Rónán Mullen (Independent)

I wish Senator Cannon the very best as he sets out on a great adventure. As a fellow east Galwegian, I can tell him that many people in that part of the country are very proud of his achievement, although we see him as somewhat reminiscent of an arctic explorer and hope he will get back safely from this adventure.

As a former GAA referee, I am sure the Cathaoirleach will support me in saying that there is a need for a debate on conduct in sport. I was at the hurling league final last Sunday and the only thing wrong with that match was the result but one could not say the same about the football match. The president of the GAA was right in describing the conduct at the Dublin versus Meath match as "disgusting" and "unacceptable". We need to ask ourselves whether it is time for a debate on promoting the best standards in sport.

I recognise the GAA is doing its best but are suspensions for a number of weeks enough to deal with this problem? We have reached a situation where some of these outbreaks of brawling become the stuff of legend in that people talk of "the battle of Omagh" a couple of years ago and so on. When one considers not only the importance of sport as a means of uniting people and something which promotes healthy attitudes in the community, but also the fact we will pretty much be paying these participants in sport, we might be——