Michael Healy-Rae (Kerry, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I thank Deputy Charlie McConalogue and Fianna Fáil for bringing this very important motion before the House. I want to recognise this.

I sympathise with the great people above in Donegal who suffered so much, as people throughout the country have suffered in the past. It is right that Fianna Fáil recognises this here tonight and that we are debating it for two days and two nights. It is welcome.

I will start with the Minister of State, Deputy Moran, himself. I recognise him as being probably one of the most proactive Ministers of State in Government when it comes to dealing with problems and issues and in being dedicated to detail. I will give an example to the House of what the Minister of State is like. Before he became a Minister of State, I went to Deputy Moran and asked him when he became a Minister if he would come to Kerry and look at problems. His answer was "yes". Deputy Moran was a Minister of State for only three hours when he rang me and said, "When am I coming to Kerry?" We agreed upon a date, and the Minister of State came down and looked at issues. He was not like some fancy Minister who came in swanning around the place, looking at things and saying this and that would be fine. After the Minister of State visited our county, travelling around with my brother and me, he called me at 10.15 p.m. on a Saturday to go through the schemes we had looked at. We wrote them down and discussed them again in great detail. No one can ever take that from him and I am very proud of the way the Minister of State carries out his ministerial duties. No one will ever take that from him. Be it looking at the problems we had in Kenmare, in Glenflesk, in Currow, in Castleisland and out on the way to Fenit where all of Liebherr's cranes have to go out the road, the Minister of State did not stand on the other side of the road wondering what the coastal erosion was like. He climbed out over the ditch and he nearly got lost into the sea himself by looking at it. He was not one bit afraid of it. That is what one calls a Minister of State who has the common, ordinary approach. He also has the ability to come back to his Department to fight for the money. Ten days ago he gave us €77,000 for one problem. I thank him in advance, and I will be the first to do so, for the money he is going to give us in the very near future, which we will not talk about now but we will announce in a couple of days' time when he will have it ready for us.

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