Brendan Kenneally (Fianna Fail)

The people are not fools and they know on which side their bread is buttered.

I welcome the Minister, Deputy Coughlan, and congratulate her on the excellent job she has been doing since taking up office last year. Without any reflection on her predecessors, she is like a breath of fresh air in a Department which gives little scope for inventiveness or initiative. She has clearly indicated that she has her finger well and truly on the pulse of the nation. It is obvious she has brought to the Department the wealth of knowledge she has gained at the coalface of constituency work. I am aware of her weekly advice column in the provincial press. She seeks to get the information to the people through one of the most effective means possible, namely, local newspapers, which are so beloved by everyone.