The ultimate check and balance in the Oireachtas is, of course, that the Opposition holds the Government to account. Central to this are slots for Leaders Questions and Priority Questions that are the Opposition's opportunity to hold the Taoiseach and his Government to account, yet they persist in holding that logic on its head, the most basic premise upon which we carry out our democratic business. They gave us their word that the Government would withdraw its proposals to placate Deputy Michael Lowry and his colleagues as part of its grubby government deal.

They gave us their word and it seems they have gone back on it. They have come forward again with proposals that still seek to insist that Government Deputies would be in Opposition slots.

I thank the Deputy. She has got her minute.

It is unacceptable. It will not fly. I am on my feet to make that clear to the Taoiseach.

On behalf of the Labour Party, I want to express our strong opposition to the Government's attempt to ram through this proposal to designate those who are clearly in government, who have supported the Government, as "Other Members". It is ridiculous to see the tortuous attempts the Government is making now to facilitate the Lowry lackeys by this attempt to shoehorn in-----

The Deputy should show respect.

Who do you think you are?

Deputy Bacik must show respect for other Deputies.

Deputy Bacik should withdraw that comment. They got elected here the same as her.

I will withdraw that remark.

That is enough. The remark has been withdrawn. Deputy Bacik can move on.

The proposal put forward by the Government to facilitate the group led by Deputy Michael Lowry does not even make grammatical sense, nor does it make legal sense. It would apply to members of Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael to designate a body of Members who are not in opposition in this way.

I thank Deputy Bacik and I call Deputy Cian O'Callaghan.

We are strongly opposed to it.

We have the same mandate as Deputy Bacik.

Hear, hear.

The Social Democrats are strongly opposed to the proposals the Government is bringing forward. It is very important that the Opposition can hold the Government to account. The Dáil is already one of the comparatively weaker parliaments in terms of its ability to hold the Government to account.

No, it is not.

Deputies should please not interrupt.

It absolutely is. We have one of the strongest executives. In other parliaments, the executives do not always get everything passed by virtue of the majority they have. We have one of the strongest Whip systems in western democracy, which makes it one of the strongest executives. We need to have more accountability, not less.

I thank the Deputy.

We need more Government accountability rather than creating new slots where only Government TDs can ask questions of the Government.

The Government is trying to undermine democracy by insisting that the Lowry and Healy-Rae groups can be part of the Government and simultaneously be part of the Opposition-----

Get a majority and vote it down.

-----taking up its speaking time, committee places and resources. This is clearly an effort to minimise the ability of the Opposition to scrutinise the Government.

Another example of that is that this week for the third time, every single week, instead of two appearances by the Taoiseach at Taoiseach's Questions, he will appear only once this week. The fact that it is not a coincidence is confirmed by the Government's submission on Dáil reform where it is looking to reduce Taoiseach's Questions to one day a week.

I thank the Deputy.

That would further reduce the Government's exposure to interrogation, not just by the Opposition but by its own backbenchers whom it claims to care so much about.

We need a proper debate in the Dáil this week about damage caused by flooding in Ireland, especially in the past week, particularly in County Cork. The community in Ballinascarthy was flooded once again for the second time in two months, as was Dunmanway and Halfway. The River Bride also flooded in Blackpool. The main cause of this flooding is the lack of rivers being cleaned. They are full of muck and silt. A national river cleaning programme must be put in place immediately to save people's property and maybe their lives. We cannot kick this can down the road. Will the Government allow a proper debate this week in the Dáil so that communities like Ballinascarthy can be-----

I thank Deputy Collins.

-----confident that efforts are being made to make sure that something like this will not happen again?

I thank Deputy Collins. I call on the Taoiseach to respond as quickly as he can.

I have listened to quite a lot. I have observed with some interest the growing alliance between the Labour Party and the Sinn Féin Party in this House.

There are four Opposition groups.

You still do not have enough for Government.

It is an alliance of the left.

Deputies should please allow the Taoiseach to speak.

The Opposition keeps using the phrase that the Government is trying to ram this through. It seems to me that the Opposition has been trying to ram through a new order in the House and a new precedent.

This is an important matter.

It is an important matter. Questions on Policy or Legislation is being compromised.

It seems that in the new order Deputies McDonald and Bacik will dictate who forms the groups in this House.

That is not the case.

We have freedom of association.

Deputies should resume their seats.

It is a fundamental, basic principle that people are allowed to associate with whom they like. That is the first point. That is being denied here for the first time.

I have never seen this before, since I became a Member of Dáil Éireann. There has been a bit of a herd-like attitude to this debate among the Opposition and some commentators. People have not looked at the fundamental principles underpinning all of this. In the next six weeks alone, 90 priority questions will be asked here. Sinn Féin will have 47 of them, the Labour Party 12, the Social Democrats 11 and there will be zero for backbenchers on the Government side.

If Deputies do not want to hear the answer, we will move on.

The people who elected their TDs-----

With respect, a Cheann Comhairle, I have had to listen for five or six minutes-----

The point is they do not want to listen, so we will just move to the vote.

I want to make a point. The people have elected TDs-----

Where is Michael Lowry? Where is the architect of this?

People would be shocked by the idea that their TDs do not have the right to speak or ask questions-----

You have 20 minutes to address Deputy Collins's question. Please do so.

-----whether they are in a political party or not. We are not going to be railroaded, browbeaten or intimidated by the Opposition in terms of its tactics.

I will be very happy to facilitate a debate on the issue of flooding in Cork. The Deputy asked last week for a debate on the Housing Commission and there will be statements on it on Thursday. If we can do it this week, we will.

What about Taoiseach's Questions?

Are the proposed arrangements agreed to?

Not agreed.