Liam Twomey (Fine Gael)

I would like to extend our sympathies to the families of the two serving members of the Defence Forces who lost their lives since the Seanad last sat. We should also express our concern for the wellbeing of Fr. Michael Sinnott who was kidnapped in the Philippines last week.

We should examine the issue of filling the vacancies in this House at this time. There is one vacancy on the Government side and one on the Opposition side. When regard is had for the fact that we are talking about saving money on behalf of the taxpayer and the concerns that have been expressed by the general public about us not being in touch in terms of how taxpayers' money is being spent, perhaps those two positions should be left vacant for the foreseeable future.