Dáil reform programme could be put forward by early April

An agreed programme of Dáil reform could be put before the House as early as April 6th, encompassing agreed changes to the way the house functions, and which could be implemented immediately.

While negotiations over the forming of a new government continue at Leinster House, a new all-party committee on Dáil reform will meet for the first time on Wednesday under the chairmanship of the new Ceann Comhairle Seán Ó Fearghail.

Sources in both Government and Opposition parties say that the committee is likely to seek early agreement on a number of measures which all parties supported prior to the election, and which would significantly reduce of the power of the government over the Dáil.

These include a business committee which would be responsible for agreeing the scheduling and priority of legislation and debates in the Dáil. This would take away a key power of the government to order the business of the House.

Leaders’ questions

Other potential reforms to be agreed include changes to leaders’ questions (where opposition leaders get to question the taoiseach on any issues they choose), to ministers’ questions, to the rules governing technical groups and the speaking rights that individual opposition members enjoy.

Officials are already working on new standing orders which would give effect to some of these reforms, it is understood.

This would mean that if agreed they could be brought into effect next month. That would represent a significant change to the way the Dáil operates.

The new committee is scheduled to hold its first meeting tomorrow, when the Ceann Comhairle is likely to propose a work programme that sees the initial reforms being agreed within two weeks.

Other reforms likely to be discussed – though unlikely to be included in the first tranche of agreed reforms – include a budget committee which would begin exploring options on spending and taxation measures months in advance of the actual budget. An independent Oireachtas budget office is also likely to be on the agenda.

Document

Dublin Bay South's Eoghan Murphy, who has drawn up his party's document on Dáil reform and will serve as one of the Fine Gael representatives on the committee, said he hoped the first reforms could be agreed quickly and unanimously.

“We can proceed very quickly on what we agree on. We can talk about other reforms after that, but we can make important changes immediately.”

Fianna Fáil’s Darragh O’Brien, who will also be a member of the committee, agreed and said there was now an opportunity, before a government was in place, to strengthen the role of the Dáil. However, he warned that “with extra powers for the Dáil comes extra responsibilities. And that applies to all parties and TDs.”