Margaret Cox (Fianna Fail)

It was a remarkable volume of stories about innocent people who lost their lives. Their mothers and fathers, sons and daughters are all across Northern Ireland. It is very difficult for many people in the Republic to understand these people's pain, and difficult for them to understand our hurt at the notion that our unarmed Garda force might not be thought special and that gardaí shot down, murdered in cold blood, would not be respected, revered and considered as separate. We may all need to examine the depths of our souls and consider the need for progress, as Senator Ó Murchú said, but not for forgiveness or closure. Whatever happens over the next couple of weeks, that is the context in which we will judge the actions of the Government, Garda McCabe's widow and the families involved.