asked the Minister for Local Government the amount of allocations made to Louth County Council by his Department for all housing for the financial year ending 31st March 1967; and the amount paid at this date.
10.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Local Authority Housing Finances.
9.
asked the Minister for Local Government the amount of allocations made to Drogheda Corporation in respect of housing for the financial year 1966-67; and the amount paid at this date.
11.
asked the Minister for Local Government the amount of allocations made to Dundalk Urban Council in respect of housing for the financial year 1966-67; and the amount paid at this date.
12.
asked the Minister for Local Government the total amount of the allocation made to local authorities by his Department for all housing and reconstruction of houses for the financial year 1966-67; and the amount paid at this date.
With your permission, a Cheann Comhairle, I propose to take Questions Nos. 9 to 12 together, and as the reply is in the form of a tabular statement, I propose to circulate it with the Official Report.
Following is the statement:
CAPITAL allocations for housing made to date to local authorities in respect of the financial year 1966-67 and the amounts issued to date from Local Loans Fund on foot of these allocations.
|
Local Authority |
Amount of Allocation to date |
*Amount issued from Local Loans Fund to date |
|
£ |
£ |
|
|
Louth County Council |
169,000 |
44,550 |
|
Drogheda Corporation |
325,000 |
189,000 |
|
Dundalk UDC |
204,000 |
155,100 |
|
All local authorities combined |
18,312,600 |
8,025,589 |
*Particulars are not available of the amounts utilised to date by local authorities from internal and other sources.
I do not know whether this is in line with the proper procedure. If questions are framed so that they will require only a simple answer of perhaps one or two figures, surely the Minister should give an oral reply?
I have no control over how the answer is presented. The Minister has said he proposes to circulate a tabular statement.
The Minister gives this reply with your permission.
With my permission as regards a tabular statement.
I want to make it quite clear that I had no intention of casting a reflection on the Chair.
Is it not at the discretion of the Chair that you direct the Minister to provide oral answers to questions which appear on the Order Paper without an asterisk and am I not right in saying it is only when the question can satisfy the Ceann Comhairle that to give the answer would take an undue proportion of Parliamentary time that the Ceann Comhairle exercises his discretion to exonerate the Minister from that obligation?
The Chair has no discretion with regard to the form of the answer.
Then why has it been the practice of this House for 40 years that if as Ministers we seek to offer a written return instead of an oral answer, we seek the leave of the Ceann Comhairle for that procedure? If we did not have to seek your leave, you would have no discretion, but as we seek to adopt this form as Ministers only by your leave surely you exercise discretion over the replies of Ministers?
It is only my leave to insert in the Official Report that is referred to.
Does the Minister not have to seek your permission, in regard to any oral answer, to insert it in the Official Report?
There is not any discretion on the part of the Ceann Comhairle——
Why is it that——
Would the Deputy please allow me to continue ? — nor has it ever been exercised by the Ceann Comhairle.
It could be a way of avoiding supplementaries.
I do not believe it is.
I would like to say that this series of questions is in regard to different matters and each answer could involve only one or two figures. As I am not satisfied with the reply, I intend, with your permission, to raise the matter on the Adjournment.
But the Deputy does not know what the information is.
Why does the Minister use the expression "with the permission of the Ceann Comhairle", if the Ceann Comhairle has no function?
Courtesy.
That is relevant to the printing in the Official Report over which the Ceann Comhairle has authority.
It is irrelevant for a Minister of the House to say it then.
This is an important matter, Sir. It is open to the Ceann Comhairle to say to the Minister: "If you do not elect to give the oral answer, I will not permit the inclusion of the material in the Official Report." On a point of order, I respectfully submit that one of the most valuable prerogatives that an ordinary Deputy has is the supplementary question, which should be protected. This could be a device to avoid awkward supplementary questions, or the declaration of the intent to raise an unsatisfactory answer on the Adjournment.
It has been the practice since this House was established and it has never been sustained, with evidence, that it was used for any irregular purpose.
Does the Ceann Comhairle see copies of Ministerial replies before the House sits at 3 o'clock ?
Yes.
Suppose I asked the Minister for Agriculture whether he proposed to raise the price of wheat this year——
The Deputy could not get a better price.
As I have said I will raise the subject matter of these questions on the Adjournment, am I entitled to raise the subject matter of all of these questions on the Adjournment, seeing they have been answered jointly? And what is my position in relation to the tabular statement which is to appear in the Official Report? Shall I get a copy of it today so that I can study the facts included in it?
The Deputy can get it now.
Can I raise the subject matter of all the questions answered, or merely one.
The Deputy can separate the answers in the reply he receives. There will be separate replies on the point raised in each question.
With respect, and I have no desire to delay the House, may I, when dealing with this matter on the Adjournment tonight, include all the answers to all the questions that have been included in the reply?
The practice is that only one question is allowed on the Adjournment. There have been occasions when more than one has been allowed.
With respect, then, I hold that this is a restricting thing on a Deputy. It may mean that I may have to raise the subject matter of these questions on the Adjournment on different days.
I shall give the Deputy a definite answer when I examine the questions.