The Order of Business today shall be as follows: No. 12, motion re Leave to Introduce Supplementary Estimate for Office of Public Works [Vote 10]; No. 13, motion re Referral of Supplementary Estimate [Vote 10] to Select Committee; No. 33, motion re Partnership for Peace and the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council (resumed); No. 34, Broadcasting Bill, 1999, Second Stage (resumed); No. 35, Education (Welfare) Bill, 1999 [Seanad], Second Stage (resumed).

It is also proposed, notwithstanding anything in Standing Orders, that No. 12, and subject to the agreement of No. 12, No. 13, shall be decided without debate and any divisions demanded on Nos. 12 and 13 shall be taken forthwith.

There is one proposal to be put to the House. Are the arrangements for dealing with Nos. 12 and 13 agreed? Agreed.

We all note the resignation of Deputy Ellis as Chairman of the Joint Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine. Given that the Taoiseach was fund raising for Fianna Fáil in London and that he will do so in New York—

This does not arise on the Order of Business.

—does the Taoiseach feel morally responsible to repay the £25,000 of taxpayers' money that was paid to assist Deputy Ellis.

Deputy Owen, that matter is not appropriate on the Order of Business.

It has to do with the fact that the Leader's allowance, which is taxpayers' money—

That does not arise on the Order of Business. The Deputy will have to find another way of raising it. Deputy Quinn.

I want to raise another issue.

I will call the Deputy on the other issue.

I thought that matter was consigned to history.

The Deputy was consigned to history.

Will the Taoiseach provide time, or has any member of his parliamentary party sought time, to make a personal statement to explain why Deputy Ellis chose to resign from this committee?

Deputy, that matter does not arise.

It does. The Chair should be careful, it does arise. I am asking will time be made—

A personal statement is a matter for the Member concerned—

I am asking the question—

—and if a Member wishes to make a personal statement, he or she contacts the Ceann Comhairle.

A Leas-Cheann Comhairle, if you will allow me to ask the question—

I heard your question, Deputy Quinn.

No, you did not.

When the Chair is speaking, I would ask you to resume your seat. I heard your question and I explained to you that a personal statement is a matter for the Deputy concerned.

I wish to have the Ceann Comhairle called here because there is a conflict of interest between the Chairman of the Fianna Fáil Parliamentary Party, who is negotiating—

Deputy Quinn, I resent that. The Chair is absolutely impartial and continues to be impartial.

I am afraid that is not the case.

That is the case.

I do not wish to get into conflict with you, Sir, but if you would do me the parliamentary courtesy of allowing me to complete the question before you rule it out of order—

Right, Deputy Quinn.

Thank you. May I ask you, Sir, and the Taoiseach, if the Deputy in question, who has chosen to resign both his chairmanship and membership of the Joint Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine, has sought to make a personal statement to this House?

That is a matter between the Member in question and the Ceann Comhairle, it is not a matter for the House.

I accept that. However, the entire country has been talking about nothing else and if the House is to maintain its relevance—

The country has been talking about Woodchester.

The entire country has been talking about nothing else, including—

The question of a statement in this House is a matter between a Member and the Ceann Comhairle.

Did the Deputy in question seek time to make a personal statement?

That is not appropriate to the Order of Business. I call Deputy Owen on another matter.

On another matter—

Is the Chair not going to inform the House whether the Deputy in question sought time to make such a statement?

That is a matter between the Member in question and the Ceann Comhairle.

Is the Chair obliged to tell us whether such time was sought?

The Chair has no notice of such an issue.

Therefore, no such request has been made?

I am unaware of any request being made and it would not be appropriate for the Chair to disclose such a matter.

On that basis, now that the Leas-Cheann Comhairle has answered my question, for which I thank him, will the Taoiseach indicate whether he intends to make a statement on this matter on the Order of Business?

That matter is not appropriate to the Order of Business.

With respect, it involves the ordering of time. In light of the controversy that has arisen does the Taoiseach propose to make a statement on this matter since the Deputy in question has not sought to do so?

That matter is not appropriate to the Order of Business.

Perhaps the Taoiseach might like to answer the question.

Does the Taoiseach wish to reply?

Perhaps I might offer the Taoiseach some assistance in his reply.

