Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I do not like the attitude of the Government that it wants to suppress my right to speak as a Dáil Deputy about the changing of the scheduling of business. The reason I am doing this is we know that the Labour Party received a briefing on the issue privately. We have been told that the Labour 7 are on board, with the possible exception of Deputy Michael McNamara, although I do not know what the issue is in that regard. However, the rest of the Members of the Dáil have been kept in the dark deliberately by the Government. There has been no proper briefing of Opposition Deputies on the issue, nor has any documentation been sent to Opposition Deputies in advance of the rushed debate this morning. The Government is treating the House with absolute contempt. What is being done is contemptible. I ask the Minister of State to withdraw the proposal and to agree to referring the issue to the transport committee for a proper detailed analysis. I know that the Government wants to take next week off, which is all part of the agenda, to get the issue out of the way.

See this speech in context