Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

There was regret and sadness across the House at the news of the passing of Peadar Clohessy, a sadness which echoed the great sense of loss among the communities of Limerick East and the people and families Peadar had served with his characteristic diligence and integrity. He was an exceptionally kind and compassionate man. In his distinguished career as a public servant he took his constituents' concerns to heart and made them his own. In his every action as a politician he served the people. They were his sole concern, first and last, in decisions taken and positions held, in what were often difficult and even turbulent times within his party.

Peadar Clohessy was first elected to Limerick County Council in 1979 and he went on to serve for 25 years. In 1981 he was elected to this House as a Fianna Fáil Deputy. He was a man of his community and home place, a man with a deep sense that politics was always about the people and less about the party. When he became a founding member of the Progressive Democrats Party, his desire was to do good and better, not alone for and by the people of Limerick East but for and by the country as a whole. Peadar's was a quiet, unassuming patriotism, perhaps all the more powerful and significant for being so. Of deep significance in his life was the sense and idea of home. He had a deep and abiding fondness for Fedamore and its great people, of whom he spoke often. I knew him well in those years. It was palpable that he was deeply rooted in his people and place. He loved its landscape and had a special place in his heart for its culture as expressed through traditional music and the Gaelic Athletic Association.

I had the privilege of working with Peadar Clohessy when he was assistant Government Chief Whip in the early 1990s, at a time when I was Chief Whip for the Fine Gael Party. In our work together I always found him to be frank, decent and honourable and have a very particular and individual sense of humour. In that role, as in all his work, his standards and attitude exemplified the best sense and idea of politics and public service. His passing is deeply regretted on all sides of the House. However, while we have lost an esteemed former colleague, the Clohessy family has lost a father, someone who can never be equalled and can never be replaced. As Taoiseach and on behalf of the Fine Gael Party, I extend my sincere sympathy to Peadar's sons, Andrew, Patrick and Michael; his daughters, Alice, Margaret and Sinéad; his extended family and many friends. Sad as they are, all our partings are only for a while. Love, as they say, never dies.

I am absolutely certain that we will once again meet those whom we love and have lost at some point in the future. Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam dílis.

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