Paul Bradford (Fine Gael)

I agree with the call from Senator Mooney for a debate on emigration. Last week, it was mentioned that there is a strong possibility of progress being made on the visa situation facing illegal Irish immigrants in the United States. The Oireachtas should be seen to be proactive in that regard.

I agree with everything that has been said by my colleagues on the Northern Ireland question. The IRA statement is shocking, chilling and totally out of touch with the vast majority of people, North and South. The Leader should arrange for a substantive debate on Northern Ireland at an early date. Over the years, a degree of caution has been exercised in such debates due to fears that people may say the wrong things. Sometimes, however, as a result of our silence on matters north of the Border, including the issues facing the Nationalist community there, we allowed a vacuum to be created which was filled by the wilder men and women. The constitutional parties in this House, Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael, the Labour Party and the Progressive Democrats are republican and Nationalist but above all they have a sense of justice and responsibility. We must reclaim the debate and ensure that every citizen of Northern Ireland, whether loyalist, Unionist, Nationalist, Catholic or dissenter, knows that he or she will be properly looked after by the democratic politics of the democratic parties on this island. We must take responsibility and not allow the wild men of Sinn Féin to be in charge of policy in the Northern debate.