Damien English (Meath, Fine Gael)

I missed a few Irish lessons during the campaign, so I will make my contribution in English for today. It is an honour to welcome Deputy McEntee to the House. He was an excellent candidate, ran an excellent campaign and he will be an excellent Deputy. The McEntee family has been involved in politics for years and has served Meath in many different respects. It is through the family's hard work over a long time that Deputy McEntee has now become a Member of the House. That same hard work will keep him as a Deputy for a long time to come. His family and other supporters are here today but many are missing from the Public Gallery because they could not all fit in there. While the Fine Gael Party was behind him, Deputy McEntee's supporters, including his family and friends, did an excellent job also. Without their help, he would not have been elected. It is great that his family and friends are here. It was teamwork that got the job done. He is a proud Meath man who will do a great job.

The Tánaiste said the exchanges in the House will not always be as civil as they are today. Having watched the McEntees over the years, I can assure her that they also know how to be uncivil when the issue demands it. There will be serious times ahead. Politics is a serious business and there will be nothing shy about Deputy McEntee. I have often said he is a gentleman but he can be a hard man too. He is here to do a hard job well for the people of Meath. He will do an excellent job.

I wish Deputy Catherine Murphy the best of luck. While I did not follow her campaign as closely as the one in Meath, the fact that she is here today proves she is an outstanding person who will make an excellent Deputy.

I look forward to working with Deputy McEntee and Deputy Catherine Murphy in the coming years. Meath is a large county. We only had four Deputies for a while but we now have five. We actually need six Deputies to represent Meath because of its size. There is a great deal of work involved in representing the area in the Oireachtas, which represents a heavy burden for the sitting Deputies.

The candidates in both constituencies were excellent and the turnout was no reflection on them. All Members of the House have a serious job to do. Politics is a serious business and we must make people realise how important it is. We need to increase the turnout in elections for the sake of democracy. It behoves all of us — including you, a Cheann Comhairle, as the person in charge of the House — to make that happen. Dáil reform is part of that and we have much work to do in that regard. The two new Deputies will perform their duties excellently. We should do all we can to make it as easy as possible for them to represent their constituencies. I look forward to the months ahead.

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