Bertie Ahern (Dublin Central, Fianna Fail)

There have been many traditional procedures in the House that have worked well. The pairing arrangements in the Dáil are not dissimilar to other parliaments, where the major parties operate pairing arrangements based on rules set out from time to time by the Whips. These are based on urgent business and the domestic situation as they see fit. In my time in the House, the Whips have run this in a competent way. That is how we manage to function efficiently in the Dáil and in committees, and that system operates effectively.

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