Joe O'Reilly (Fine Gael)

At the outset, I refer in passing to the earlier remarks of Senator Walsh. As Senator Donohoe outlined, while members of my party will be supporting the Civil Partnership Bill individually and collectively and the underlying principles behind it, I have sympathy with Senator Walsh's view that, on any issue of personal conscience, people should be allowed a free vote and that this should be allowed within and across parties. This is a personal view I hold. It is not a debate on the legislation as such but a point on the general principle and, in fact, a very liberal concept.