Michael Creed (Cork North West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I rise to offer my sympathies and those of the Fine Gael organisation in Cork North-West to Finola, her children, our colleague Richard and his sister Mary on the passing of John Bruton.

I was privileged to be elected to this House in the late 1980s. For those Members who are familiar with GAA lore, it was a time of great competitiveness between Cork and Meath. This had nothing to do with the fact Cork jersey was sponsored by Barry's Tea. The pitch was dominated by colossuses like Shane Cassells, Mick Lyons, Gerry McEntee and a host of others who the previous year had beaten Cork into submission in the all-Ireland final. I remember coming up here and thinking, “My God, not only are they colossuses on the playing pitch, but they have people like John Bruton on the political landscape”. John was the equivalent of a sporting colossus in a political context. We rebalanced the political landscape in 1989 and 1990, making up for previous losses, but in the intervening years, as has been enunciated by previous speakers, John's political legacy flowered. His achievements are remarkable. I do not intend to dwell on them other than to say that given the fact he was a man of faith and is now contemplating a life in the hereafter, I am sure he has a wry smile on his face listening to all the contributions eulogising his fantastic contributions and recalling, at the same time, the torment we put him through within the Fine Gael Parliamentary Party in our rooms on occasions. All of that is passed.

This is a sad day for the Bruton family, for the Fine Gael family and a sad day for politics, because John epitomised all that was best about public representation and the honour it is. He certainly never lost sight of the basic tenet of the connection between the elected and the electorate and that is a salutary lesson for all of us no matter where we are on the political landscape.

To our colleague Richard, our sincere sympathy. John was obviously a public figure, but to his family he was much more than that - a brother, a father, a grandfather, a husband. Those are the things the family will deal with in the coming days and the hole that is left after his passing. We wish Richard and all the Bruton family the strength and forbearance to carry that cross in the days ahead. May the good memories of John's contribution locally, nationally and globally sustain you in the days ahead.

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