Noel Harrington (Cork South West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Ceann Comhairle's office for selecting this issue. I acknowledge and thank the Taoiseach and his Government for laying an important referendum on fundamental Oireachtas reform before the people. Our first action in the Chamber should be to respect the people's decision fully. We should also acknowledge that the referendum debate opened up issues other than that which was on the ballot paper, in particular questions on Dáil reform. I am pleased that this issue is being discussed in the Chamber. Obviously, the 20 minutes that have been allocated are not enough. It has been proposed that some of the new fortnightly Fridays could be set aside solely for Deputies to debate Dáil reform and to arrive at conclusions that would make the House more responsive to the needs of the State.

I welcome last week's publication of amendments to the Standing Orders, which I hope will come into effect on 5 November. Particularly welcome is the amendment on referrals from committees to Dáil sittings on fortnightly Fridays. As part of an expanded debate on how we arrange our business, one must ask whether we are going far enough. For example, how legislation is prepared and presented to the Parliament on Second Stage more or less as a fait accompli inevitably cultivates an adversarial environment, meaning that consensus is often more difficult to achieve.

The Whip system must be debated. We do not always agree with colleagues. For example, moral issues could be up for debate. However, a looser Whip system could be applied to committee decisions.

We need to take ideas from all sources. For example, best practice in other parliaments should be examined continually. I regret that we do not have more time, but I look forward to a journey in which we must all participate.

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