Olivia Mitchell (Dublin South, Fine Gael)

I, too, express my sympathy to Séamus's wife, Ann, his children and his extended family. While it is always heartbreaking to lose a close family member, it is particularly tragic to lose so suddenly someone so young and in the prime of his life. Although Séamus was sick for a long time, the end came too quickly.

Séamus gave virtually all his adult life to public service and was reaching the stage in life when he could reasonably look forward to having more time to spend with his family, enjoying his grandchildren, playing golf and enjoying personal time which is not available to Cabinet members or anybody involved in political life. That he was not afforded those years is a tragedy and must be a source of huge regret and sadness to his family.

The last time I saw Séamus was a few weeks before he died when he visited Dundrum town centre to support the Taoiseach who was canvassing for the Lisbon treaty referendum. I will never forget the strain on his face that day. Clearly, the day was taking a huge toll on him and costing him an enormous effort. Although it was heartbreaking to see him, at the same time it was a measure of the man and his sense of loyalty to the Taoiseach, his party and the country, as well as the many Fianna Fáil supporters who were present on the day, that he would turn up for what must have been his final public occasion.

Much has been said about Séamus's political career on the national stage as a Minister who held many portfolios, a household name and an adept and polished television performer. I knew him best as a constituency colleague and for virtually all my time in politics he was the political colossus in Dublin South. As we all know, he was not a big man but he had stature in the constituency. Through his actions and in his demeanour, his constituents on whose behalf he worked tirelessly knew he was on their side. No meeting was too small and no topic too insignificant for him to bother about. He followed up every problem relentlessly. It was a source of jest in Dublin South that one should be wary of contacting Séamus because when one's name entered his database, it was never removed. As the Minister for Health and Children, Deputy Harney, noted, one was assured of a lifetime of correspondence.

Séamus's election canvassing machine was legendary and moved inexorably across the constituency. It was feared by the rest of us in much the same way as a panzer division must have been feared. The Brennan team was a sight to behold and instantly recognisable by the presence of his beautiful, red-head daughters who turned out in election after election to support their dad. Every time we met on the hustings it was obvious how proud they were of their father, how devoted they were to him and how proud he was of them.

I do not know if the Brennan team will march again in Dublin South but if not, they will be missed for their colourful presence. From childhood on and in successive elections, Séamus's children provided living testimony to the filial devotion all public representatives need to succeed. At constituency level, Séamus was a formidable, awesome and frustrating adversary at public meetings because his manner was so non-confrontational, reasonable and self-deprecating that he completely disarmed his critics. No matter how irate the constituent, he managed to bring peace where there was disharmony. It was a sobering experience to observe how he trumped the rest of us at public meetings. If he could not promise to meet the demands of those present, he promised the next best thing, namely, a meeting with the Minister in Leinster House. This always went down well as all was forgiven and people left the meeting quietly. The rest of us could not compete with him.

People liked and respected Séamus because he respected them. Many people from all parties expressed genuine sadness at his untimely demise and everybody spoke of the dignity he maintained to the end as well as the gentlemanly manner he displayed in all his dealings with friends and foe. Séamus is missed in Leinster House, in the Government and in the constituency, but the real sadness is felt by Ann and the Brennan family as they try to come to terms with the great loss they have experienced. I offer them my heartfelt sympathy.

See this speech in context