Mattie McGrath (Tipperary, Independent) | Oireachtas source

On behalf of Rural Independent Group, I wish Noel Murphy and his family the very best and thank him for his sterling service over four and a half decades.

Tipperary County Council met yesterday in emergency session to discuss the housing situation. Each and every one of us as elected representatives must do our best, alongside many organisations, voluntary and otherwise, to try to solve the housing crisis. However, we have a farcical situation whereby a Fine Gael Senator attacked Tipperary County Council members for calling this meeting. It was a very productive meeting and those in attendance came up with very good ideas which they are sending on to the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage. The council members were duly and democratically elected, and for a Senator to come in to these Houses and criticise them is unacceptable. We know Fianna Fáil was the party that built houses but it does not build anything now. Fine Gael was always the party of the landed gentry and big farmers and did not care about the ordinary people but for a Senator to attack democratically elected councillors for exercising their right to meet, discuss issues, formulate policy and come up with ideas and send them forward to the Minister is outrageous. Someone in government needs to apologise and rein this man in. April Fool's Day is on Saturday. I wonder was he a few days premature.

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