Kathleen O'Meara (Labour)

On behalf of the Labour Party group in the Seanad I sincerely extend our condolences and deepest sympathy to the Fianna Fáil Party and the family of Seán Doherty on his sudden and tragic passing. The extent to which he was loved by his community was clear from the moment of the news of his death. I received telephone calls from friends of mine from that part of the country. They told me about the sense of loss they felt as a result of his sudden passing.

I do not doubt that Seán Doherty left a mark on Irish politics. I have been astonished by the number of newspaper column inches devoted in recent days to discussions of his career. Many people have spoken about Seán Doherty's turbulent career, which contained some very controversial moments. I did not know Seán Doherty, other than to say hello to him in Leinster House during his last term as a Deputy. I never had a conversation with him. Like other Senators, I acknowledge that he made a very significant contribution in Oireachtas committees during his last term. It is clear he was an intelligent and able politician.

As a former employee of RTE, who was active in the NUJ, I have reason to remember the events of February 1992. Seán Doherty spoke at a now-famous press conference in the Montrose Hotel about the tapping of journalists' telephones, which had taken place when Mr. Charles Haughey was Taoiseach. As we were on strike, we were in Liberty Hall when it emerged that Seán Doherty was speaking at the press conference in question. Very few people were working in RTE at the time because the vast majority of its employees were on strike. It was possible for RTE to broadcast the entire press conference live as part of the skeleton service that was being provided. I suspect the conference was broadcast live and in its entirety because so few journalists and technicians were working in RTE at the time. The contents of the press conference were of very significant interest to any journalist.

I take this opportunity to extend sympathy to Seán Doherty's wife, Maura, his four very able daughters, the wider community and the Fianna Fáil Party, which has suffered such a loss at this time. Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam dílis.