Geraldine Feeney (Fianna Fail)

Like other speakers, I welcome the Minister to the House. It is very fitting to have such a Minister. Last Wednesday I heard Opposition Members jokingly say to him that the country was safe. That is no joke; the country is very safe with Deputy O'Dea as the Minister for Defence. It is fitting that the Minister comes from the county he comes from which has one of the biggest military barracks in the mid-west. He is very aware of the problems faced by the military.

Much of what I wanted to say has already been said and I will not go back over it again. I wish to highlight a few issues. It would be remiss of me not to acknowledge the significant debt of gratitude we owe the Defence Forces since their inception. We have been well served by them. I live in Sligo which has a large Army population, although not quite as big as that in the Minister's constituency in the mid-west. Sligo's Army population serves out of Finner Camp. We in the north west are very proud of our men and women who at times put their lives on the line in order to serve us.

It is very fitting that this legislation is passing through the Upper House. The Bill is a significant tribute to the late John Lucey. As far back as ten years ago, he examined the subject. At the time there was some opposition within the Defence Forces. They were a little afraid, and perhaps rightly so, of outside interference. The Defence Forces normally look after everything to do with themselves and do so quite well. I spoke to both PDFORRA and RACO this morning. They are both singing from the same hymn sheet and are of one voice. They are happy with the legislation that is coming through and they say it is an important leg in the anti-bullying and harassment policy that is now in place. This is as a result of that good report of two years ago.

The late Mr. Lucey was a great man. Somebody once described him as a king, a giant of a man. It is a testament to him that so many people have talked about him in this Chamber today. Speaking as a widow, it is a source of great comfort to his widow and family to hear their loved one spoken of in such tones.

I look forward to the Committee Stage of this excellent Bill. I intend to ask then how the Bill will reflect on the reserve forces and I look forward to debating the issue with the Minister.

I rarely get a chance to inform my eminent colleague, Senator Leyden. I was listening to a debate on RTE just before the European elections last June. One of the candidates was talking about the word "ombudsman". She informed the listenership that it was a Swedish word for a conciliator, someone who brings things together. I do not think there is a word in any vocabulary for "ombudsperson".