Eoghan Harris (Independent)

Those who propose the abolition of this House should take stock of the contributions made by Senators on both sides today. They were of a very high order indeed. I wish I could keep the promise I made to myself this morning when I appealed to Senators to have regard to the civilities of the debate. When we discussed this last I said that toleration was not just permitting things of which we approve but permitting things of which we disapprove.

In that regard, I have some problems with those Senators who said they have problems of conscience. Essentially, these are not problems of conscience but problems of culture. I am not a believer but I have profound respect for religion which I believe is a product of humanity. I believe human beings created religion for their better moral regulation and without religion, we might be much poorer in Ireland, especially in Northern Ireland.

I want to be straight about this even if it brings some heat into the debate but those who talk about matters of conscience are open to the charge that they are acting like this because they feel they are under some kind of obligation to some religious creed. It is one thing if it is personal conscience but if it is coming out of some kind of ideology of religious beliefs, I would say to them that the Christian churches have a very deranged history in regard to human sexuality. That must be said straight. The founder, Jesus Christ, had a very liberal attitude to sexual morality but his disciples beginning with Paul, going on to the burning of witches and right up to the handling by the Catholic Church of child sex abuse in this country and all we know about it do not argue a very normal and sane attitude to sexuality.

Human sexuality will always be evolving. We do not know to where what we call the family unit will progress. Once contraception came in in the 1960s, the connection between procreation and sexuality was broken for all time. There is no necessary connection anymore between procreation and sexuality. Sexuality must be given its own space in life as, indeed, does the whole question of human relationships. Shakespeare said let us not to the marriage of two true minds admit impediment.

Below the surface of everyone speaking on the other side is a kind of running stream of concern about sexuality as if homosexuals and gays were not drawn to each other by their minds, their views on politics and the passion to be with each other. I fear this deranged sexual tone that lies beneath this debate because it comes out of a very deranged tradition if it is religion that is driving private conscience. In the matter of private conscience, this is res publica. Aristotle said that the public sphere is no place for political innocents - naturally, because it deals in irreconcilables. There cannot be agreement on everything in the public sphere and, therefore, we must have a mechanism to deal with the public sphere. The one we deal with is representative government.

Representative government requires that public representatives act at all times in the res publica. They cannot say they have a personal and private dimension, although if they do so, they come up against Dr. Johnson's rule who said we are all entitled to our private conscience provided we are prepared to die for it. If they are prepared to lose their jobs in the public sector, let them declare themselves. I hope the Minister responsible, if he meets any of these characters, will take the opportunity to make another cut in the public service if any of them refuses to do his or her duty.