Camillus Glynn (Fianna Fail)

Ba mhaith liom comhbhrón a dhéanamh le baintreach agus clann Tony Kett. Fear díograsach, macánta a bhí ann. Bhí aithne agam ar Tony le fada. I had great respect for Tony. While Senator Wilson was on the inside Administrative Panel, Tony and I were on the outside. We first walked in through the doors of Seanad Éireann on the same day in 1997. Tony was a man who not only talked the talk, he also walked the walk. As someone who spent a good deal of time on the hustings, not only at election time, he would relay various stories of his encounters with different people and their problems. He would not go into the detail but he was a great storyteller. He was very funny and had a great turn of phrase.

Tony's friendship with the former Taoiseach, Deputy Bertie Ahern, is well known. If he received credit for being the champion of Deputy Ahern on his election to Dáil Éireann, I do not believe it was unjust; it was the right thing to do. However, Deputy Ahern returned that loyalty to Tony. I recall a discussion with a council colleague in Athlone after the Seanad election. I was speaking to him on the landline but Tony was ringing him on his mobile phone. Deputy Ahern put in the work for Tony and Tony put in the work for Deputy Ahern and that is something I respect. He was a man with a very strong sense of fair play. We held long discussions about his work and I was always interested because I came from a background which was not quite the same but which had some similarities.

It has been said Tony was a great man to give advice. He had an abundance of common sense, which is not as common a factor with many. Not only did he have a great deal of common sense, he was also able to disburse it in a realistic and meaningful way. I remember the first time he spoke to me openly about the problem he had and we discussed the matter for a long time. He spoke with great courage and conviction and said that with God's help he would be all right. He was a God-fearing, decent man. He will be missed by his wife Noreen, his son Jason and daughter-in-law Zoe, daughters Jennifer and Joanne, and his grandchild. In addition, he will be missed by the people whom he served so loyally in the Central Remedial Clinic, as well as those in the electoral area of Dublin Corporation and by councillors throughout the country. He will be greatly missed by those of us who had the privilege to serve with him.

Many things have been said about Tony, all of them true. He has left a legacy in this House and his interest in traditional music must not go unmentioned either. I have an interest in such music myself and have even been accused of playing a bit of it. At Christmas time when a number of us would get together, Tony would lead with his lovely singing voice. He had a great repertoire of songs and when we all ran out of tunes, Tony would always come up with an extra one.

There is no point in repeating what has already been said; everything that was said about him is true. The turnout at his removal and funeral was truly indicative of the esteem in which he was held, not alone by Members of the Oireachtas but also by his neighbours and the wider community. Ar dheis Dé go raibh sé.