Donie Cassidy (Fianna Fail)

He made a great contribution here and we all worked very closely with him. We wish him well on becoming a Member of the other House along with the former Senator, Deputy Frances Fitzgerald, who was leader of the Opposition in this House on behalf of the Fine Gael Party, and the former Senator, Deputy Alex White, who led the Labour Party in this House. I congratulate all former colleagues who were elected to the lower House. I know what the experience is like. They will have to experience it to know the value of the Seanad and the high quality of debate that takes place here on the very many topics we are asked to consider.

The first 100 days of the incoming Government will be crucial in the national interest. Senator Ellis, who is one of the most experienced Members of both the Dáil and Seanad, said that people need to be given hope. The people are very down and are looking for confidence measures. What the incoming Government does in the first 100 days will be crucial in lifting people who lack hope and confidence. Colleagues on the opposite side of the House should ensure in whatever way they can through their parliamentary parties that that confidence and hope can be given to the people in the first 100 says.

We have had many reports on Seanad reform and all our submissions to the Minister were on his desk for one and a half years. This Seanad did everything it possibly could to ensure the views of the House through our party political system and through us as individuals were placed before the Minister. I firmly believe it will not be possible to reform the Seanad until the Dáil is reformed. The Dáil must be reformed to meet the challenges of the 21st century. As we all know, the Seanad, set up by Eamon de Valera under the 1937 Constitution, was to be the watchdog and guardian on behalf of the taxpayers and to give the vocational viewpoint as it has so very well done.

In 2009 some 1,201 Seanad amendments were accepted by the Government. That is a very significant amount of legislation that was amended in the interest of the taxpaying citizens to ensure no guillotined legislation slipped through in Dáil Éireann that we did not correct here. With the exception of two occasions we never guillotined a Bill - we discussed them section by section and line by line. Senator O'Toole, who has been in this House for almost 25 years, strongly advised the new Government to look at the democratic sessions that are taking place in both Houses. He has proposed that we should row back and let us take our time to do the right thing. The new Seanad that will be elected will be here for the lifetime of the 31st Dáil. There is no rush and there is plenty of time to get the entire process right so that it is fit for purpose for the 21st century.

I agree with what Senators Prendergast and Feeney said about today being international women's day. I acknowledge the tremendous contribution made by women and this House has been always forthcoming in doing everything we possibly could in debating and discussing the achievements of women.

Senator Callely spoke about the National Transport Authority seeking additional consultation. As we all know it has invited as many people as possible to come forward for the final consultation stage. If this is to be achieved, I would encourage everyone to do so.

The Senator also called for a debate on the insurance industry where massive changes are taking place at present. I chaired the inquiry on insurance in 2004, 2005 and 2006, during the course of which premiums were reduced by 50%. Perhaps it is time for the new Joint Committee on Enterprise, Trade and Employment to take on this challenge again and conduct a further review of the industry to see how policy holders can be facilitated. Senator Quinn spoke of the Seanad debating and discussing the programme for Government which is a fair and reasonable request. Senator O'Malley gave her strong views on a number of issues which I shall pass on to the relevant Ministers. Senator Burke mentioned the €2.8 billion spent in fees for consultants to NAMA, amounting to €3,500 each per day. I agree fully with the Senator that this is massively excessive. I shall pass Senator Daly's views to the Minister in question. Senator Walsh spoke of the murders taking place in Pakistan and the Middle East. I shall pass on his comments to the Minister for Foreign Affairs. Senator White mentioned the three issues whose cause she has championed in the House, namely, the plague of suicide, breast cancer and redress for thalidomide victims and we would welcome it if these issues were addressed in the programme for Government. Senator White has played a significant part in this.