Marc MacSharry (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Given the historic day that is in it I ask the Leader to extend the Order of Business by a few minutes to allow everyone to speak. I am sure whatever Minister is standing by will not mind under the circumstances.

As a matter of utmost urgency I call on the relevant Minister to come to the House to discuss the junior doctors. It is incredible that these people are expected to work such hours if one considers that truck drivers would be jailed for working the same hours and pilots would surely be arrested for doing the same. Today 13,000 operations have been cancelled and a skeleton Sunday-type service is being run throughout the country. It is very worrying and is foremost in all of our minds. We should press ahead immediately with a debate.

We all welcome the result of recent days. While we are reflecting and having a period of calmness we might get on with a little bit of work. With respect, I do not know that we must wait for the Government to order the business in this House. Nothing in the Constitution states this. If a Minister is not available I suggest that the secretary to the Government come to take notes and pass them directly to his masters in Cabinet.

Senator Daly rightly pointed out that EU scrutiny effectively does not take place in this country. Civil servants in this country, with their counterparts in Brussels, formulate policy and both Houses of the Oireachtas rubber-stamp it. The committee system is a second rubber-stamp. The legislative programme for the European Commission from July to December this year has 67 pages of proposed directives that probably will not get a minute's debate in this House before they have passed the point of no return. They will come here as primary legislation when the Minister of the day will tell us they must be transposed by a particular date because we have signed up to them.

I suggest that, with or without the Minister, with or without the Secretary to the Government of the day to sit there, we give them a copy of the recordings and begin to take the 67 pages of proposed legislation before it passes the point of no return in these Houses.

Because I have been one of those who have been most critical, I wholeheartedly welcome to the House Lise Hand and her colleagues. I very much hope this marks a new dawn where, rather than just covering the intemperate outbursts, albeit rare but occasional, by me and others, they will cover the very worthwhile work done in the House. Senator David Norris mentioned some issues that began in this House. It was in 2009 that the issue of mortgage arrears was brought up here and that the first legislation emerged from it. There are countless such examples. Considering how they voted, the people are entitled to know this.

Finally, and because I have been one of the most critical, I wholeheartedly welcome Lise Hand and her colleagues to the House today. I very much hope this marks a new dawn where rather than just covering the intemperate outbursts, albeit rare but occasional, that I might or others might make in the House, they may cover the very worthwhile work. Senator Norris mentioned some points that began in this House. I point out it was in 2009 that the issue of mortgage arrears was brought up in this House and that the first legislation came from this House. There are countless examples of that. The people, havin considered how they voted, are entitled to know those things going forward.