I think it will be recognised that the people have been looking forward to the proceedings of this Assembly to-day, not merely with anxiety but possibly with some degree of hope. The events of the last fortnight or three weeks have undoubtedly spread throughout the country a feeling of deep disquiet and uneasiness. The manner in which the petrol situation was handled, and the dislocation of business consequent thereon, has left in the people a feeling that if that is going to happen with that particular commodity, what next crisis is going to confront them? They began to feel that possibly they have been allowed to live during the past 12 months in somewhat of a fool's paradise. If the impression which this debate has made upon me permeates throughout the country, I think the people will have little cause for satisfaction, because the impression left in my mind from the Minister's speech, and from his numerous interruptions, notwithstanding all the affirmations he may make from time to time, to the contrary, is the startling one, that the sinking of two ships has rocked the economic structure of this State to its very foundations.
So far as I have been able to understand from the speeches made to-day nothing has happened since Christmas except the sinking of two ships. We have been listening for months past to tales of misery and woe over the wireless on the sinking of ships elsewhere, the loss of tonnage and the consequent dislocation of economic life throughout the world. It should, therefore, be no surprise, even to the Ministry, enveloped perhaps as they are in the veil of neutrality, that ships are likely to be sunk. The Minister for Supplies ought to realise that his function is to supply things and not to say afterwards: "How was I to know that ships were going to be sunk?" That is what he said to-day in an interruption during Deputy Dillon's speech. Deputy Dillon was speaking about the way in which the petrol situation was handled and the Minister said: "How was I to know that these two ships were going to be sunk?" It was his business to anticipate that that was likely to happen. I do not suppose anyone was not aware that such an event was almost certain to happen, and the great failure of the Department of Supplies was in not having taken adequate steps months ago to meet such a situation as arose at Christmas in connection with the supply of petrol. The sinking of two ships dislocated our transport system, dislocated private business and threw a large number of people out of employment. It had repercussions in practically every aspect of our economic life, all because two ships were sunk when ships are being sunk over all the oceans of the world daily.
Because two, and only two were sunk we are faced here with the necessity of having to call the Dáil in order to allay the fears of the country as to what was happening. We find the conclusion to be irresistible that if these two tankers had not been sunk at Christmas, the Dáil would not have been called to-day, and the country would not have this opportunity of discussing the question of essential food supplies and essential services and we would not have the opportunity of waking up to the dangers confronting the country. As far as we can gather, apparently the Ministry was living in this fool's paradise, or else were content, if they had the knowledge, that the country was in danger, economic or otherwise. They were content to leave the people in ignorance of the true situation, and to let them carry on, in the belief that all was well in the best possible part of the whole world. It seems to me that the position would have been, if these two ships had not been sunk, that this country would have gone on gaily as before. I think it was no mere coincidence that this letter to Deputies—or rather to some Deputies, as some of us did not get it—from the Minister for Industry and Commerce or the Minister for Agriculture, or whoever it was, asking them to join in a national campaign about wheat-growing, only emerged on the 7th January, just at the moment the country was plunged in its deepest disturbance over the petrol supplies.
It may be that that was one of the devices so frequently practised before by the Ministry—endeavouring to divert attention from one mess by trying to attract attention to something which would ultimately land the country in another. That did not matter to the Ministry, as long as the attention was taken away from the particular futility and fatuous conduct in which the Ministry was indulging. It may have been a coincidence that that notice was sent forth at that time of petrol dislocation: it may have been a coincidence that it was in the midst of this disturbance that the Minister took occasion to warn the country about the imminence of famine, giving special interviews to the Press when speeches were being made throughout the country about petrol supplies. I doubt if we would have heard one single word of these things if it had not been for the fact that these two ships were sunk about Christmas time, that the Ministry had not anticipated that they would be sunk and that they had no arrangements made to meet a situation of that kind.
Undoubtedly, the country has received a great shock and is entitled to get the fullest possible information. The people look to this Assembly, if not to allay their fears, at least to tell them the truth, so that they may, as they always have done, face this and brace themselves for any ordeal that may be in front of them. If there is no ordeal in front of them, well and good, but if there is, let them know the worst rather than have these imaginary fears of a national disaster and of national woe running riot throughout the country as they are at present owing to the events of the last three weeks. The Government ought to give the fullest possible information now in reference to matters in which it is possible to give it, so that the people will know precisely where they stand.
