Paul Kehoe (Wexford, Fine Gael)

I thank my colleague, Deputy Howlin, for sharing his time. I appreciate it very much. I sympathise with the Dunne and O'Brien families on the deaths of Adrian and Ciara Dunne and their children. This is an emotional time for the people of Monageer, Enniscorthy and County Wexford as a whole. The impact of this emotional issue is being felt as far away as County Donegal. This is not an appropriate time for speaking about blame, or reflecting on whether this event should or could have been avoided.

I welcome the announcement made today by the Minister of State, Deputy Brian Lenihan, that he intends to initiate an independent investigation into this matter. I hope he ensures that this issue is deeply examined, especially as there was a similar tragedy in Wexford town in 2005. My personal belief is that we have not learned any real lessons from the deaths of Sharon Grace and her two children, Mikayla and Abby. I plead with the Minister of State to ensure there is no recurrence of such tragedies in County Wexford or anywhere else in Ireland. A 24 hour, seven day service should be put in place so that it can offer assistance whenever somebody seeks it. Important lessons can be learned from this tragedy. I am not being political because I would say the same thing if I were on the opposite side of the House. I ask the Minister of State to ensure that the independent investigation results in a structure that prevents such a tragedy from recurring anywhere in Ireland.

I thank Deputy Howlin for sharing his time and again offer my sympathies to the Dunne and O'Brien families. I knew Adrian and his family quite well in my political life over the past five years. It is a sad night when we lose two lovely children and two adults.

See this speech in context