Labhrás Ó Murchú (Fianna Fail)

We all agree that what took place last Saturday, which has been condemned by all right thinking people, was outrageous. The question has been asked as to whether the group from Northern Ireland should have been allowed to parade in O'Connell Street. The decision to allow the group to march down O'Connell Street was correct, particularly since it came down here to highlight and remember the victims of the war in the North. For this reason, the group should have been shown respect.

However, there is a danger that we can overstate the case and in doing so, implicate this country. I listened to the views of visitors to Dublin who took part in a vox pop and not one of them blamed the Irish people for the trouble that occurred. None of them said that they would not return to Ireland and they all agreed that the trouble was the work of a minority. It was not right for some people to look for scapegoats in the first 24 hours after the riots. The Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform was the first to be scapegoated, followed by the Garda Síochána and republicans. This scapegoating serves no purpose.

We should examine the positive side of the affair. The Garda Síochána has come out of it——