I was in disbelief that the Government Whip informed the Business Committee earlier that there would be a special sitting of the House on Saturday 17 December to re-elect the Tánaiste as Taoiseach. It is musical chairs again to accommodate the current Taoiseach and the Tánaiste It is musical chairs and it is backslapping and praising, while people cannot put bread on the table. I want to know the cost of this ridiculous proposal. It is the Saturday before Christmas. Has the Government any respect for the staff here, or the ushers or anybody else? It is a special sitting just to massage the ego of the Tánaiste and the ego of the Taoiseach. It is on a Saturday, which is not a working day. People are entitled to their rest days. It is a charade but it is an expensive charade for the people of Ireland and for the taxpayers, with all of the problems that are there. People are trying to live, get food to eat, and go to work. People are losing their jobs. Such a sitting is appalling and I want it discontinued. We in the Rural Independent Group are fundamentally opposed to it.

This is far from unprecedented. In fact, the current Taoiseach was also elected on a Saturday. It is not unusual for us to sit on a Saturday, on occasion.

Those were different times.

We are all paid anyway so none of us get any extra money for being here on a Saturday. There may be some additional costs in relation to ushers and support staff-----

How out of touch is the Tánaiste.

The alternative is for us to come back to the House on the Monday or Tuesday of Christmas week. It is no skin off my nose whether it is a few days one way or the other but I do not believe there is a major desire on the Business Committee, as I understand it, that we should sit during Christmas week.