Léim ar aghaidh chuig an bpríomhábhar
Gnáthamharc

Dáil Éireann díospóireacht -
Wednesday, 7 Dec 2016

Vol. 932 No. 1

Business of Dáil

May I raise a point of order regarding Standing Order 46?

The Ceann Comhairle will know that Standing Order 46 states: "The Ceann Comhairle shall have discretion to permit any member to make a personal explanation in the Dáil". He will also know that I made this request to him yesterday.

Our press officer was contacted yesterday evening by a journalist, Niall O'Connor, from the Irish Independent. In an e-mail he stated that the Government press secretary had released the following statement: "Deputy Adams has not yet made an application to the Ceann Comhairle for speaking time tomorrow." If Niall O'Connor's claim is true, I ask the Ceann Comhairle to make it clear that it is not the business of the Government or anyone else to be deliberately misleading the media or facilitating the media misleading anyone else about what communications I have had or have not had with the Ceann Comhairle. It is not the business of the Government to comment at all on the Ceann Comhairle or his office, which is an independent office. I raised this question with the Ceann Comhairle yesterday evening.

I am grateful to the Deputy for raising the matter.

He is absolutely correct - the negotiations that take place between my office and any Member of the House are confidential and have always been treated as such. Following the Deputy's call, I called the Government Press Office to protest that my office had been referred to in a communication issued by it on this matter.

I thank the Ceann Comhairle. It is a mark of the character of the messing on this very serious issue that the Government should do such a thing.

I thank the Deputy; we do not need to go further.

The question was asked yesterday whether, if Deputy Gerry Adams wished to make a statement, I would give Government time for it and I said "Yes". Obviously, the making of a personal statement is a matter between the Ceann Comhairle and the Deputy involved. I am sorry that a message to the contrary was sent. It is for the Deputy to deal with the Ceann Comhairle, but the question I was asked was if I would give Government time to enable the Deputy to make a statement and I was very happy to do so. I hope that in the statement he will make today at 5 p.m. he will deal with the issues we have raised.

The Taoiseach needs to take responsibility for his office and those who give misleading briefings.

We cannot go into that matter now.

Barr
Roinn