An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business – Dáil Éireann (33rd Dáil) – Tuesday, 17 Oct 2023

An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business

Minister of State at the Department of the Taoiseach (Deputy Hildegarde Naughton)

I move:

Tuesday's business shall be the Statements on the final report of the independent scoping exercise into the circumstances surrounding the death of Mr. Shane O'Farrell (not to exceed 112 mins).

Tuesday's private members' business shall be the Motion re Funding for Persons with Disabilities, selected by Sinn Féin.

Wednesday's business shall be:

- Motion re Appointment of An Coimisinéir Teanga (without debate)

- Statements on trends in mortality and estimates of excess mortality (not to exceed 147 mins)

- Motion re the Situation in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories (to be taken immediately prior to the Statements on the Situation in the Middle East and the Occupied Palestinian Territories and without debate)

- Statements on the Situation in the Middle East and the Occupied Palestinian Territories (to be taken no earlier than 5.14 p.m., and not to exceed 212 mins)

- Energy (Windfall Gains in the Energy Sector) (Cap on Market Revenues) Bill 2023 (Report and Final Stages) (to be taken no earlier than 7.30 p.m., and to conclude within 1 hr)

Wednesday's private members' business shall be the Motion re Driving Test Waiting Times, selected by the Rural Independent Group.

Thursday's business shall be:

- Statements on Investment in Health Care (not to exceed 212 mins)

- Statements on the importance of continued and enhanced Government capital support for sports facilities (not to exceed 147 mins)

Thursday evening business shall be Second Stage of the Defective Dwellings Bill 2021.

In relation to Tuesday's business, it is proposed that:

1. the ordinary routine of business as contained in Schedule 3 to Standing Orders shall be modified to the following extent:

(i) oral questions to the Taoiseach pursuant to Standing Order 46(1) shall not be taken and oral Parliamentary Questions to the Minister for Education shall be taken on the conclusion of Questions on Policy or Promised Legislation;

(ii) Government business shall be taken on the conclusion of questions to the Minister for Education;

(iii) private members’ business may be taken later than 6.12 p.m. and shall in any event be taken on the conclusion of Government business; and

(iv) topical issues may be taken earlier than 9.44 p.m., and shall in any event be taken on the conclusion of private members' business, with consequential effect on the time for the adjournment of the Dáil; and

2. the following arrangements shall apply in relation to the Statements on the final report of the independent scoping exercise into the circumstances surrounding the death of Mr. Shane O'Farrell:

(i) the statements shall not exceed 102 minutes, and the arrangements for that time shall be in accordance with the Order of the Dáil of 30th July, 2020, and the Resolution of the Dáil of 20th September, 2023; and

(ii) following the statements, a Minister or Minister of State shall be called upon to make a statement in reply which shall not exceed 10 minutes.

In relation to Wednesday's business, it is proposed that:

1. the ordinary routine of business as contained in Schedule 3 to Standing Orders shall be modified to the following extent:

(i) the Dáil shall sit later than 9.30 p.m.; and

(ii) the weekly division time may be taken later than 8.45 p.m., and shall in any event be taken on the conclusion of the Energy (Windfall Gains in the Energy Sector) (Cap on Market Revenues) Bill 2023;

2. the Motion re Appointment of An Coimisinéir Teanga shall be taken without debate;

3. the following arrangements shall apply in relation to the Statements on trends in mortality and estimates of excess mortality:

(i) the statements shall not exceed 137 minutes, and the arrangements for that time shall be in accordance with the Order of the Dáil of 30th July, 2020, and the Resolution of the Dáil of 20th September, 2023; and

(ii) following the statements, a Minister or Minister of State shall be called upon to make a statement in reply which shall not exceed 10 minutes;

4. the proceedings on the Motion re the Situation in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories shall be taken immediately prior to the Statements on the Situation in the Middle East and the Occupied Palestinian Territories and without debate;

5. the Statements on the Situation in the Middle East and the Occupied Palestinian Territories shall be taken no earlier than 5.14 p.m. and the following arrangements shall apply thereto:

(i) the statements shall not exceed 202 minutes, and the arrangements for that time shall be in accordance with the Order of the Dáil of 30th July, 2020, and the Resolution of the Dáil of 20th September, 2023; and

(ii) following the statements, a Minister or Minister of State shall be called upon to make a statement in reply which shall not exceed 10 minutes; and

6. the proceedings on the Report and Final Stages of the Energy (Windfall Gains in the Energy Sector) (Cap on Market Revenues) Bill 2023 shall be taken no earlier than 7.30 p.m. and shall, if not previously concluded, be brought to a conclusion after one hour by one question which shall be put from the Chair and which shall, in relation to amendments, include only those set down or accepted by the Minister for Environment, Climate and Communications.

