Mattie McGrath (Tipperary, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I stood in Soloheadbeg last Sunday, the place where Tadhg Crowe and Seán Treacy, among others, fired the first shots in the War of Independence. The Government is going around the country commemorating our independence, as is the Sinn Féin Party, and reading the Proclamation. What a neck to come in here then and bring this forward. The Minister of State, Senator Hackett, is not even elected to this House. She has the privilege of sitting at Cabinet but she has been an utter disgrace in relation to afforestation. The licence figures she gave tonight are totally inaccurate and misleading.

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