At the beginning of this war I took occasion, in one of the few remarks I made at the time, to appeal to the Minister for Supplies so far as possible to keep up the supply and distribution of petrol. At the outset of the remarks I have to make now in reference to this petrol situation, I believe I ought to speak on behalf of what has been rather contemptuously referred to by many people as "the owner of the private motor car." There has been a lot of talk about essential services and about what is to be done in the way of keeping supplies for those engaged in so-called essential services. I am interested in the supply of petrol, not from the point of view of giving joy-rides to the owners of motor cars, but from that of people in my own constituency and elsewhere who are dependent directly or indirectly on the continuance of the motor trade in all its branches. There are far more people dependent on the motor trade than many people imagine. There are huge numbers of people directly engaged in that trade— mechanics, distributors of petrol, sellers of cars, clerks, typists and so on.
There are also chauffeurs employed by private individuals and people who do part-time gardening and part-time driving; and then there are also the people in humbler circumstances doing the more difficult jobs of cleaning, oiling and washing cars for private owners. There are also clerks in insurance companies. In fact, I could multiply the list of those engaged in the motor trade and it would amount to many thousands of people directly or indirectly dependent on its continuance. Therefore, this problem should not be narrowed and restricted —as apparently it is being—by Civil Service and bureaucratic points of view, merely in order to ensure supplies for people engaged in so-called essential services. The owner of the private motor car should be given great consideration and not thrown on the scrap-heap in this fashion. It is on the private motor car that many men and women depend for their business or trade. It may not be a trade or business that is called an essential service, but it is very essential that those people should be able to earn their livelihood and speed in transport is one point which enables them to improve their capacity for earning money, to maintain families dependent on those earnings.
Apart from that aspect of the case, going down to the humbler class, the mechanics in the motor shops are largely dependent, not on buses or lorries, but on the owners of private motor cars. The owners of the big buses and lorries have combines for their own establishments and their own private places where mechanics are employed. The ordinary poor man earning his living in a garage as a mechanic or helper is absolutely dependent on the influx of private motor cars. Because two ships have been sunk, no more private motor cars are allowed on the road, and as far as I can gather it seems to be a sort of virtue in Government Departments and amongst the officials generally, a sort of holy thought, that something is being done in the work of national improvement when the owners of private cars are tricked into paying their tax and get no petrol. In very many of these cases the ownership and driving of a car involve the livelihood of people in humble circumstances.
I had occasion myself to feel the impact on one poor man in my own employment, as a result of these operations in the Christmas period. I do not think any reasonable person in the country can understand the reason for this state of affairs. Petrol had been distributed lavishly up to Christmas, but after Christmas Eve, without one word of warning, there is the sudden statement that there is no petrol; and there is official silence for days and then an announcement that coupons are to remain at their face value, and "dare anybody use their cars without paying the tax" as there would be a posse of police standing at street corners and in doorways ready to pounce upon anyone who should dare to get a pint of petrol for an untaxed car.
The Minister waxed very indignant during the course of one of his interruptions when he asked Deputy Dillon —and subsequently, I think, Deputy O'Higgins—to give him any quotation where he or his colleagues or any official stated to the owners of motor-cars anything which could be interpreted either as a threat or as an inducement to the owners of motor cars to tax their cars. There is no such quotation available. The Minister for Supplies takes refuge in the fact that he was clever enough not to put upon record any such threat or any such inducement. He was much too clever to put himself on record in such a manner that any individual who taxed a car in the face of a statement of that kind could prefer an indictment against him for getting money under a false promise. But that, in effect, was what was done, although no official statement was issued that could be seized upon. But 99 per cent., in fact I think 100 per cent., of those who taxed their cars got this impression—it was carefully disseminated in a way that it could not be pinned down to individuals, whether officials or Ministers—"Tax your car for the full year and you are a good citizen; tax it for a quarter and we will get after you in a way in which you will feel the full weight of our official action when we come to distribute petrol from the tanks that are on their way here." That was the kind of feeling that induced large numbers of people to tax their cars. Numbers found it out quickly and stopped the cheque for their quarter's tax, but there were others who had paid out the money for a quarter and quite a number for a full year. Now it is regarded as a sort of virtue that the owners of private motor-cars are not to get petrol for the use of their cars, having taxed and insured them. They must suffer not merely the inconvenience of being without them, but possibly the loss of income. This will certainly lead to the creation of additional unemployment.
