Labhrás Ó Murchú (Fianna Fail)

I have always found the Senator to be very moderate in his views even on subjects which are very extreme. I give him credit for that and I wish we had more time for this debate. I will make a few points with a view to being helpful. It is very easy to throw around words such as "compassion". At this time it is probably somewhat premature to do so and I am sure it can be discussed at a later stage. Many of us grew up with a very traditional outlook on life and are pretty focused in that regard. When we came across people who found themselves in the position of same-sex unions, all of a sudden it became a human issue and we took time out to consider the situation, which is very important. Legislation is one matter and humanity is another. We must always try to bear that in mind.

As my time is limited, I want to focus on same-sex unions. I would advise that people in such unions should not go into competition with marriage. While Senator Maurice Hayes put it down to an issue of contract, I feel that might be a starting point. I could never understand why gay people wanted to stand out and not integrate in their own right with everybody else in the St. Patrick's Day parade in New York. While I do not mean to be insulting in any way, there was a certain degree of exhibitionism in that approach, which does not help the case of gay people.

If this debate is to continue we must start from the point that we have experience of the family unit. We know how that unit has stood to us in time and we know that it will be very difficult to get people in the main to change their views in that regard. In the debate, perception will be as important as reality and we should focus on the perception. If this discussion were taking place on Vincent Browne's programme or on any other radio programme it would be a case of "God help the debate". However, it is happening here involving people who are prepared to listen to each other's opinions, have done research and realise that we have a long road to travel. It is important not to leave it to the media to have the debate; let us have the debate here. I wish everybody well. We all know where we are coming from. If two opposing points of view exist, I have no doubt that the bridge between them is humanity.