It is proposed to take Nos. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6. No. 1 is the Social Welfare Bill. Senators will recall that it is necessary that this Bill should be law before 1 April. My proposal is that we should complete the Second Stage of No. 1; we should then take No. 2, which should not take too much time, and then return to the Committee and Final Stages of No. 1, following this by an earlier signature motion.
It is not proposed to take any break from 5.30 p.m. to 6.30 p.m. It is proposed to interrupt business at 6.30 in order to take No. 6, which is a motion on Apartheid, a motion that has the support of all groups in the House. It is not certain, since it is so widely supported, whether we will require the full three hours for the discussion of No. 6, but in any case it is proposed that when No. 6 is completed — that, of course, will be not later than 9.30 p.m. — we should return to the previous business and sit until 10 p.m. In this way we will increase the chances of an early adjournment tomorrow and also a relatively short session on next Tuesday.
Senators will be aware that the Bill in connection with the Insurance Corporation of Ireland is not scheduled to pass Dáil Éireann until Friday and accordingly it will be necessary for us to meet next Tuesday. But I would, of course, hope that all of our business which has to be law before Easter — that is the Social Welfare Bill and the Local Government Bill which has to go into law before certain orders about the local elections can be made — should all be completed early tomorrow to leave the decks relatively free for next Tuesday.
