Jimmy Harte (Labour)

I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy O'Dowd, but am sorry the Minister, Deputy Hogan, has left the House. He made a valuable contribution. I agree with the Government amendment. As someone who lives in and was brought up in a Border county, I find it partitionist of Sinn Féin to say it wants votes to run the South. I live in Donegal and the decisions made in Derry and Belfast are relevant to Donegal, such as the decision by Stormont to close the rail line that ran from Derry to Belfast. People in Donegal should have the right to be involved in such decisions. Sinn Féin has never said that Donegal citizens should have a right to vote in local elections in Derry and in the Northern Ireland Assembly and Westminster elections. Those decisions are very relevant. In the election month, it is very easy to say that Sinn Féin wants people from Northern Ireland to vote in the presidential election-----