Today's Government business shall be No. 13, motion re eighth report of the Committee of Selection, without debate; No. 14, motion re referral to joint committee of proposed approval by Dáil Éireann for a directive of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Council Framework Decision 2004/757/JHA of 25 October 2004, laying down minimum provisions on the constituent elements of criminal acts and penalties in the field of illicit drug trafficking, as regards the definition of drug, without debate; and No. 4, Disability (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2016 - Order for Second Stage and Second Stage. Private Members' business shall be No. 89, motion re Bus Éireann, by Fianna Fáil.

Wednesday's Government business shall be No. 22, statements on the establishment of a commission of investigation into NAMA; No. 23, Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Bill 2015 - Order for Report and Report and Final Stages; No. 1, Minerals Development Bill 2015 - Second Stage; and No. 4, Disability (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2016 - Second Stage resumed. Private Members' business shall be No. 90, motion re roads funding, by the Rural Independent Group.

Thursday's Government business shall be No. 23, Criminal Law (Sexual Offences Bill) 2015 - Report Stage (resumed) and Final Stage; No. 1, Minerals Development Bill 2015 - Second Stage; and No. 4, Disability (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2016 - Second Stage resumed. No. 15, report on Garda oversight and accountability by the Joint Committee on Justice and Equality, will be debated in the evening slot.

I refer Members to the first revised report of the Business Committee dated 26 January 2017. With regard to today's business, it is proposed that Nos. 13 and 14 shall be taken without debate. It is proposed the Dáil shall sit at 10 a.m. tomorrow to take No. 22, which shall be brought to a conclusion after 120 minutes. The speech of the Minister or Minister of State and the main spokespersons for parties or groups, or a Member nominated in their stead, shall be not more than 15 minutes each and all Members may share time. If the statements conclude before 12 noon the House will be suspended until that time.

There are two proposals to be put to the House. Is the proposal for dealing with Tuesday's business agreed to?

It is not agreed. I am fully aware the Business Committee met last week and agreed the business for today and this week, but over the weekend since the meeting a matter of extreme urgency has intervened and I ask the Government and the House to consider the need for us to change this week's order to discuss it. Obviously I am speaking about President Donald Trump's travel ban, which I and many of us believe is absolutely abhorrent. It has very serious implications for millions of people trying to enter the United States and we have the very serious implications of the possibility of a Bill which rides roughshod over human rights, possibly Irish law and certainly international law-----

We cannot have the debate now. The Deputy has raised the point.

-----at our own airports. What is happening at our airports is important. We do not even have clarity on this issue. I appeal to the Government and the House to have a debate on the implications of the travel ban for the world and specifically for this country this week as a matter of absolute urgency.

The ordering of business is now a matter for the House itself, rather than in former Dáileanna where it was a matter for the Government.

I submitted a private notice question to the Ceann Comhairle on a matter of very serious importance, namely, the executive order signed by President Trump and its implications for this country. It is important that we deal with this issue today and that we have clarity on a range of issues which I set out in the private notice question. I am very supportive of the retention of pre-clearance facilities in this country, which were hard fought for. We must have assurances that international law is complied with and it would be good for us to hear a clear statement to that effect from the Taoiseach. I ask the House to set aside two hours to debate these issues today and maybe 30 minutes at the end for a question and answer session with the Taoiseach or a designated Minister so that our attitude to this critical issue is very clear and clarity can be given to the impact on our country.

I add my voice to the calls for a debate on the ban introduced by executive order of the US Government. I was taken by what the Taoiseach said to the effect that we could look for a common agreed motion across the House, expressing our concern about the nature of that order. If there are ways in which the entire House could come together and agree such a motion it would give a very strong message. We should arrange the business to allow for that. If there is a motion, can we vote on it on Thursday, or will it be put back until the following Thursday? What will the arrangements be for agreeing such a motion?

The Business Committee should reconvene to look at these sessions.

I endorse the points Deputy Ryan made and we would be very supportive of approaching it in that way.

I wish to make an observation. We have had no contact with any of the other parties which have just spoken about any move-----

An e-mail was sent to the Business Committee.

Deputy Boyd Barrett thinks he runs the show in the Business Committee.

I am not on the Business Committee.

