I move that the Dáil adjourns until April 20th.
The Adjournment—Unemployment Question.
Is it proposed to introduce the Budget on that day?
We hope to introduce the Budget on the following Wednesday—the 27th.
Can we have an outline of the business for the 20th?
For obvious reasons, I could not outline the business at this stage.
Before the motion for the adjournment is carried, I should like to maintain an old custom. I am sure that on this matter I shall have the wholehearted and vocal assistance of the Minister for Industry and Commerce, if not of the President, and that I shall also have the assistance of the Minister for Finance and of the leader of the Labour Party. I do not expect to get any assistance from the front Opposition bench. I should like to know from the President or some of the Ministers what the Government propose to do to relieve the plight of the 80,000 or 90,000 who are unemployed at present. As is well known to the President and the Minister for Finance, the number of unemployed to-day is far greater than it was on this day twelve months. It is well known to every member of the last Dáil that on every occasion upon which it was proposed to adjourn the House for any lengthy period, the leader and other members of the Labour Party brought before the Government of the day their responsibility to the unemployed. On every occasion on which this matter was brought up in the Dáil since 1927, we had the wholehearted support of the members of the Fianna Fáil Party. No member was more vocal, no member more telling, no member more striking in his advocacy that everything possible should be done for the unemployed than the present Minister for Industry and Commerce, the man who is responsible to-day for seeing that those unemployed receive either work or maintenance. On many occasions, as a result of this question being brought before the House and threshed out here, we were able to get from the then Government, at least some sop—something which would relieve, even for a short time, those who were unemployed and in need of sustenance. I hope that the new Government is not going to depart from that principle.
I know I shall be told that the policy of the new Government is to find permanent employment for the unemployed. Personally, I am wholeheartedly in agreement with that aim. But I want to be quite clear that— to use the words of the present Minister for Industry and Commerce on one occasion—while we are elaborating schemes which will lead to permanent employment the unemployed will be enabled to live. What I should like to know from the Government, before we adjourn for five weeks, is what immediate steps they propose to take to deal with the unemployment question pending the introduction of schemes which they hope, and which I hope, will lead to the provision of permanent employment for those who are able and willing to work. I am sure that every member of the Government Party is as anxious as the members of the other parties in the House that relief should be given. They have stated that on many occasions both inside and outside the House. They are now in a position to do what they very often challenged their predecessors to do. I hope for the sake of the unemployed that the President and some of his Ministers will be able to indicate to the House before we adjourn to-night for a period of roughly five weeks, what is going to be done in the immediate future and what proposals are to be put before the House.
The Labour Party will not oppose the motion for the adjournment because we realise at the outset that Ministers who are only five days in office cannot be expected to give to this House a complete outline of their policy either in the matter of unemployment or in any of the other big social and economic questions that confront the country to-day. It would be quite impossible to ask the Minister for Industry and Commerce to indicate to this House his schemes for the relief of unemployment. As I said last week, the Labour Party will support the new Government so long as the new Government gives definite evidence of its desire to end the unemployment problem and to deal with these other social evils that press with such rigour on our people to-day. But we must not forget that the best ten years of the nation's life, during which there could be a growth of virility and progress, were frittered away by the outgoing Government which allowed the cobwebs of conservatism to grow all over our industrial life. For ten years we have had to put up with their Micawberlike policy, waiting for something to turn up. We see no evidence that the late Government appreciated its responsibility towards the problem of unemployment or towards the other problems confronting the country. I do say to the President that the Labour Party and the people of the country will expect that during the next four or five weeks the new Government will not only settle down to the work of their own Departments and familiarise themselves with that work but that during the Dáil's adjournment every possible effort will be made to put on foot schemes for providing work for our people—schemes for curing the social problems which confront the country to-day. Having regard to the declarations of the Fianna Fáil Party during the recent elections, declarations which they indicated they were prepared to honour if returned to office, I hope the President will take a personal interest in ensuring that every one of his Departments will, from to-morrow, be set full steam ahead to deal with the major task which confronts these Departments, and when the Dáil resumes I hope that the President will be able to give us evidence that the Government has not been idle in the meantime. Unlike Deputy Morrissey I do not believe that unemployment can be cured by talking about it. The continuance of the Dáil in session for four or five weeks is no guarantee that unemployment will in the meantime be dealt with.
