ieExplains: What are Dáil speaking rights and what is the current row about?
Independent TD Michael Lowry arrives at Leinster House, Dublin, on Wednesday, where the Dáil is set to resume and vote on the nomination of Micheal Martin as taoiseach.
The formation of the new government has led to a major row about speaking rights in the Dáil.
Here, we take a deeper look at the division.
Speaking rights, or speaking time, is basically the amount of time a party, TD or government gets to speak in the Dáil chamber.
This covers the likes of statements, debating legislation or asking questions of ministers and the taoiseach.
A recognised technical group has more speaking rights than an unaffiliated TD.
Speaking rights are usually determined as part of the beginning of Dáil business on a given day.
You will often hear the Ceann Comhairle tell TDs how long they have to speak, similar to how Oireachtas committees work.
A technical group contains a number of opposition TDs who join together to avail of various perks not available to those in Government or a sole Independent TD.
Technical groups can ask questions to the Taoiseach in Leaders' Questions, put forward motions or legislation to the Dáil.
However, a key rule is members must be in opposition to form a technical group.
This means the groups in question cannot include senior or junior ministers.
For example, in the 33rd Dáil, one of the technical groups was the Rural Group.
This was made up of Danny Healy-Rae, Michael Healy-Rae, Mattie McGrath, Carol Nolan, Michael Collins and Richard O'Donoghue.
When the Dáil first sat in 2020, they were all independents. Michael Collins and Richard O'Donoghue became members of Independent Ireland in 2023.
Three.
The group: Richard Boyd Barrett, Ruth Coppinger and Paul Murphy of People Before Profit-Solidarity, alongside Independent TDs Seamus Healy, Brian Stanley, Catherine Connolly, Roderic O'Gorman of the Green Party and Charles Ward of the 100% Redress Party in Donegal.
A second as yet unnamed group will consist of the four Independent Ireland TDs — Ken O'Flynn, Michael McNamara, Richard O'Donoghue and Michael Fitzmaurice — as well as Independent Paul Gogarty.
The third and final group will be the and this is where things get a bit sticky.
Longtime Tipperary TD Michael Lowry proposed the group at the business committee the Thursday before the Dáil was to sit for the first time.
He and other members of the Regional Independent group that did not get ministerial roles will make up some of the group.
These are Barry Heneghan, Gillian Toole and Danny Healy-Rae.
It was also to include more members of the opposition, in the form of Aontú's Peadar Tóibín and Paul Lawless, and Independent Carol Nolan. However, Aontú announced on Wednesday it was leaving the group. The party's two TDs are set to join Independent Ireland's technical group.
The main issue at play is that the Regional Independent group are a part of the incoming Government.
After the Regional Independent Group agreed a programme for government with Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael, four of its members and Michael Healy-Rae were made junior ministers.
These were Seán Canney and Noel Grealish, who are to be made super junior ministers while Michael Healy-Rae, Marian Harkin and Kevin ‘Boxer’ Moran will hold junior ministerial roles
The four remaining members — Lowry, Heneghan, Toole and Danny Healy-Rae — having agreed to support the new government, are now seeking speaking rights in the Dáil from the opposition benches.
Opposition parties have sharply criticised this, saying the independent TDs are part of the government due to their input into the programme for government.
The matter is currently with the Ceann Comhairle.
Mr Lowry has said the lack of ministers in the proposed group means the group is "in compliance with the rules”.
He also cited how he had supported “the last five or six governments from the opposition benches. There’s nothing different about it.”
Ceann Comhairle Verona Murphy. She is a former member of the Regional Independent Group, which nominated her for the role.
It will be among the first bits of business settled when the Dáil returns on February 5.
