Unacceptable Dáil schedule for next week means crucial questions to calamity government will go unanswered
People Before Profit to write to Business Committee to include debate and statements on Health, Justice, Education and Golf Gate scandal
People Before Profit TD Richard Boyd Barrett has said that the proposed Dáil schedule for next week is “totally unacceptable” and does not provide for debate on some of the most important and urgent issues facing Irish society at the moment. Currently, there is only a session planned for the announcement of the new Minister for Agriculture and a “response to Covid 19” session with no details as to what this would include.
People Before Profit have sought debates next week on Health, Education, Justice and statements on the Golf gate scandal as well as Leaders’ Questions. They are also calling for an immediate sitting of the Dáil Business Committee, which is responsible for scheduling Dáil Business.
Now it appears, following correspondence with the Business Committee, that the only business of note for the Dáil next week will be the announcement of the new Minister for Agriculture. Deputy Boyd Barrett said that this was “unbelievable and unacceptable”.
People Before Profit have written to the Business Committee seeking debates and statements on Health, Justice, Education and Golf Gate scandal as well as Leaders’ Questions and the Business Committee.
Deputy Boyd Barrett said: “I am quite frankly stunned that next week, after the public and opposition parties have been clamouring for the Dáil to be recalled, that the government is proposing it only sit on Wednesday and with the only proposed business being the announcement of the new Minister for Agriculture and another session on “response to Covid 19” with no details as to what this would include. This is unbelievable and unacceptable.
“The Dáil, next week, needs to be a regular three day sitting with Leaders’ Questions for all political groupings, questions to the Ministers for Health, to debate the new Covid restrictions; Justice, because of the concern that the proposed additional powers for the Gardaí will be rushed through without adequate debate; and Education, because of the extreme public unease about the return to school procedures.
“It also beggars belief that there is not time set aside for statements on the massive scandal that is Golf gate. This issue presents a massive problem for the government and implicates both Fianna Fail and Fine Gael. It is clear that the government is trying their best to ride this scandal out. It is not acceptable that we do not have statements this week about the shocking revelations from the Oireachtas Golf Society dinner.”