In a former time, when I sought to change a ruling of the Business Committee I was rounded on by the people who have just stood up and spoken. They rounded on me in very bad terms, at the Business Committee and subsequently.

Does Deputy Martin not want a debate on the situation in the US?

I have just debated the executive order with the Taoiseach and I have no objection to anything but I do not like shallow grandstanding. I put to the Taoiseach the idea of a cross-party motion and I have no difficulty working with other parties to achieve a cross-party motion. I have no difficulty in having a debate on this issue. I am just observing that some Members object strenuously when people try to vary decisions of the Business Committee until it suits their own political agenda and then they think they can play fast and loose with it.

This is a unique set of circumstances.

This is the Dáil. An event of immense importance has happened over the course of the weekend. Millions of people are being denied access to America by a racist Muslim ban and it has happened to at least one person on Irish soil so we have to have a debate. A motion is all very well but we have no interest in signing up to an all-party motion which will say a cúpla focail of criticisms about Trump but suggest the Government does absolutely nothing about it. We suggest a joint motion by all the forces who have said the Taoiseach should not go to the White House on St. Patrick's Day as a clear statement of protest. That is the message this Dáil should send and we should have an opportunity to put that motion at the debate.

I propose that the Business Committee reconvene. The Business Committee works hard every week to decide the order for the week and it was read out by Deputy Róisín Shortall today. If it is going to be changed every week, or every so often, it will undermine it. I propose it be asked to look at it again.

For what it is worth, I thought we had established a precedent after the last time this happened. That was that when something momentous happened over the weekend, as it did this weekend, we would give notice to the Business Committee, we would decide whether or not we would meet, and we would then make our decisions on whether to change the Order of Business at that stage, rather than doing this time-wasting, drama-seeking business that we do every week. Can I suggest that we meet? If we could pass a unanimous motion in this House it would send a clear message to the people outside, as opposed to being divisive just for the sake of it.

On a point of order-----

I am sorry but the Deputy cannot raise a point of order on this matter. The Taoiseach wants to make a comment.

That is fine but I still want to make a point of order.

All right, I will come back to the Deputy.

Private notice questions are a matter for your adjudication, a Cheann Comhairle.

Yes.

It may well be that, as regards what Deputy Martin raised, if we could have statements on an agreed motion it might be in everybody's interest. The House of Commons had a unanimous decision last night in respect of this matter.

As regards the point raised by Deputy Paul Murphy, for the clarification of the House, on Saturday morning I understand that a foreign national was refused US pre-clearance at Dublin Airport and was returned to the Irish immigration authorities. I can inform the House that the person in question is lawfully resident and working here in Ireland and therefore was able to leave Dublin Airport as he was entitled to remain here.

He was not able to go to America.

Some 1.18 million people used the pre-clearance facility in Dublin last year, while 204,000 people used it at Shannon Airport.

We need to hear these things and that is why we should have a debate in order to have full clarity.

On a point of order, on reflection perhaps the Chief Whip would withdraw what she said. This is not an issue where we are time-wasting by standing up. I submitted a private notice question and thought that was the way it was going to be dealt with. I have just been notified by text that it has been disallowed. I want to use the procedures of this House to advance something that I regard as important. I do not regard the Chief Whip's comments as being right and proper.

On a point of order-----

No, wait. The Deputy has been in already.

It is a point of order. On our behalf, Deputy Barry circulated an e-mail this morning to all members of the Business Committee requesting this debate, so that communication to the Business Committee has already occurred. It was suggested that we had not done that courtesy, but we did it this morning.

Can I suggest that we convene a meeting of the Business Committee at 4.15 p.m. when this matter can be considered? Is that agreed? Agreed.

We did not have that response over the civilians in Aleppo. There are double standards going on here. Thousands of innocent children were murdered by Russian forces and President Assad's, but we do not get the same response from over there at all.

I am sorry. There are two proposals to put to the House. I have put the proposal in regard to Tuesday's business. Is Tuesday's business agreed to? Agreed.

Subject to proper procedures.

Yes. Second, is the proposal for dealing with Wednesday's business agreed to? Agreed. Thank you all very much.

I now call Deputy Micheál Martin on promised legislation.