Pat Rabbitte (Dublin South West, Labour)

I object to the proposal for No. a9. It is quite clear that this matter ought not be taken without debate. For some reason the committee meeting aborted at 11 a.m. and the report was not presented to the members of the committee at the time. It would appear now that the authority of the House must be secured in the fashion set out in No. a9 in order for the committee to proceed. I submit that ought not happen without the matter being discussed here. The Taoiseach will have to say why this stratagem is being resorted to.

Yesterday and this morning the Taoiseach led the House to believe that the report would be made available to the committee at 11 a.m. and not at its usual time of 9.30 a.m. One has just been presented with the report in the last three or four minutes. It is already clear from that report that the Secretary General briefed the Minister for Health and Children about the precise legal implications——

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