Marc MacSharry (Fianna Fail)

I ask the Acting Chairman to indulge me ever so slightly. I know I am being critical of aspects of the Oireachtas, which people do not like to hear sometimes, but it is all the more necessary.

Seven out of ten days is the number of days I clocked in. I would say the person responsible for communications works the statutory 39 hour week. I probably put in 80 or 90 hours last week. I am not complaining, as I am very well paid, even with the pay cuts, for that. However, what I expect is that these people do their jobs, which is to defend the Houses of the Oireachtas - not individuals, but the position of a Senator, a TD or a Minister - and acknowledge the work and time that is put in and the hours that are involved. It is not a matter of clocking in. The Houses of the Oireachtas Commission should do more than put bouncy castles on the lawn or Beano comics in the lobby. I would like to see much more work done in that regard. With respect to Senator Hannigan, we need more than DVDs showing Senators jogging on beaches or Deputies collecting their children from school because considerable work is done in these Houses.