Dáil sittings to remain in the Convention Centre until at least September

Moving the sittings from Leinster House is costing up to €25,000 per day

Micheál Martin addressing a sitting of the Dáil at the Convention Centre Dublin. File Picture: Maxwells

Dáil sittings will not return to Leinster House until September at least, the Ceann Comhairle has said.

Seán Ó Fearghaíl today said that the business committee has agreed to continue to hold sessions of Dáil Éireann in the Convention Centre Dublin for the remainder of this Dáil session, which is due to finish in the middle of July.

The next session will not begin until September, meaning that the Dáil will be out of its chamber at the Leinster House complex for the first nine months of the year. While no rent is charged to the Oireachtas, it costs between €21,000 and €25,000 per day to move sittings to the other side of the River Liffey.

Health and safety advice

Mr Ó Fearghaíl said the decision was being made with "due regard to current health and safety advice", but sources said many politicians have pushed for a return to Leinster House.

The Ceann Comhairle said continuing to hold sittings in the Convention Centre will ensure the safety of TDs and Oireachtas House staff. He said that Leinster House is "not a controlled setting".

“I wish to thank the members of the Business Committee for their continued support and work as we strive to keep everyone in the parliamentary community safe. The decision reached this morning follows many discussions over as many weeks and months and has not been taken lightly. 

Although we all wish to return to our normal workplace in Leinster House as soon as possible, the members of the Committee have agreed to accept the health and safety advice provided by the Houses of the Oireachtas Service and public health bodies.

He said it is clear there are risks associated with all levels of activity in indoor settings where people are congregating in numbers, even with mitigating factors such as

physical distancing, face coverings and sanitisation. 

"The Leinster House campus is an indoor congregated setting and, critically from a health and safety perspective, it is not a controlled environment where the number of people on-site at any one time is counted and where their movements are managed and limited," he said.

"A further issue of relevance is that Dáil sittings last from 8 to 12 hours. This means that Leinster House is not directly comparable to other indoor settings where people congregate but which are controlled, such as schools or retail settings."