Taoiseach Bertie Ahern has effectively ruled out allocating extra Dáil committee chairmanships and vice-chairmanships to the Opposition. He told the Dáil that "I will not change my mind on a view that has been held here for years" that committees of the House are chaired by the Government side.
Mr Ahern said it "has always been the practice that the committees of the House are chaired by the Government side" with the exception of "watchdog" committees such as the Public Accounts committee.
Fine Gael has warned that it will consider non co-operation with the Government on the running of the Dáil if they did not receive further allocations of jobs. Party leader Enda Kenny complained that it was three months since the Dáil had gone into recess and the nature and make-up of the committees had not been sorted. His party had sought representation on the basis of the D'Hondt system which operates in most EU countries and in the Northern Assembly where positions were allocated on the basis of the number of seats a party held.
Mr Kenny said: "Committees of the House are not instruments of the Government. They are instruments of the Dáil to deal with its business and as such they should reflect the proportionality of the parties as represented in the House."
Mr Ahern said however that for the Government to get through its business and move legislation and issues through it was "important that such committees should be chaired by supporters of the Government".
Mr Kenny replied that "there are no cases in which legislation was held up by chairmen who were non-governmental members.
The Government would command a majority on every committee, so "that is no reason to assert that legislation would be held up", he added.
Mr Ahern said that they could perhaps agree on what committees would be established. "The Government has already stated it is prepared to extend some positions to Opposition members."
The Fine Gael leader said he "would not wish to expand the number of committees merely to keep happy those on the Government benches with the news that another position of chairman has been procured".
Michael D Higgins (Lab, Galway West) called for a discussion of the general roles of committees and said "it is not a matter of who will fill the posts".
