It is proposed to take business in the following order: Nos. 4 and 7, and to take Private Members' Business from 7 p.m. to 8.30 p.m.—No. 79 by agreement. It is proposed that the House will not meet until 11.30 a.m. tomorrow so as to enable members to attend the Arbour Hill commemoration service. I understand that it is agreed that the debate on the Second Stage of the Finance Bill can include discussion on the White Paper on Investment and National Development, 1979-1983, which was published in January last.
Order of Business.
Do the Government consider it reasonable, to meet a request made by me repeatedly and as early as when the Dáil resumed at the end of February, to debate the White Paper within a matter of two hours before the debate on the Finance Bill beginning? What way is this of doing business? Are the Government running away from this White Paper?
That matter will be under discussion now.
I would have thought that if the Deputy had been pursuing the White Paper since January he would be in a position to deal with it at any time.
I am prepared to deal with it but the Government are running away from it. It is a peurile way of doing business. The Whip was told over lunch that it would be all right to debate the White Paper now.
Is this not the only occasion on which a White Paper has not been discussed? We were told that unless we agreed to what the Taoiseach is proposing, we would not have any opportunity to debate the White Paper. What sort of communication is this between Government and Opposition?
It is very difficult to please the Opposition.
I asked six weeks ago for a debate on this White Paper. One can imagine what would have been the reaction to Deputy Cosgrave as Taoiseach behaving in this way.
In respect of any proposal of a reasonable nature that is put forward by the Opposition for debate, particularly in relation to current matters, we are endeavouring to facilitate them. I am sure they will admit that. I do not accept that this is the first time that a White Paper has not been debated but I would not purport to be accurate in that regard.
It has not happened within the past decade anyway that a White Paper has not been debated.
In order to meet the Opposition and to be reasonable we have agreed to the proposal that perhaps the matter could be debate with as I have outlined, but if the Opposition do not wish to discuss the White Paper in connection with the Finance Bill that is their affair and it is all right with us.
We were faced with a Hobson's choice.
Is that reply from the Taoiseach intended to mean that if the Opposition had not wished to discuss the White Paper with the Finance Bill, time would have been made available separately for the White Paper?
I am not an academic such as the Deputy is but it seems that he does not know what he wants. First he wants discussion on the White Paper and now when we are proposing to discuss it he is not satisfied either.
Of course I am anxious that the White Paper be debated but it is no way to treat the House to give such short notice of that debate. This is no way for the Taoiseach to treat the people on his own side either.
(Interruptions.)
Order. The Deputy has made his point.
What chance will they have of studying this document?
The Taoiseach has made the Opposition an offer that they cannot refuse.
It is another attempt to discredit Deputy O'Donoghue.
Before Question Time I gave notice to the Chair that I proposed raising the question of a very serious statement made by a Northern Ireland MP.
Question Time is over. We are now on the Order of Business.
It is on the Order of Business that I am raising the matter now.
Questions turned down for Private Notice treatment may not be raised in this manner.
I am not proposing to raise the matter now but am I not entitled to give my reasons for wishing to have the matter raised on the adjournment?
The Deputy is not entitled to debate this question now.
Am I not entitled to give notice of a matter that I intend to raise?
You are
I propose to raise the matter of a serious statement made by a Northern Ireland MP, a statement which reflects on the integrity of our Army this side of the Border. It is extremely important that matters such as this should be dealt with immediately because of the incitement they cause north of the Border. In the circumstances I propose to raise the matter on the Adjournment but I should like you to give me an explanation as to when a private notice question is of such urgency and importance that it can be raised.
As I have pointed out frequently a Deputy may not proceed to try to discuss in the House any question that has not been permitted.
But when is a private notice question regarded as being of sufficient urgency to be permitted and why in a case such as the one in question, when there are lives at stake, would the Chair not agree that the matter is urgent? Your judgment could have been a little more sympathetic on this occasion.
We must get away from the habit of discussing questions that are not permitted.
When is a question considered to be of sufficient urgency to enable it to be raised?
The Chair is not giving information to the House on these matters. If a Deputy is not satisfied in any instance with the disallowing of a question he may always discuss the matter with me afterwards.