Brendan Ryan (Labour)

The Minister's speech was thoughtful, reflective and challenging. I will have to stop saying that as I keep saying it about his speeches. I am beginning to wonder about one of us. Nevertheless, it is a fact.

I write a weekly column for a newspaper in Cork. It is a newspaper that has been sued and therefore our editor is as sensitive as anybody else to some of the things I say here. He might not be too keen if I said them down there. I like the Minister's rhetorical flourishes on press freedom. For a moment I thought he would quote from Chairman Mao about letting a thousand flowers bloom.