The Deputy is turning down his colleagues who have been saying just the opposite to that for the last ten years.
Unemployment can be cured and solved only by the Ministers of the new Government concentrating all their attention on the problem. I hope, therefore, that every possible effort will be made to clear away from the different Departments the cobwebs of conservatism and reaction which have been carefully woven through these Departments by the outgoing Government during the past ten years.
I feel that there is one other important matter upon which the new Government ought to make their position clear before we adjourn to-day. I refer to their attitude towards law and order. It appears to me that the events of the last few days have put that attitude in a rather ambiguous position. During the election I heard the release of the prisoners who have recently been discharged from the jails defended on every occasion on the ground that it would turn them into peaceful and contented citizens. I regret to say that it appears to me that the language which these released prisoners have already been using in the first transports of their joy tends to throw doubt upon that contention. They have been expressing their determination to continue actively with militant and illegal organisations. I think it is due to the country and to this House that the Government should give some indication as to what their attitude is going to be in regard to these activities. I observe in the Press reports that in a speech last Sunday the Minister for Justice described himself as the Republican Minister for Justice, and another Deputy belonging to the Fianna Fáil Party said in the presence of the Minister for Justice that it was the policy of his Party to break the connection between the Irish Free State and England. Now nothing can be worse, I am certain, from the point of view of preserving law and order, than ambiguity in the position of the Government in this matter. There may be something to be said for breaking the connection between this country and England, but let us be clear as to whether that is the policy of the present Government. If it is let us now know what is the reason for the delay in the execution of that policy. So far as I am aware there is no reason why we should not proceed to secede from the British Commonwealth of Nations any moment we want to.
Come over.
The question is do we want to? At any rate do not let us give the excuse of an ambiguity to these amiable citizens just released from jail—do not give them that excuse for continuing with illegal activities and possibly continuing with criminal activities. I do not think it is asking too much to suggest to the President that he should give us some information as to his attitude on this question before we adjourn.
Hear, hear!
I am delighted beyond measure at the advent to this House of a young man of the calibre of Deputy MacDermot. He has asked a question which I was about to ask. It is time, as he suggests, that there should be no ambiguity about the position of the Government in relation to public statements and the activities of an illegal organisation. Of course, it is very easy to take the line of least resistance in this country. Unfortunately, we have not a healthy or a sound public opinion. There is a new morality abroad in the country. That new morality suggests that thou shalt not obey constitutional Government. Two cardinal errors were made in the Dáil right at the commencement of the Fianna Fáil régime. We had shabby treatment meted out to a respected and honoured member of the Dáil. I referred to that earlier to-day. Then, although it was the prerogative of the new Executive to exercise clemency, they might, at least, have had the decency to repeal the Constitution (Amendment No. 17) Act before exercising that clemency.
No examination was made of the records of some of those men who were liberated. The ordinary preliminaries, which are usual in such cases, were disregarded. I suggest we should have some pronouncement from the President as to his attitude in relation to the future Government of the country. Is he prepared to have the law administered as it should be administered? Is he prepared to insist that there shall be only one Army in this country? These are very important questions, and it would ease the public mind, where an amount of disturbance is present already, if we had an indication from the President that he will deal firmly with any illegal organisation that is set up in this country to subvert law and order by the use of the gun, by armed force, or by resistance to constituted authority, constituted authority in this case being the elected Government of the people.
Deputy MacDermot has raised an important question in relation to the release of the prisoners. There is one aspect in regard to which I think the House should have an explanation. During the late election a very prominent Senator, a K.C., said that one of the first acts of the new Government would be to open the prison gates. He deliberately said that in doing so a careful review would be made of the classes of prisoners. He said there was one class of prisoner that he certainly would not be prepared to release, and that was any man convicted by a jury of his fellow-countrymen. Two of the prisoners who have been released were so convicted. They were found guilty of serious criminal offences, one of them of attempted murder. It might be possible to account for the release of men committed to jail by the Military Tribunal, and it might be possible to account for the abolition of the Military Tribunal. This House, and society generally throughout the country, should know why men who were convicted of serious criminal offences by juries of their fellow-countrymen were allowed out under the guise of political prisoners.
[An Ceann Comhairle resumed the Chair.]
