Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)

I would like to raise a matter in the context of being helpful. Prior to the Budget Statement, I made the point that the international perception of Ireland and the difficulties and circumstances in which we find ourselves warranted a signal from us that the budget and the Social Welfare Bill 2010 would be passed and that we would move as quickly as possible to give legislative effect to the budget through the finance Bill. In so far as helping that process is concerned, I offered the Taoiseach the option of an extra sitting day before Christmas to allow the process to get under way and to come back earlier after Christmas to facilitate it.

This is the start of the second week of this session and we still have no sight of the finance Bill. The reason I raise this is that I was in contact with a number of our European counterparts yesterday and there is a degree of anxiety and concern about the delay in Ireland putting this Bill through. In a spirit of co-operation to get this done for the country, in which we are all interested and in which we hear Government Members are all interested, perhaps the Taoiseach should look at the question of revising the timescale he has outlined for the passing of the finance Bill. It may well be that our counterparts in Europe do not fully appreciate the way the political system works here in respect of the budget and the finance Bill but it is eminently possible to have an earlier date for the conclusion of the Bill.

I respectfully suggest that I am willing to co-operate with the Government to bring that about, not only to give the Taoiseach the opportunity to bring this Dáil to a conclusion but, more immediately, to send a signal to foreign governments and international financial institutions and so on that Ireland is moving efficiently, competently and quickly to deal with the finance Bill, which, in the main, is important to give legal effect to the budge. Many of the bigger matters were dealt with in the budget. In a spirit of co-operation, perhaps the Taoiseach should reschedule the Bill to conclude it on an earlier date.

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