Paschal Mooney (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Senator. In the 2011 general election, having been elected party leader, one of his first commitments was the abolition of the Seanad. However, there was a caveat, because it was in the context of overall parliamentary reform. He did not agree that the Seanad alone should be taken out of the equation, but that there should be overall political reform. Of course, he was a little like St. Paul on the road to Damascus subsequently, helped along by those of us around the country who had a different view.