Paul Bradford (Fine Gael)

I concur with the comments of the Leader of the House and pay tribute to the Minister of State at the Department of Foreign Affairs, Deputy Roche, for his contribution. The Minister certainly has a tough task ahead of him in the coming weeks but he can leave this House heartened having felt the strong wishes of the majority of Members that this treaty is put to the people in a very positive and dynamic fashion. Hopefully, it will be passed by the people.

Like the Leader, I was greatly impressed by the contribution of my colleagues from all sides. I do not know how many sides we are supposed to have in this Seanad. In particular, I congratulate those who made their maiden speeches. It is quite a daunting task to make one's first contribution but those who did were most impressive. It augurs well not only for the Nice treaty debate, but for the workings of Seanad Éireann in the coming years. I was also impressed by the number of Members who stayed and listened to the contributions. In politics we often have a tendency to say our bit and then rush away at such speed that it looks as if we are training for the Olympics. There was a great willingness among Senators to listen to what colleagues had to say. We have all learned from each other.

I take on board the mild criticisms of some of the speakers on the Government side that we should not introduce doubt about Government policy regarding this treaty. That is something we will tease out in the coming weeks. The criticisms made by this side of the House were made in good faith and were relatively mild. They were made to ensure that we will try to draw a clear line between the Government and the treaty debate. They are two separate issues. The treaty debate and the passing of the referendum is of crucial importance to this country. We want to ensure the debate will be about the referendum and nothing else.

I thank the Minister, Deputy Roche, for his attention. His officials have informed me that since his appointment he has worked 25 hours a day and I know he did not take a break during August. That intense level of political activity will have to be continued until the day of the referendum.