I will endeavour to deal with the various points raised. The first question was from Senator Lynch in connection with the Copyright Bill. The Copyright Bill passed all Stages in this House and was sent back to Dáil Éireann. I can assure Senator Lynch that I have been urging the speedy handling of the amendment to that Bill in Dáil Éireann. I was informed two weeks ago that some difficulty had arisen in regard to this Bill. I do not know the details of it but such information as I have indicates that it has nothing to do with the Performing Right Society, with that particular aspect of the Bill, or with the question of any charges. I have been urging that it should be returned to us and I will once again express to the Minister in charge of the Bill that concern has been expressed publicly in the Seanad in regard to this matter.
In regard to the next question raised, that we have 17 items on the agenda at present and that there is no Government business proposed to be done, this is a remarkably clear demonstration of the fact that the Leader of the House cannot win. If he does not give time for Private Members' Business, then he is criticised because he only brings the Seanad together to rush through Government business and that he does not make this a deliberative House. Of course it was open to me that the Seanad should not meet this week. But I wonder what would have happened the following week. I am quite sure Senator Brendan Ryan would have been eloquent in pointing out the fact, if there was a week in which there was no Government business, that, as he indicated already this evening, there are several private measures.
The situation is that I asked the Cathaoirleach to have a sitting this week. I proposed that on the Adjournment the last day. Might I say that there are very few Independent Senators sitting in this House when it comes to the Adjournment at the end of the day when we decide whether to meet next week or not? On that occasion I proposed that we meet today and we are meeting largely for Private Members' Business. And why not? What is wrong with that if this House is to do its job? It has, of course, a public function in regard to Government business and legislation. When we have the time I am perfectly willing to make that time available for Private Members' Business.
Senator Smith raised the question of the Private Members' motion that we will be taking from 6.30 p.m. to 8 p.m. The position in regard to this is that I have been informed that the Minister of State, Deputy Donnellan, who sat through this debate last week will attend this evening and will make a contribution to the debate. That is the information that I have.
In regard to the question of the slowness with which legislation is coming forward, I concur with what has been said. I can state my personal opinion that I do not think there is any Member in this House who would have been happier than I would have been to see introduced in this House one of the three Children Bills that we are supposed to be getting. I have expressed the point of view that these Bills are long overdue. I have expressed willingness and anxiety that these Bills should be introduced in the Seanad. What I have said privately I now say publicly.
In regard to the question of the Housing (Homeless) Persons' Bill, this is something about which I can well understand that Senator Lanigan should ask a question. It has been with us for a while. It should be open to Members to discuss this matter this afternoon. Since it has been such a while since it was discussed I will mention something that I might not have mentioned until the matter came up. That is that I would ask permission of the House that the Minister of State be allowed to speak on this matter because such time has elapsed since the former Minister of State, now Minister for Labour, intervened in the debate. Of course, under our Standing Orders the Minister of State has a right to address the House but it is a normal convention that no more than one representative of the Government would intervene. I trust that the House would welcome a statement from the Minister of State, in this case Deputy Séamus Pattison, in regard to the present position.
In regard to what Senator Lanigan said about the debate on the EC motion, he indicated that on a previous occasion there were three Fianna Fáil speakers in succession. We must allow a pardonable degree of exaggeration. The exaggeration was only 50 per cent in this case — only two Fianna Fáil speakers spoke in succession after Senator Ferris. They were Senator Hussey and Senator Kiely. After that it passed to the Government side. When it was next discussed on 29 November, it went to this side of the House and then went back to the other side when Senator Fitzsimons spoke. After that Senator Hourigan and Loughrey spoke in succession. If the charge can be made that the Government were not interested in the EC on 21 November then the Opposition were not interested on 29 November. I think if we all make a resolution that whether this motion is reached tomorrow or whether it is reached at a future date, that all sides of the House will join in a thorough discussion of developments in the EC and the future of the EC which is so vital to our country and to the Community in which we are members.