In relation to Thursday's business, it is proposed that:

1. the ordinary routine of business as contained in Schedule 3 to Standing Orders shall be modified to the following extent:

(i) the Dáil shall sit later than 9.27 p.m.; and

(ii) topical issues shall be taken on the conclusion of Government business and Second Stage of the Defective Dwellings Bill 2021 shall be taken on the conclusion of topical issues, with consequential effect on the time for the adjournment of the Dáil;

2. the following arrangements shall apply in relation to the Statements on Investment in Health Care:

(ii) following the statements, a Minister or Minister of State shall be called upon to make a statement in reply which shall not exceed 10 minutes; and

3. the following arrangements shall apply in relation to the Statements on the importance of continued and enhanced Government capital support for sports facilities:

(ii) following the statements, a Minister or Minister of State shall be called upon to make a statement in reply which shall not exceed 10 minutes.

An Ceann Comhairle

Is that agreed?

Deputy Róisín Shortall

It is not agreed. I welcome the fact that time is to be provided on Thursday for discussing the health funding issue. The Minister for Health will be there but should the Minister for Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform not present himself to the Chamber to tell us about his role in the health budget?

A Minister making statements in the Dáil does not constitute accountability to the Dáil. In order for us to agree to the Order of Business, will the Taoiseach agree to time being allowed for questions and answers on this important issue?

Deputy Mary Lou McDonald

The proposal to have a motion on the situation in Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories taken without debate is not acceptable. We have had a tradition in the Dáil of working collectively and in a collegiate fashion to arrive at consensus positions when it comes to Palestine. I believe that we should maintain that. There is enough common ground, some of which the Taoiseach recited, such as condemnation of the attacks and the taking of Israeli hostages, condemnation of breaches of international law by Israel, including collective punishment and forced transfer of population, and, above all else, a call for a ceasefire. We can build common ground on these things but, unfortunately, the Government has not seen fit to do so. I appeal for that to be the approach we take and maintain, which has always been the case on this issue since I was elected. We should not break that tradition at a time of such peril.

Deputy Ivana Bacik

I too take issue with the Order of Business so that a Government-crafted motion on Palestine and Israel would be taken tomorrow without debate, a motion we have only just seen. It was supplied to us, I think, just half an hour ago. I agree that we should have been able to come to a consensual position on a cross-party basis, which would have been a far preferable way to approach this issue. We all share an outright condemnation of the brutality of Hamas. However, we also share an outright condemnation of the escalation in violence over the past week by Israel and the war crimes being committed now by Israel against the civilian population in Gaza. We are seeing children buried under rubble, families forced to flee hospitals without essential supplies and utter devastation and horror unfolding. It is appropriate that we come together in this House and speak with a powerful united voice as passionate advocates for peace and for an agreed resolution of this horrific violence. We should be able to do this. We in the Labour Party would be very happy, as I think would other Opposition parties, to work with the Government to ensure we have a cross-party motion before this House that we could debate and on which we could come together to ensure that Ireland remains a powerful voice for peace at European level.

Deputy Thomas Pringle

On the same issue, it is wrong that the Government should table a motion to be taken without debate tomorrow on the Palestinian situation. In particular, such a motion as has been put on the agenda is very sad. It was only circulated in the past hour to us. I could see why, when I read it. That is what is wrong; this motion should have been done by agreement with all parties in this House. It would have been possible if the Government wanted to but obviously it does not. It is the wrong way if we go down this road. An horrific situation is developing and to put such a one-sided motion on the agenda of this House tomorrow, and for it not to be debated and then passed is completely wrong. It is an insult to the rest of the Members of this House.

Deputy Mattie McGrath

I want to raise the serious situation in health. The ink was not dry on the budget when we heard on Friday evening about major freezes in the recruitment of junior doctors, home helps and in all those areas where people are needed at the front line to deal with the most basic needs. Where is the accountability and why do we not have questions with the Minister for Health and Mr. Watt, the Secretary General? This is an outrageous attack on ordinary people. Junior doctors run our hospitals and home helps keep people out of hospitals and safe and healthy at home. They cut the weakest, the lowest hanging fruit, when waste continues in the children's hospital and there is waste across the board, with no accountability.

I know the Minister was buried in the budget, but the chief executive tried to resurrect it on Sunday on national radio. It is shocking that three or four days after the budget, a decision was made last Friday to cut these areas. That is in spite of the agreement the Minister made with those junior doctors last year, in order to avert a strike, that 800 more of them would be recruited. We are facing an ongoing disaster in health into the winter and the Minister is not even accountable to the Dáil about it.

The Taoiseach

I will come back on a few of the points. To be very clear, the budget is agreed by the entire Government and the entire Government is responsible and accountable for the budget. It is not agreed bilaterally between the Minister for Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform, Deputy Donohoe, and the Minister for Health, Deputy Donnelly, and any other Minister. The budget was agreed by the Government and approved by the House. That is essentially how it works. I just want to be very clear about that.

