When the Taoiseach spoke to the Seanad about the North a couple of weeks ago, on the eve of the talks between the Minister for Foreign Affairs and the Northern Secretary, I wondered how those at that level keep the faith which enables them to press on. I refer to the Taoiseach, the British Prime Minister and all of us in public life who are determined that we will not falter. People say a step forward is taken and then one step backwards, but I prefer to say it is a step forward and then a step sideways. We should keep in mind that this process is for the good of the island – it is intended to reduce the level of violence and to stop killings and the other nefarious activities which disrupted the lives of those in Northern Ireland. It is to the credit of the people in Northern Ireland that they turned out in such numbers to vote in favour of peace and the Good Friday Agreement.