Primarily, from the point of view of employment in the city and, generally, throughout the country, I want to make this protest against the iniquity of the system that apparently is going to be put into operation under the rationing system. I can see no change from the situation that existed last year right up to Christmas, or from what apparently is likely to happen in the course of the next few months. Apparently, supplies of petrol were coming in at regular intervals during the last 12 months. At all events, if not adequate supplies, at least some considerable supplies of petrol were available. The owners of private cars who used them for business purposes, or even for private and pleasure purposes, were given, if not an adequate supply of petrol, at least a sufficiency. We are now told by the Minister for Supplies that that situation cannot continue. All that has happened is that two ships have gone down. The storage available for the petrol from these two ships, if they had arrived, was empty for a short time, but we may take it that it will soon be filled because it is common knowledge that one tanker has come in in the last few days. What is going to stop petrol from coming again? Since two ships have been sunk, I suppose the Minister will say that it has now dawned on him that tankers coming here are likely to be sunk. But why cannot he do now what he should have done 12 months ago—take steps to deal with the likely probability of tankers coming even to this country being sunk?
Deputy Dillon made a statement about storage which was indignantly denied by the Minister for Supplies. It is common knowledge that certain people here were prepared to erect further storage for petrol. What I would like to know, and what I think most people who are now being hit in the matter of earning a livelihood will want to know, is this: why, during the last 12 months, additional emergency storage was not created so that a sufficiency of petrol could have been kept to carry the country over this unforeseen emergency? Two ships have been sunk and nearly three weeks have passed, but I suppose that in another month or so the tanks will be full again. Why cannot steps be taken even now to continue the system that operated last year so that the motor trade, the employees in that trade and others depending for a livelihood on the maintenance of motoring, public and private, will not have to face again the situation that arose at Christmas. The Minister for Supplies again made the illuminating observation, in the course of his cross talk with Deputy Dillon, in a reference to the suggestion that certain people or firms were prepared some years ago to set up additional storage in this country, that if the petrol companies would fill their available storage they would solve his problem. I must say that that statement came with startling effect upon me, because I think the only meaning that can be given to it is, that there is, in fact, in this country additional storage available which has not been filled. The petrol companies, the Minister for Supplies said, have available storage and they will not fill it for me. I think we are entitled to know why, and to be told by the Minister, before this debate concludes, to what extent there is available storage at the disposal of the petrol companies which, the Minister says, they will not fill, and why they have not filled it during the last 12 months. Why did they not put sufficient petrol there to cover this unforeseen emergency of two ships having been sunk? I gather that the whole problem of the Minister would be solved if the petrol companies had filled their tanks. Surely they could have gathered in a supply that would be equal to what was lost in the two ships that were sunk.
I think that, because of all this, the country has a right to be shocked. The country through the Dáil, which has been summoned by the Leader of the Opposition, is in my opinion entitled to get the fullest possible information on all these matters because no matter what is said here now the feeling has become deep-seated and deep-rooted— it will be very hard to eradicate it— that the country is being run in blinkers. People are getting the feeling that they will not know they are going over the precipice until they are actually at the edge of it. The experience of the last few weeks makes it imperative that the Dáil should sit continuously. We from this side of the House have given the Government the fullest possible co-operation in the difficult circumstances that have existed, and that have confronted the Government in the last 15 or 16 months. We are still willing to give that, but a halt had to be called sometime on economic matters. The time has now come when the problems that confront the country must be tackled and faced in public.
I want to address a few words to the House on the question of wheat. as it affects the city areas and urban workers. I have said that I did not receive the Minister's letter asking me to co-operate in this great national campaign on wheat growing. That was possibly because I represent a city constituency. Well, if my constituents in Ringsend and Rathmines do not grow wheat, at any rate they eat bread. I think that my constituents, the working people there and the working classes throughout the country generally, are entitled to know what effect the Minister's proposal in reference to this grand national campaign of wheat growing is going to have on the cost of bread for them, and on the cost of living in general. This Party has stood for the rights of the farmers in bad times and it will stand for their rights now, when possibly they have some even remote glimmer of good times, and will see, so far as lies within their power, that the farmers, if they do indulge in this orgy of wheat growing in which the Minister wants them to indulge, they will get an adequate payment for their efforts. But I must raise a voice in warning against any possibility of that campaign resulting in an increase in the price of bread.
