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Dáil Éireann díospóireacht -
Tuesday, 20 Feb 1979

Vol. 311 No. 9

Order of Business.

It is proposed to take Nos. 6, 7, 8 and 9. Private Members' Business will be taken from 7 to 8.30 p.m., No. 19 by agreement.

Under what statutory instrument does the Taoiseach propose to introduce the 2 per cent agricultural levy?

The Deputy might have given me notice of this question.

I tried to give notice this morning to the Whip's Office but unfortunately I could not get on to Government Buildings because of the telephone dispute.

I saw the Deputy in the House some hours ago and he could have had the courtesy to give me notice of it then.

Could I ask the Taoiseach on the Order of Business if he would give the House some indication of the Government's intentions with regard to the further progress of the budget debate for which only five-and-a-half hours this week have been ordered?

It was debated two days last week and two days the week before and it is intended to debate it again on Thursday of this week.

The budget debate, properly so called, was debated one day last week and one day the week before and it will be debated one day this week. I thought the Government were anxious to get the Minister for Finance in to explain himself.

My recollection is that the budget was introduced on Wednesday week last, debated on Thursday week last, debated again last Wednesday and last Thursday.

Nothing happened on Wednesday week except the reading of the budget statement and the conventional response. The debate proper began on Thursday, 8 February, was resumed on 14 and 15 February and has not resumed since.

May I say that we followed the precedent which was followed by the Deputy when he was Government Chief Whip but so far we have debated the budget for longer hours than were given to it at a corresponding time when the Deputy was Government Chief Whip.

Could I ask the Taoiseach when he anticipates the Finance Bill will be taken?

I could not possibly give the Deputy that information at this stage.

Will the provision for the 2 per cent farmers levy be included in the Finance Bill?

Again, that matter would be better answered if the Deputy had given me some notice.

Will that be another budget?

(Cavan-Monaghan): In view of the talk about this year's budget might I ask the Taoiseach when it is proposed to conclude the debate on the 1978 budget which is still on the Order Paper?

The proper thing to do, since this budget debate is on, is to have that motion withdrawn.

Will the Taoiseach arrange for the Minister for Finance to speak tomorrow so that "the very serious imputations against his honour", of which he is complaining, can be effectively refuted in the manner in which he has promised? We are all agog to hear that.

He has already refuted them. In fact, they do not need refutation because they seem to have been withdrawn.

Can the Taoiseach give an assurance that this year's budget debate will be concluded and not be like last year's debate when points made by Deputies were never replied to because the Minister never replied? The same seems to be happening with the White Paper to date which does not look as if it will conclude either.

As I have already indicated to Deputy Kelly it is a matter for the Deputies opposite to give the final Government speaker a chance to get in and wind up.

(Interruptions.)

Will the Taoiseach explain why he used such remarks as "this nation, the Irish economy, the Irish cause"?

Is it in order to repeat a question?

It is a constitutional question and I want to know why it was ruled out of order.

May, I address the Chair on a point of order? It is mainly for the purpose of asking you if it is in order for a Deputy, no matter how loud his voice, no matter how brash his appearance might be, to keep shouting people down, blatantly and flagrantly breaching the rules of order in the House? The Deputy is now doing exactly that and I suggest he is out of order.

I am asking why a constitutional question has been ruled out of order.

The Deputy is well aware that this matter cannot be raised in the House. The Deputy has already got an explanation.

I have not.

Could I ask the Taoiseach if I repeat my question tomorrow morning if the 2 per cent agricultural levy will be introduced in the Finance Bill or under what other statutory instrument will I be able to get a reply?

If I can get the information I will have it conveyed to the Deputy.

I have no recollection of seeing the Taoiseach in the corridors a few hours ago.

Does the Deputy deny that I was in the House a few hours ago?

The Taoiseach was in the House at 2.30 and so was I.

Has the Taoiseach yet decided when he intends to give Government time for a debate on the removal of £22 million from food subsidies? He undertook to give such time.

Yes, I undertook to give it. I am not yet in a position to indicate when. The matter, as far as I have heard and seen, is being debated in the course of the budget debate anyway. I do not see the urgency.

Considering that he gave this undertaking to the House approximately two week ago, would the Taoiseach not agree that he has had sufficient time to be able to indicate when the debate on the removal of food subsidies could take place?

Of course, I have had sufficient time, but I do not intend to indicate a date at this stage.

Is it intended to conclude the debate on the White Paper which was commenced but to which the Minister never replied?

I will be waiting to see how we get on with the budget debate first and when the budget debate is finished perhaps we could have the White Paper debate.

The debate on the White Paper commenced first.

There are certain constraints about the budget debate to which we must conform.

(Cavan-Monaghan): Apparently not.

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