Various suggestions have been put forward with regard to relieving the farming community. Our President has set a good example and the members of the Cabinet have set a good example, and I think that example should be followed right through. There should be a drastic reduction in every Department. There should be a fearless attitude on the part of our Executive in the direction of a really drastic reshuffle. That will mean a direct relief to the country and it will result in efficient administration. By doing that we will be able to fulfil our promises to the people, and in a very short period our Government will have done more for the people of the country than the last Government did during its ten years of office.
As regards the prisoners, we are proud to be associated with the President and the Executive Council who did not waste one hour in releasing the prisoners. We believe that the day is not far distant when we will act like men, evacuate and leave the country and its administrative offices to the real people who should be in control of this Dáil and of this country.
Hear, hear—reshuffle and evacuate.
I trust that the new Executive will not lose sight of the many necessary works that should be proceeded with in the constituency I represent. So far as the Minister for Industry and Commerce is concerned, there are certain matters that I would like to draw to his attention, but I do not think this is the proper occasion, and I will bring them in due course under his notice. I sincerely trust that the new Government will direct its attention to much-needed improvements in Donegal.
With regard to providing work for the unemployed I may say that Ministers have been directed to have schemes immediately examined in their own Departments with a view to selecting those of a reproductive character and making them available so that work will be given as quickly as possible, and thereby relieve unemployment. That is all we have been able to get done so far. During the interval between this and the next sitting of the Dáil, Ministers will be able to familiarise themselves with the routine work of their Departments, and they will start working out schemes so that the existing unemployment, which we regard as our principal problem, may be properly tackled.
A question has been asked by Deputy Dillon with regard to trawlers. My information at the moment is that the only thing that stands in the way is adequate means of pursuit and capture. We have a right to deal with any trawlers within our territorial waters. We have a right to treat them as pirates and it is our intention to deal with them as such the moment we have the adequate means for capturing them. The provision of that adequate means is a difficult matter. We have to see what can be done in that way.
The next question is in regard to law and order. I do not think there should be any misapprehension in the mind of any Deputy here as to what our attitude is. During the General Election we made it quite clear that we stood for one Government and one Army. Not merely during the last election, but back in 1927, we made that definitely clear. The fundamental point in our policy has been this—to try to get willing obedience to the law instead of trying to secure it by coercive measures. Because certain statements were made by someone recently, there are Deputies who try to infer that that policy is already a failure. It is nothing of the kind. We have only taken the first step in getting that policy accepted throughout the country. I am confident it will be accepted. We want to make it possible for every section of the people to have representation in this Assembly without having to coerce their consciences by submitting to political tests of any kind. In order to do that we propose to remove the Oath. We have got a mandate from the people to remove it. The moment we have got that done, then I am convinced there will be no reasonable excuse for anybody refusing to give willing obedience to the law.
I am satisfied there is no danger whatever. Simply because there has been a reversal of policy from that of coercion to that of an appeal to the good sense and patriotism of the people of the country, those who have been accustomed to the other method think that the whole world is going to collapse. We heard of frightful things that would happen the moment the Fianna Fáil Government came into power. We have seen no evidence of these things. The credit of the country has not gone down, as we were told it would, with a change of Government. We have had a peaceful change of Government. I would say that if nothing was accomplished but the mere change over, this peaceful change over, a wonderful thing was done for the country. If we fail, and if we are to be put out of office in another month's time, I say, nevertheless, that this change over has done a tremendous amount to bring about proper conditions in the country and a proper attitude towards government here. I do not think it is necessary for me to stress any further than I have done that we are conscious of our responsibilities. We have accepted office from the people on the understanding that we recognise what our responsibilities are. I suggest that Deputies who would like to make it appear that we are running away from our responsibilities should show good cause.
One thing has been referred to—the release of the prisoners. It has been suggested that there was no examination, that this was done hastily without any examination whatever. It was not. Those who have been released were released because we were satisfied that they were in fact political prisoners—political prisoners in the ordinary acceptation of the term. There were some prisoners convicted by juries, but they had already served long terms, and one of these prisoners at least should have been released long ago on the ground of ill-health, if nothing else. So that no case whatever can be made by any Deputy to suggest that we are acting in this matter otherwise than with the full knowledge of our responsibilities and in full accord with the pledges we gave to the people when we asked to be elected.
The Dáil adjourned at 7.23 p.m. until Wednesday, 20th April.