Before we commence our business today, a very serious issue has arisen. On the motion yesterday about the use of the guillotine-----
Business of Dáil
Please, Deputy.
Let me may explain. On the allocation of time motion regarding the Water Services (Amendment) Bill, the Minister for Education and Skills, Deputy Quinn, informed the House-----
I ask the Deputy to resume his seat. The order for today was decided yesterday. We are discussing Private Members' business which is the only item on the agenda. The Deputy will have an opportunity next week to raise this matter.
The House was seriously misled yesterday-----
Deputy Ó Cuív had his chance yesterday.
Please, Deputy.
May I make just one comment?
No, I ask the Deputy to resume his seat.
Deputy Ó Cuív had his chance yesterday. Throw him out.
I want order on all sides, please.
I seek the advice of the Leas-Cheann Comahirle.
The Deputy must resume his seat because we must move on to deal with Private Members' business. The only reason the House is sitting today is to discuss the legislation in the name of Deputy Collins.
I ask for the advice of the Chair-----
The Deputy can come to my office later. He should, please, resume his seat.
(Interruptions).
I will have to suspend the sitting, unless the Deputy sits down.
The House was misled yesterday by the Minister, Deputy Quinn, who said the reason for guillotining -----
That is not the issue for today. Order, please.
-----the debate on the Water Services (Amendment) Bill-----
The Deputy can table a motion on the matter. That is enough; I am suspending the sitting for five minutes.
Sitting suspended at 10.35 a.m. and resumed at 10.40 a.m.
I call Deputy Niall Collins.
If I may-----
(Interruptions).
Will the Deputy, please, resume his seat? I wish to make one statement and ask for order.
Twice in the House on this day-----
Will the Deputy, please, resume his seat? The Chair is on his feet.
-----we have been lied to-----
A Deputy
Withdraw that remark.
I will not withdraw it because it is the truth.
The Deputy should resume his seat. Any allegations about misleading the House cannot be made in the Dáil-----
Let us not rush. They are misleading the House. They are misleading the country also.
Any allegations about misleading the House should be made by way of substantive motion. Today's Order of Business relates to Private Members' business, the Bill to be introduced by Deputy Niall Collins.
They are misleading themselves and do not know it.
I call on Deputy Collins. I apologise to Deputy Ó Cuív, but there will be no further debate on this issue.
There was incorrect information given for the second time in regard to the Water Services (Amendment) Bill-----
The Deputy should resume his seat. I repeat, any allegations about misleading the House are made by way of substantive motion.
Have him withdraw the remark.
This leads to a serious issue that two votes were taken yesterday based on a false premise. Can I take it-----
If the Deputy does not resume his seat, he will have to leave the House.
Never mind that nobody matters in this House-----
Sit down, Mattie.
Please, if the Deputy does not resume his seat-----
Can I take it that the votes-----
Excuse me. How dare the Government Whip tell me to sit down. That is the Chair's job.
I am asking the Deputy to resume his seat.
That is what the bully boys over there do. It is outrageous. How dare the Whip-----
I ask the Deputy to resume his seat.
Will the Chair restrain the Whip?
Will the Deputy resume his seat?
I will. I trust the Leas-Cheann Comhairle.
I will be fair to all Members.
How many fivers?
They are saying something about a fiver. Would the Chair ever ask-----
The Deputy should resume his seat. I will be fair to all Members.
I thought we were dealing with the motion. I object, a Leas-Cheann Comhairle, to these snide remarks. They pushed through two votes on this. I put it to the Minister before we came in and he said he was not even aware of that.
We already decided yesterday.
He said the Whip had done it. The Whip is here now and can answer us. The votes were pushed through on a false premise.
I call Deputy Collins.
We have been misled. It is pig in a poke legislation, with no guidelines and no information on it.
The Deputy should resume his seat. I have already said that any allegations of misleading the House should be made by way of substantive motion, not across the floor.
It was totally misleading. The Minister is here. He can tell us.
Will the Deputy, please, resume his seat?
