Niall Ó Donnghaile (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I do not wish to pre-empt any decision of the committee, and we may not need to take a decision on it today, but I am sure that those who were members of the committee during the previous Dáil will agree that 2 p.m. on Thursday is not an ideal time for the work of the committee.

It very often clashed with the voting block in the Dáil, although I realise that will be moved around in the current circumstances. Despite the important work of this committee, to which the Chairman rightly referred, Thursday afternoon here was very often like the Mary Celeste. Groups invited to make presentations were being brought into a vacuous, empty LH 2000. I am very conscious of how this looks to witnesses, but also to members. It was deeply frustrating that meetings clashed with the voting block. Where press coverage of this committee’s work was concerned, information was going out on a Thursday night or Friday and not getting any kind of lift at all. My preference is to pick a day other than Thursday. I understand, however, that there are new members. We do not necessarily need to rush to a decision today. I would like to hear the views of members who were members previously.