Paul Bradford (Fine Gael)

We have an interesting 12 months ahead and I hope people will focus on the big political issues. I concur with what the previous speaker stated about the very effective use to date of the public consultation committee and the possibility of using such a committee to deal with matters such as broader poverty issues and other issues which affect many throughout society.

When we reflect we always mention the lack of media. Life is neither perfect nor fair but we must be thankful to those who deem the Seanad worthy of consideration. To those not reflecting on the Seanad at present, if they look at the two Houses of the Oireachtas which exist in the building, because of the numbers, every vote and debate in Dáil Éireann is predictable. The Seanad is the House for anyone interested in genuine political debate where one does not know at the beginning how it will conclude. I hope the media will pay more attention to this House where such quality debate occurs.

Like Senator Norris, I first attended the House in the spring of 1987. A lot of water has passed under the bridge since then. The qualities and foundations of the Seanad existed then. These are debate and consideration and genuine political discourse. They are still at the very core of the House, and we need to reflect and build on them. I look forward to dealing with my colleagues on the Committee on Procedure and Privilege, CPP, and with the support of Senators not on the CPP we will be able to examine items such as the Order of Business to try to ensure we get about our business more effectively and get to substantive debate on which Senators have opinions to give. There is certainly room for improvement in how we manage ourselves. This is a challenge for us and it is not a case of "we" versus "you"; all of us must work together. Early in the new year we can work on making this a more effective House from the perspective of getting debates under way and putting subjects on the agenda.