Damien English (Meath West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Shane truly was a unique person, colleague and friend. He was a committed and passionate man whether for family, politics, football, community or, as Shane would say, parish. He was a gentle giant with a huge presence in Meath and the country. His passing is a huge loss to his family, our county and all of us here. I did not know Shane before the 2005 by-election. I knew of him, as everyone in Meath knew the McEntee family from football, sport and politics, and Shane's reputation had travelled even to my house when I was a young fellow well before 2005 when I got to know him.

I remember canvassing throughout the county and it did not matter whether one was in Donore near Drogheda or in Ballinabrackey, Enfield or Navan, Shane was known. Knocking on doors I assumed people would know Gerry, but no offence to Gerry it was always Shane they knew. They knew of Gerry but they knew Shane personally. Before he had even started his formal role in politics he was known. Getting to know Shane during the by-election was an honour as was working with him and his family.

Shane was a proud Meath man who entered politics for all the right reasons.

He genuinely wanted to improve things for the people of Meath and for his country. Shane believed in public service and he was proud to serve. Everyone who knew him and worked with him was extremely fond of him and they all knew how genuine and true he was.

Throughout his career in politics, Shane threw his energy into fighting for his people. He did not win every battle but he made sure, at the very least - be it in opposition or in government - to put up a good fight. It was not unusual in our area to wake up to hear Shane on LMFM radio in the morning, starting a new campaign in which Fine Gael would be involved. One might give out and say, "Here we go again, another campaign", but one followed him into it. That was Shane - everything became a campaign and everything was a battle. Shane had the art of campaigning down to a tee. He never took "No" for an answer. In footballing terms, as Shane always put it, he never took his eye off the ball. In my office, Shane's approach was called the "Mac attack".

As a colleague in Meath, I had the pleasure of working with him on some of these campaigns, including road safety, pylons, pyrite and our local hospital. Shane always set the bar high for all of us involved in those campaigns, and rightly so. Some of us might get obsessed with detail and the process of getting there, but that was not Shane's concern. He just kept the end target in sight; we were going to win this campaign and that was it.

Shane was a key campaigner for rural Ireland and its heritage. He took on a leading role on many issues, including hunting, farming and the right to live and work on one's land. On these issues, Shane was certainly not one to sit on the fence. For Shane, it was never just about votes or politics, it was more real than that; people always came first. If Shane thought a person or family was in need, he was the first to their door. Their issue became his issue.

Shane was a good friend to all of us here in Leinster House. I will miss his visits to my office where he would pop in for five minutes and stay for an hour. One would always hear Shane coming up the corridor because he would stop at everyone's door to say "Hello" and ask "How's the family?" That was Shane. He would ask "How's the wee man?" or "How's the wee girl?". Family meant the world to Shane. I know that Kathleen and the children, as well as his brothers, sisters and friends, are here today. Shane often spoke about them with a smile and a glint in his eye. He was very proud of all of them. They were a big presence in everything he did and everything he worked for. My thoughts and prayers are with them. I hope Shane is at peace now. He really will be missed by all of us in this House. May he rest in peace.

See this speech in context