Rónán Mullen (Independent)

The Cathaoirleach knows my views on that. The Taoiseach may bring about a situation where people will be cheesed off with the attitude of proponents of the Lisbon treaty and vote accordingly. It is in the interests of those who propose a "Yes" vote to this treaty to ensure they get their language right, propose, as Senator Quinn has suggested, a rational debate based on the issues and not engage in name calling in respect of those who disagree with them.

I also welcome what Senator Harris said about the Cathal Ó Searcaigh affair. I have refrained from commenting on this. I am very disturbed by the alleged events but would tend to be of the view that we should not talk about or criticise people's behaviour in this House unless we can establish that they have broken the law in some way.

There is a distinction, however, to be drawn between censorship, where we prevent books from being sold on the market, and legitimate prudential decisions that can be taken on behalf of the community by those who set the syllabus. It is not an issue of censorship if people make a judgment call or try to make a statement. I privately canvassed the views of my colleague, Senator Norris, about how we would feel if the films of Leni Riefenstahl, who made pro-Nazi films, were taught. Sometimes, there is a judgment to be made by those who set the syllabus and they may want to register their disquiet at certain behaviour. We should call that censorship per se because we are not talking about preventing people from having access to these books and films as a matter of free choice. We are talking in the educational system about forming the minds of the next generation and moral issues do arise there. There is such a thing as setting a good example to the rest of society and those who make these decisions should be allowed to act accordingly.