Brian Stanley (Laois-Offaly, Sinn Fein)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

That is the problem with Standing Order 218, as it has been changed. There are two proposals here. One is we invite in the board of the national children's hospital and the Secretary General of the Department of Health. The second is we write to the Committee on Procedure requesting information from it as to how Standing Order 218, or any other Standing Order, can be changed. It has been pointed out that each of the groups here has people on that committee and it is up to each of us to do our homework to ensure they are enlightened about our request and where we are coming from with it. There is a public expectation out there, and rightly so. We are elected. The point has been made about how the Committee of Public Accounts has always been a little bit too removed from Government to scrutinise Departments and I think everybody here would agree with that, and so it should be. However, we now have a situation where not alone does it have to go through the Committee on Procedure but it also has to go before the Dáil.

I am not being factional about it, but a majority in the Dáil can stop it as well. That is my understanding.