It is proposed to take the business on the Order Paper in the following order—Nos. 1, 2, 7, 8, 9, 6 and 10, Nos. 4 and 5 to be taken in their appropriate place.
Order of Business.
A request was addressed to the Parliamentary Secretary to the Taoiseach that an opportunity should be provided for a debate on the Adjournment. I should like to know if the Government are prepared to provide time for such a debate.
I hope time will be available.
What time?
A lot will depend on the time at which the business is finished.
We think that the business is likely to be finished in two hours and we should be satisfied if we got three hours for the Adjournment Debate.
Would three hours be necessary?
If you finish the ordinary business at 6 o'clock, you need not adjourn until 10.30.
If the House is satisfied with three hours we are willing to provide that time.
What is the date of the proposed adjournment?
We propose that the Dáil should adjourn to the 2nd October.
Three hours will therefore be given to the Adjournment Debate. I have indirectly heard that the matter to be raised is the general economic position in the State. It is, or rather was, usual to give the Ceann Comhairle notice in writing of the subject for debate. That precedent has not been followed on this occasion. It was a reasonable custom, and the Chair should be informed of the subject to be debated.
Lest the Chair may think that there was any discourtesy intended, may I say that it is only now that we have been told that time will be provided for the debate? There was obviously little use in submitting a motion when we did not know whether we would get time to debate it.
It is only right that you should know, Sir, that it was only this morning we were asked for time.
That is due to the fact that we were told yesterday that the Dáil might meet on next Wednesday.
Not by me.
By the Taoiseach.
It is, therefore, decided that three hours will be allotted on the motion for the adjournment, for a discussion of the general economic position in the country.