Tá fáilte romhaibh ar ais. On 2 September last, the Taoiseach requested me by letter, under Standing Order 26(1), to summon Dáil Éireann to meet today, 7 September 2016, at 10 a.m. to consider the Government decision to appeal the European Commission's decision that Ireland provided unlawful state aid to Apple. The business of today's special meeting is confined to the subject matter set out in the summons and the arrangements relating thereto.
Before we commence with the business of the day, I would like to take this opportunity to update the Members of the House on the progress being made with the replacement of critical aspects of the Dáil Chamber equipment. A business continuity plan was always in place for any possible recall of the Dáil. The project is advancing well. As a result, we meet today using sound components of the new systems. The work on the new systems has been temporarily suspended until this sitting has been completed. However, a major body of work on the new systems still remains to be completed before Tuesday, 27 September, when the Dáil will reconvene. This remaining work includes configuration and testing of the electronic voting system, further installation works, extensive testing of the new systems and full integration of all the new systems. The project team is on target to have all work completed in time for the autumn session, which will commence on 27 September. With that said, I call on the Taoiseach to propose the arrangements in connection with today's business.
