Paul Coghlan (Fine Gael)

It is good to hear that man try to clarify his position. I do not always agree with my good friend, Senator Darragh O'Brien, on the Order of Business. This morning, however, I seriously compliment him on his steady, sure and responsible leadership with regard to the fiscal compact treaty and the referendum that now is to be held thereon. As he stated, it is in the interests of the common good. It will also build on the steady progress this country has been making and will support the growing international investor confidence in Ireland that has been so important. It will assist the economy and Ireland's reputation and the jobs that are flowing therefrom. It reaffirms our will and our commitment to the euro and membership thereof. It will give us stronger fiscal rules, which are necessary never to have a recurrence of what happened in the past and which led us into the appalling abyss from which we are recovering at present and hopefully will continue to recover. Moreover, it will confirm our commitment to responsible budgeting. For all these reasons, many of which were alluded to by Senator O'Brien, Government Members obviously equally agree. Moreover, they look forward to a highly constructive campaign and to working in harmony and co-operation with the Fianna Fáil grouping in this House. Hopefully, the Fianna Fáil grouping in the other House will unite as much as its Seanad counterpart has done and I compliment them in that regard.