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

It was then rammed through a second time in an amending Bill without due consideration or any detailed examination. My point is that Dáil reform is essential in terms of how we deal with issues that are critical to people's lives, including health. We have had a lot of discussion in the last while about having proper parliamentary engagement on that issue. Let us not just pour scorn, as some Sinn Féin Deputies tried to do earlier, on the importance of Dáil reform and its connection with good policy formulation and good outcomes on the key issues that concern the Irish people today.

We believe that Dáil Éireann is in a position to immediately take up urgent matters that were central to the election campaign. That is why I approve of the proposal to bring the Dáil back on Tuesday, 22 March to debate the Agriculture and Fisheries Council and housing matters. We also tabled a motion on housing today, but we sought consensus with other parties in order to ensure an ordered approach. We did not try to monopolise the situation by saying that we are the only party that cares about housing and health. Everyone genuinely has an interest in these issues, so it makes sense to have a consensus and some degree of efficiency in how we conduct our business on 22 March.

If people want to debate more, I am open and willing to do that on 22 March, or 23 March if people want that. It is important that this has been provided for when the Dáil returns. If we want to break the dominance of Government in all Dáil matters, there is no better way to start, as we said earlier in our consultations with others, than to schedule issues for debate without the immediate distortion that comes from the House being divided into two sides. We accept that it would be a constitutional nonsense to expect Ministers who do not hold the confidence of the House to be accountable for future policy so let us begin-----

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