. Sheehy Skeffington

Division.

An Cléireach

Will Senators opposing the motion please rise?

Senator Miss Bourke and Senator Sheehy Skeffington rose.

Motion declared carried, Senator Miss Bourke and Senator Sheehy Skeffington dissenting.

An Cléireach

Iarraim ar an Seanadóir Micheál Yeats, mar sin, teacht i gceannas an tSeanaid.

Whereupon Senators rose in their places and remained standing while the Cathaoirleach proceeded to the Dais.

An Cathaoirleach

Tá mé anbhuíoch díobh uilig ar ucht mé a cheapadh inniu mar Chathaoirleach ar an Seanad. Is mór an onóir atá sibh tar éis a bhronnadh orm agus geallaim díobh go ndéanfaidh mé gach aon iarracht na dualgaisí a bhaineann leis an oifig seo a chomhlíonadh comh héifeachtúil agus comh cothromúil agus is féidir liom é sin a dhéanamh. De réir sean-thradisiúin an tSeanaid bíonn cáirdeas agus comh-oibriú eadrainn sa Teach seo. Déanfaidh mé mo dhícheall chun an ard-traidisiún sin a chothú agus a neartú sna blianta atá romhainn. Is fíor, ar ndóigh, nach féidir leis an Cathaoirleach a dhualgaisí a chomhlíonadh mar is cheart gan cuidiú ó mhuintir an tSeanaid. Beidh mé ag brath oraibh mar sin cuidiú liomsa san obair thábhachtach atá le déanamh againn.

I wish to thank the Members of the Seanad for the honour they have conferred on me in electing me to the Chair. It is an honour I fully appreciate. I should like to assure all the Senators that I will do my utmost to act with fairness and with justice to all. I am sure in the future there will continue to be the same spirit of co-operation and friendship between the Chair and the House that has always been such a notable aspect of our procedings in the past. May I wish you all every success in the work that lies ahead?