Does the Taoiseach intend to introduce a motion, through the Government Whip—

That is not appropriate to the Order of Business.

—to amend the membership of the Joint Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine? That is appropriate business, because if someone has resigned from the committee a motion must be introduced to indicate the name of his replacement. Is it proposed to introduce a motion on tomorrow's Order of Business?

Please, Deputy Owen—

I merely wish to know if a motion will be tabled.

I do not intend to make a statement other than thanking Deputy Ellis for his contribution to the work of the Joint Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine during the past two and a half years. The Deputy has been an excellent contributor on agricultural and other matters in recent years and I thank him for that.

Has he resigned from the committee, his statement does not indicate that he has?

I understand that the Deputy has resigned from the committee and I am sure his letter of resignation will be placed before the committee when it meets tomorrow at 4 p.m. Therefore, an additional member of the Fianna Fáil group will have to be nominated to the com mittee and a new chairman will have to be elected. That will happen in due course.

Deputy Owen on another matter.

To clarify, Deputy Ellis's statement does not indicate the he has resigned from the committee.

Deputy Owen should move to another matter appropriate to the Order of Business.

Will the Taoiseach confirm that the Deputy has resigned or is this another case of the Taoiseach not asking for the facts?

Does the Deputy have another matter she wishes to raise?

I do.

It should be appropriate to the Order of Business.

Will the Taoiseach indicate at some stage whether the Deputy intends to pay back the money he owes?

Please, Deputy Owen.

A total of £28,000 is owed.

If the House assists the Taoiseach in maintaining his silence, our job will become more difficult.

I wish to raise another matter. Given that the Taoiseach stated that it was a disgrace when refugees were left standing outside the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform two years ago, what action is he taking under the strategic management initiative to ensure that the facilities in place to deal with refugees and asylum seekers are adequate?

That is not appropriate to the Order of Business.

The Taoiseach went on public record to say how disgraceful it was to leave people standing in the rain. Pregnant women were left standing until 2 a.m. or 3 a.m. outside the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform's—

That matter was the subject of a request under Standing Order 31 in the name of Deputy Howlin and the Ceann Comhairle refused him permission to raise it.

Yes, but permission has not even been granted to raise it on the Adjournment this evening.

Was it submitted for the Adjournment?

Yes, it was raised by my colleague.

I am informed that it was not submitted in time.

That is because he tried to raise it as a special notice question and it was disallowed.

Since the matter I raised under Standing Order 31 was disallowed, I wish to state that the immigration Bill, which will place the Government's intended immigration policy on a statutory footing, is long overdue. Will the Taoiseach indicate when the Bill will be published? He stated previously that the Government has such a policy but when I wrote to him about it he referred my letter to the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform. I am still awaiting a statement of Government policy on immigration matters. When will the legislation be introduced and will it be a comprehensive statement on the handling of refugee and immigration matters?

A semi-final draft of the immigration and residence Bill, which is designed to update the law on immigration, residency and other matters relating to non-nationals, has been cleared by the parliamentary draftsman. The Minister hopes to introduce the Bill in the not too distant future. The Illegal Immigrants (Trafficking) Bill is awaiting Second Stage and the Immigration Act, which involves technical deportation orders, was passed earlier in the year but the work permits Bill will not be introduced until next year. With regard to the Bill about which the Deputy specifically inquired, work has advanced to a satisfactory degree on that and I hope it will be completed in the near future.

Will the Bill be published before Christmas?

It is probably unlikely that it will appear before Christmas. However, the Minister is anxious to try to complete it as soon as possible.

It took more than seven years to produce a report into the sinking of the Orchidee. Will the Taoiseach indicate if the marine casualty investigation Bill listed on the legislative programme will be introduced before Christmas?

The Minister informs me that he hopes to publish the Bill during the current session.

For some time the Minister for the Environment and Local Government has been promising legislation to provide for the direct election of mayors and county chairpersons. This commitment appears to have been dropped from the revised programme for Government. Will the Taoiseach indicate whether the legislative intention to directly elect mayors and chairpersons has been abandoned by the Government? If not, when will the relevant legislation be introduced?

It is currently before the Government.

The heads of the Bill?

No. 62 on the Order Paper is Private Members' Bill in my name. However, since the Government has substituted its own Bill I seek leave to withdraw it.