The Dáil was suspended this afternoon after a row erupted over Fianna Fáil TD Marc MacSharry making an "anti-Semitic" remark about the Government.
The Sligo TD made the charge that the Government was like Nazi propaganda minister Joseph Goebbels.
The row began when Deputy MacSharry criticised the reduction of hours in the Garda station in Donegal town.
He said this against the backdrop of the €45,000 launch of the National Planning Framework in Sligo.
"What message are we sending? It's one thing wheeling everyone down for a Goebbels-style launch.
"It's another thing when in reality we are cutting services," Deputy MacSharry said.
He went on to criticise the advertising campaign on the National Planning Framework.
Deputy MacSharry was critical of the recent Project Ireland 2040 and he claimed that the €1.5m spent on the project's advertising and information campaign was robbing the people of Ireland.
There were heated exchanges as Minister of State Brendan Griffin called on him to withdraw the remark.
The Minister for Justice and Equality Charlie Flanagan also asked that the Sligo TD withdraw the comments.
The Minister for Health Simon Harris claimed the remarks were "anti-Semitic" and they amounted to "an attack on the Jewish community and the victims of the Holocaust."
The Ceann Comhairle Seán Ó Fearghaíl said the remark was not directed at any individual and said if it had been he would consider that to be deeply offensive.
"It was a broad political charge using the type of phraseology that Deputy MacSharry does from time to time," he added.
The Minister for Justice did not accept the Ceann Comhairle's ruling and as the row continued, the Dail was suspended for ten minutes.
The Dáil has now resumed business with Taoiseach's questions.
