What just happened? How a bitter row led to the Dáil being suspended TWICE in an hour

THE DÁIL IS back with a bang – and has been suspended not once, but twice already.

That bang is a blazing row over speaking time, with Ceann Comhairle Verona Murphy suspending the Dáil after 26 minutes into its return.

When the shouting immediately resumed after the 15 minute suspension, Murphy suspended it again for 30 minutes.

Sinn Féin, Labour, the Social Democrats, People Before Profit and Independent Ireland TDs all expressed their fury at the Ceann Comhairle over her decision to give the Regional Independents’ technical group permission to use opposition speaking time on a provisional basis.

TDs demanded that she set a deadline for when her final decision will be made.

Verona Murphy

Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald said she has seen “brazen actions by Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael in the past Dáil and past governments, but this takes the biscuit.”

She then rounded on the Ceann Comhairle, who herself came from the Regional Independents, and said Murphy should have called this out from the beginning. 

“You say that you will be independent and fair in your deliberations. What is proposed today is anything but fair, anything but independent, and is completely unacceptable to those of us in Sinn Féin and, I believe, to the Opposition as a whole.”

Labour TD Duncan Smith said that unlike what Micheál Martin believes, the public are angry about this issue. 

Social Democrats TD Gary Gannon said the situation was “absolutely despicable”.

“We are off to an incredibly bad start” to this Dáil, Gannon said, telling the Ceann Comhairle: “It’s setting the tone for the next four years. And that is from you. That is not from us.”

People Before Profit leader Richard Boyd Barrett cranked up the volume, telling the chamber the Dáil is off to a “farcical start”. 

“We have taken the art of speaking out two sides of your mouth to a new and higher level,” he said. 

Sinn Féin TD Matt Carthy cranked things up further, shouting at the Ceann Comhairle and had to be asked to resume his seat multiple times. 

Labour’s Alan Kelly then interjected to also ask that Murphy set out a timeline for when her decision will be made. 

Murphy gave her “absolute assurance” that she will deal with the matter “expeditiously” and that the decision making process will begin when the deadline for submissions close today. 

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Independent Ireland Richard O’Donoghue asked the Ceann Comhairle to “step aside and let somebody else deal with the issue”. 

Murphy said she cannot make a decision until all submissions are received.

Sinn Féin TD Pádraig Mac Lochlainn asked for the Dáil to be suspended so that an urgent meeting of the Business Committee can be convened to deal with the “outrageous proposition” that the Dáil will not sit next week. 

Mac Lochlainn also drew attention to Michael Lowry being “a member of Opposition”.

“Michael Lowry who stood outside this building and said, ‘We will support the government in the good days’…For God’s sake. It’s making a mockery of democracy here,” he said. 

The ructions continued with numerous TDs shouting, the Ceann Comhairle then announced she was suspending the Dáil for 15 minutes.

We will be bringing you all the latest updates throughout the day in our live blog. Follow along here.

• Explainer: What is this Dáil row about the Regional Independents and speaking time?