Did the Deputy get travelling expenses?
They are making allegations about fivers or something. They think the people are fools altogether.
I ask the Deputy to stop. He should resume his seat.
He said I got travelling expenses. These are scurrilous allegations. They are false. Will the Chair deal with him?
I will deal with everybody fairly.
Twice this morning he has made allegations that are untrue.
Allegations that have been made in this House should be dealt with by way of substantive motion.
Is the Chair going to check the Member?
I am dealing with the matter and will be fair to everybody.
I am not going to sit down until the Chair checks the Member.
The Deputy must resume his seat.
Show some fairness.
I will be fair to everybody in the House.
The Chair is not being fair.
I cannot while there is too much noise.
It is not noise. Allegations have been made over there that are scurrilous, without basis and untrue.
Too many allegations are being made and there is too much noise.
On a point of order-----
This will be the last point on this.
I appreciate that. As the Chair can see, there is some difficulty here this morning in trying to reach a consensus on how we should proceed. Much of the difficulty relates to the Water Services (Amendment) Bill. I suggest the Chair allow the Whips ten minutes to met outside the House and suggest he suspends the sitting for ten minutes to allow them to discuss the issue. Considering the Minister is available today, they should see if they can reach any kind of compromise on this fraught issue. Otherwise, we will continue to have difficulty.
I ask the Deputy to resume his seat.
Allowing that discussion would be in line with the commitment of the Government to bring a level of reform to the way in which we do business. Seeing as the issue has arisen-----
The Deputy has made his point.
-----will the Chair allow a suspension to discuss this issue?
The Deputy has made his point and should resume his seat. The Business was ordered yesterday. We have a Bill to discuss today and I have called on Deputy Niall Collins to introduce it.
It is the Chair's prerogative to suspend the sitting. I ask him to do this to seek agreement.
There is no point. I cannot accept the Deputy's suggestion because the business was discussed yesterday and now we have the Bill to be discussed today.
I do not want to cause disruption. I respect the House, as do most of those here. However, for the sake of ten minutes, allow the Whips sit down to have a conversation, give the Minister a chance to have a cup of tea and get his thoughts together. I appeal to the Chair.
We have already had a suspension, but that is not the point. If one wants to allege-----
Was the House misled yesterday?
Will the Deputy, please, resume his seat?
The Chair is getting very big for his boots very quickly and would want to be brought down to size. He is getting very arrogant.
The Deputy should resume his seat.
Was the House misled yesterday? That is what I want to know.
For the last time, I ask the Deputy to sit down.
What does the Whip have to say about it? Was the House misled yesterday?
The Deputy should resume his seat. I have already ruled that we cannot-----
Deputy Dooley has made a very reasonable proposal to try to resolve the matter.
I cannot accept that proposal because we already set the order yesterday for today's business and have already had one suspension. I will have to adjourn the House completely if this disorder continues.
The order was based on a false premise. The Whip was there yesterday, waving his hands and all. It was done falsely and it was not a lie - I hate using the word - but it was a lie we were told yesterday, because-----
The Deputy cannot use that word.
-----we know all about it from the European Commission. This is Dáil reform as we call it, to curtail the committees as well as the House.
The Deputy should resume his seat.
It was a precedent that the debate at the committee was being guillotined-----
The Deputy should resume his seat or he will have to leave the House.
Throw him out.
Is the Chair going to deal with the Whip?
The Chair is on his feet. I will deal with everybody in the House.
The Chair has not dealt with the Whip at all. I ask the Chair again to be fair.
I am being fair to everybody.
Allegations were made about me and they are scurrilous lies and-----
Throw him out, a Leas-Cheann Comhairle.
The Deputy will have to leave the House if he does not resume his seat. These issues can be dealt with and the Deputy knows how that can be done. He must go to the Office of the Ceann Comhairle.
The Deputy would love to have me gone out of here in order that he could get away with peddling his lies.
Withdraw that remark.
Sitting suspended at 10.47 a.m. and resumed at 10.52 a.m.