Eoghan Harris (Independent)

I wish the Cathaoirleach well in his term of office. In general I do not agree with us posturing about foreign policy but in the case of Burma we should add our voices to those of other civilised nations in expressing our distress at what is happening to peaceful people, especially to monks dedicated to peaceful change.

Regarding Shannon, I am struck by the fact that those loudest in their proclamations of republicanism are slow to support Aer Lingus's progressive development that seeks to enhance the relationship between Dublin and Belfast. I wish the motorway was extended all the way to Belfast. I note that many of those loudest in their complaints on the Shannon issue are refugees from the pogroms against Northern Ireland Nationalists. Throughout the 1980s they told us how much they suffered up there and this is a good chance for some of them to go home to a more peaceful Northern Ireland. I understand why Deputies with problems in the Shannon region had to keep their mouths shut on the matter but I commend the courage of the Minister for Transport and the Marine, Deputy Noel Dempsey, in taking a tough line. Market forces should be allowed to decide what Aer Lingus does and it should not be trammelled by State interference which has caused trouble in the past.