Eamon Gilmore (Dún Laoghaire, Labour)

No. In more than 20 years in this House I have never seen a proposal from the Government to pull a procedural stroke such as is being attempted today. Yesterday evening amendment No. 3, which was proposed by Deputy Burton, was passed by the House. Discussion then proceeded on amendment No. 6 and I understand Deputy Burton was in possession in respect of that amendment.

This morning an Order Paper was circulated which provided for, among other things, a guillotine on Report and Final Stages of the Finance Bill, but made no reference to returning to amendment No. 3. The Taoiseach, however, in what was a sleight of hand, when moving the Order of Business moved a proposal that the House shall resume on amendment No. 3, notwithstanding anything which transpired yesterday. There have been exchanges about that matter and discussions between the Whips in the interval. The Government Chief Whip has given the same proposal which was read out by the Taoiseach but which was not circulated on the Order of Business before the commencement of business today.

I submit to the Ceann Comhairle that what is proposed by the Government Chief Whip is out of order. Our business is governed by the Standing Orders of the House. The manner to deal with the Order of Business is set down in Standing Order 26, which provides that every sitting is governed by a printed Order Paper. The Taoiseach has the right to determine the order in which Government business appears on each day's Order Paper and may also propose arrangements for sittings and the taking of that day's business. However, today's Order Paper clearly states No. 18 is the Finance Bill - Report Stage, resumed on amendment No. 6. That and only that is the item of Government business on which a Government motion can be made in respect of the ordering of business; in other words, the Finance Bill resumed on amendment No. 6.

Yesterday's amendments were yesterday's business. I ask the Ceann Comhairle to defend the rights of the Members of this House. There is no provision in the Standing Orders of this House for the motion which the Government Chief Whip has just proposed. The Government Chief Whip and the Taoiseach in the ordering of business are confined to making proposals in respect of the business which appears on the Order Paper. The business which appears on the Order Paper is the Finance Bill, resumed on amendment No. 6. There is no procedure, Standing Order, rule or precedent for moving a motion which departs from the business which is set down in the Order Paper. There is certainly no precedent, and we will not go along with the setting of a new precedent in this House, whereby business which was transacted yesterday and on which the House made a decision, can be revisited the following day simply because the Government wants to do so and vote it down again. If that were to happen, we would be in a situation where, on any given day, if the House votes on a matter, the Government, because it did not like the result on day one, can come in the following day and propose a motion such as that proposed by the Government Chief Whip. This will set an entirely new, unacceptable, undemocratic precedent for this House and we are not having it.

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