Vol. 118 No. 13
Before I move the Adjournment I want to move the following:
That notwithstanding anything in Standing Orders, the provisions of Standing Orders 28 and 29 in regard to a matter and motion on the Adjournment respectively shall not be invoked for the sitting on Thursday, 25 February 1988.
In other words, we are not taking any Adjournment matter tomorrow.
Is that motion agreed?
Could we have a further explanation? Has it been arrived at after consultation with the Whips? Can we be given a reason for this?
I want to support Senator McMahon. I do not fully understand why this motion is being made, why there cannot be the usual time for an Adjournment matter tomorrow evening.
The reason for it is that the Dáil is not sitting at all tomorrow. Both Houses are sitting on Friday. I felt it would be rather unfair to keep Ministers here tomorrow evening until 5 o'clock as they will not be in the House. If Senators insist we will go ahead with a motion tomorrow evening. We can get finished a little earlier tomorrow than other Thursdays because some people may want to go home and come back again on Friday.
Why cannot we decide that tomorrow morning on the Order of Business?
I am a little concerned that this very valued privilege should be abolished even just for tomorrow because I could not help noticing how extremely fortunate I was this morning to have my Adjournment matter taken. There were quite a large number of other motions which were deemed by the Cathaoirleach to be proper motions which must now go back into the pipeline. I would feel a little concerned that my colleagues — there must have been eight or nine of them this morning — would be deprived of the opportunity of having one of their motions taken tomorrow.
I want to make the same point as Senator Norris has made, that there were quite a number of requests for a debate on the Adjournment that could not be facilitated today. The reason the other House is not meeting tomorrow, I understand, is that they have to equip it for television for the following day. It is not for any other reason. I do not see that as a reason for this House cutting short its sitting time tomorrow. Even if the Deputy Leader of the House can convince us that there is a necessity to shorten the sitting time tomorrow, there are other ways of doing it. It does not have to cut out the debate on the Adjournment matter. Normally we sit until 5 o'clock so we could sit until 4.30 and have our Adjournment debate up to 5 o'clock.
Could I ask the Deputy Leader of the House is his motion withdrawn?
I withdrawn it. It may be raised in the morning. I will not be raising it. The Leader of the House might decide to raise it.
When is it proposed to sit again?
At 10.30 a.m. tomorrow.
