Shane Ross (Independent)

Like the Cathaoirleach and possibly only Senators O'Rourke and Ryan, I served with Seán O'Leary for the short period he was a Member of this House in the 1980s. While I agree with Senator Brian Hayes that one of his most distinguishing characteristics was that he was unparalleled on the logistics of politics such as the minutiae of elections and constituencies and was extraordinarily beneficial to the party to which he was attached, this is not really what his lasting legacy will be. Senator Brian Hayes put his finger on it when he said that although he was a real insider in Fine Gael at the time and the quintessential national handler who was trusted with the ear of the leader and the people who mattered in Fine Gael, he stated in this House one day that he would not vote for the Criminal Justice Bill 1983. This is a very difficult thing to do. It is all right if one is a known maverick with no career left within the party, but Seán O'Leary voted against the Criminal Justice Bill and was outside the party for a period of about six months. He was out of the party and its higher councils of which he was a vital member for so long.

This was not the only evidence that he was a man of incredibly independent mind. Just before he died, he left his verdict on an amazing judgment, which was immensely courageous. In barely coded language, he criticised the Supreme Court in terms which were very courageous. He said the Supreme Court of this nation had bowed to the mob, that we needed a Supreme Court which would not take a populist view and which would not make judgments because they were popular but make unpopular judgments and that this is why the Supreme Court existed. This was the sort of obiter dictum which many people were thinking about that particular judgment but dared not say. It was characteristic and typical of Seán O'Leary that he should have put this debate into the public arena and caused a great deal of controversy but also accentuate his own independence.

For this reason, we are at a loss for his departure because we need more people who have the guts to say and do things which are unpopular in the face of colleagues who will shun them for doing so. I mourn his loss and, on behalf of the Independent Senators, express my sympathy to his family.