James Carroll (Fianna Fail)

In all of last week's manoeuvrings and shenanigans, the passing of the Croke Park agreement went unnoticed and undiscussed. I encourage the Leader to have a debate on this and on the role and importance of the public sector and the function it performs, before the Seanad rises for the summer.

I welcome the opening of the new emergency department in Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital in Drogheda. The media and newspaper campaign in recent months often prided itself on having public and private sector workers on opposite sides in television and radio studios and on the centre pages which led to a societal divide. I hope the passing of the Croke Park deal will allow us to move on to a new level of public sector reform and agreement leading to improvements and enhancements. It is especially important to have the new Minister of State with responsibility for public sector reform, Deputy Dara Calleary, one of the youngest Members of the Dáil, appear in the House before it rises for the summer. I welcome the passing of the Croke Park deal and pay tribute to the public sector workers who passed it and hope those who did not support it will see the light in the coming months and years following the transformation which will occur.