David Norris (Independent)

I take a more temperate view. We made fools of ourselves and did not manage this matter very skilfully. We cannot blame the press for the interest it took in this. I certainly will not work seven days, or 24 hours. I often leave this place at 11 p.m. and I do a damn hard day's work, but if anyone thinks I will work on Sunday, they can forget it. I go to St. Patrick's Cathedral and I propose to continue doing so. By making exaggerated and intemperate claims, we make fools of ourselves. We were a laughing stock and I laughed like a drain when I heard it. It was very funny but it was not demeaning the place. I considered writing to Senator Cassidy to ask, since we were following the British Tory lead, if I could have my wisteria clipped, my moat drained and the chandeliers cleaned. It makes the whole thing look asinine.

There is a practical side to it in that we do not know whether we are meeting at 10 a.m., 2 p.m., 2.30 p.m. or 3 p.m., Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday. One cannot arrange a diary. I had to go to an important meeting of the Joint Committee on Foreign Affairs. I have chastised that committee for organising its meetings to coincide with the opening of the Order of Business but I cannot blame its members if they never know when the Order of Business will be. A second committee wanted me to attend for it to be quorate but I refused because I thought it would be insulting to the Seanad. If we insult it ourselves, we cannot blame anyone else for insulting it.

I refer to the case of Mr. Willie Corduff and Shell to Sea. Disgraceful attacks were made on Shell to Sea in an attempt to smear the campaign by attainder. I was called a fool. I am not afraid to be a fool in the interests of virtue. If I am a fool, so is Archbishop Tutu of South Africa, who said that a peaceful protester, Goldman international award winner, Willie Corduff, was physically attacked under cover of darkness by the agents of a multinational corporation resulting in him being hospitalised and left severely hurt and traumatised. That is a matter we should raise and I ask the Leader to raise it. I ask for a proper inquiry. This is a man beaten by thugs in the employ of Shell Oil. What is the response from this Parliament? The victim gets attacked. It is not good enough. I was told that some of the supporters have links with the dissident IRA groups but one cannot impugn an idea by attacking the motivation of some of the fringe elements of the support.