The Minister for Health is responsible for the health budget. The Minister for Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform is responsible for expenditure in the round. Both take questions regularly in the House on matters that pertain to their briefs, and I am sure they will continue to do so.

In relation to the motion on the situation in the Middle East, 200 minutes have been set aside for a debate and discussion on it tomorrow. I think that is a considerable amount of time for people to discuss it. The Tánaiste has engaged with spokespeople and some of the party leaders about the motion.

Deputy Mattie McGrath

No, he has not.

The Taoiseach

I am sure he is happy to engage.

Deputy Thomas Pringle

No, he has not.

They only apply to service posts. These are not doctors in training. The HSE had authorisation to hire 500, and it hired 770. No public body should hire staff it does not have the authority or the budget to fund. It does not happen in schools, it does not happen in Garda stations, it does not happen in Departments and it should not happen in the health service.

The Dáil divided: Tá, 72; Níl, 57; Staon, 0.

Tá

Berry, Cathal.
Brophy, Colm.
Bruton, Richard.
Burke, Colm.
Butler, Mary.
Byrne, Thomas.
Cahill, Jackie.
Calleary, Dara.
Cannon, Ciarán.
Carroll MacNeill, Jennifer.
Chambers, Jack.
Costello, Patrick.
Cowen, Barry.
Creed, Michael.
Crowe, Cathal.
Devlin, Cormac.
Dillon, Alan.
Donnelly, Stephen.
Duffy, Francis Noel.
Durkan, Bernard J.
English, Damien.
Farrell, Alan.
Feighan, Frankie.
Fitzpatrick, Peter.
Flaherty, Joe.
Flanagan, Charles.
Foley, Norma.
Grealish, Noel.
Griffin, Brendan.
Harris, Simon.
Haughey, Seán.
Heydon, Martin.
Higgins, Emer.
Humphreys, Heather.
Kehoe, Paul.
Lahart, John.
Lawless, James.
Leddin, Brian.
Madigan, Josepha.
Martin, Catherine.
Martin, Micheál.
Matthews, Steven.
McAuliffe, Paul.
McConalogue, Charlie.
McEntee, Helen.
McGuinness, John.
McHugh, Joe.
Moynihan, Aindrias.
Moynihan, Michael.
Murnane O'Connor, Jennifer.
Naughten, Denis.
Naughton, Hildegarde.
Noonan, Malcolm.
O'Brien, Joe.
O'Callaghan, Jim.
O'Connor, James.
O'Dea, Willie.
O'Donnell, Kieran.
O'Gorman, Roderic.
O'Sullivan, Christopher.
O'Sullivan, Pádraig.
Ó Cathasaigh, Marc.
Ó Cuív, Éamon.
Phelan, John Paul.
Rabbitte, Anne.
Richmond, Neale.
Smith, Brendan.
Smyth, Niamh.
Smyth, Ossian.
Stanton, David.
Troy, Robert.
Varadkar, Leo.

Níl

Andrews, Chris.
Bacik, Ivana.
Barry, Mick.
Boyd Barrett, Richard.
Brady, John.
Browne, Martin.
Buckley, Pat.
Cairns, Holly.
Carthy, Matt.
Clarke, Sorca.
Collins, Joan.
Collins, Michael.
Connolly, Catherine.
Conway-Walsh, Rose.
Cronin, Réada.
Crowe, Seán.
Cullinane, David.
Daly, Pa.
Doherty, Pearse.
Ellis, Dessie.
Farrell, Mairéad.
Funchion, Kathleen.
Gannon, Gary.
Guirke, Johnny.
Healy-Rae, Danny.
Healy-Rae, Michael.
Howlin, Brendan.
Kelly, Alan.
Kenny, Gino.
Kenny, Martin.
Kerrane, Claire.
Mac Lochlainn, Pádraig.
McDonald, Mary Lou.
McGrath, Mattie.
McNamara, Michael.
Mitchell, Denise.
Munster, Imelda.
Murphy, Catherine.
Murphy, Paul.
Mythen, Johnny.
Nash, Ged.
O'Callaghan, Cian.
O'Reilly, Louise.
O'Rourke, Darren.
Ó Broin, Eoin.
Ó Murchú, Ruairí.
Ó Ríordáin, Aodhán.
Ó Snodaigh, Aengus.
Pringle, Thomas.
Quinlivan, Maurice.
Ryan, Patricia.
Shortall, Róisín.
Stanley, Brian.
Tóibín, Peadar.
Tully, Pauline.
Ward, Mark.
Whitmore, Jennifer.

Staon

Tellers: Tá, Deputies Hildegarde Naughton and Cormac Devlin; Níl, Deputies Pádraig Mac Lochlainn and Ivana Bacik.

Question declared carried.

Dáil Éireann debate - Tuesday, 17 Oct 2023

An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business

Tá

Níl

Staon

Dáil Éireann debate -
Tuesday, 17 Oct 2023