Dáil Éireann debate -
Tuesday, 9 Apr 2024

It is proposed that the proceedings on the nominations for Taoiseach shall, if not previously concluded, be brought to a conclusion after one hour and 42 minutes and the following arrangements shall apply:

(1) the debate shall be confined to a single round and the arrangements shall be as follows: the speeches of a Government proposer and seconder shall not exceed five minutes each; the speeches by representatives of the other Government parties, Sinn Féin, the Labour Party, the Social Democrats, People Before Profit-Solidarity, the Regional Group, the Rural Independent Group and the Independent Group shall not exceed ten minutes per party or group; contributions by non-aligned Members shall not exceed two minutes; and Members may share time;

(2) on the nomination of a Taoiseach for appointment by the President, the Dáil shall, unless it otherwise orders, stand suspended until either 5 p.m. or four hours after the conclusion of the proceedings, whichever is the later; and

(3) other than on this business proposal, any divisions claimed this week shall be taken by roll call.

The people should decide who our next Taoiseach is, not the assembled numbers here in government.

The people should have their say. This should not be happening today.

The business and issues facing the country have effectively been driven off the agenda for the rest of the week. That to me is unacceptable. On the first day of the new Taoiseach's ascension into office, there will be no Leaders' Questions and no Taoiseach's Questions. A debate on disability has been bumped off the agenda. Questions of finance have been bumped off the agenda. That is not the way to start a new Government. It is not acceptable. Just because we are having this jamboree today is not a reason to take business off the agenda which is of extreme importance to ordinary people in this country.

It is definitely not a jamboree, but I do not know what it is. Are there words in the dictionary to describe it? It is the third time we have changed Taoiseach in this present Government. The people want an election. They want a new Government, not a new Taoiseach. It is a complete coronation and complete adulation from Fine Gael, as we have seen there with standing ovations, and we will see many more of them. The hiring all week of more spin doctors by the Minister, Deputy Harris, tells us what this Government will be. It will be spin, not substance, and continuing to neglect the business. I wrote to the Ceann Comhairle asking him to have a Business Committee meeting when I saw the agenda for this week, the way it was dissected and everything was cast aside just to suit the Fine Gael agenda. It was of course aided and abetted by the Fianna Fáil leader, the Tánaiste, Deputy Micheál Martin, and indeed the Minister, Deputy Eamon Ryan. What else can we say about it?

I am totally unhappy, and we in the Rural Independent Group objected to this and asked for a meeting. This is a new and historic change for the Business Committee, which has been operating successfully for the past nine and a half years. It was totally admonished this week. Disability is out, Leaders' Questions are out and Topical Issues are out. There are many issues, including the weather, affecting our country and people today, especially our agriculture and food production. It is a charade.