Martin Conway (Fine Gael)

I wish to say a big "go raibh maith agat" to Senator Ó Clochartaigh. He has been an inspiration to all of us in terms of the Irish language, to such a degree that I now have my own Irish tutor. Perhaps sometime in 2012 I will make a contribution as Gaeilge on the Order of Business.

I do not wish to say a great deal this morning because I am sure at this stage the staff are probably sick of listening to us. I wish you, a Chathaoirligh, the staff in the Seanad office, staff in Leinster House, the Leader and all of my colleagues across the floor a very happy, peaceful and safe Christmas. In the past six months we have made an extremely valuable contribution to democracy in terms of the many suggestions from all sides of the House on how to tackle the extreme difficulties in which this country finds itself. As Senator Colm Burke rightly pointed out, we have it far better than many of our fellow citizens throughout the world. That said, our responsibility is to ensure we make this country a great place to live and that everyone has the right to work, the opportunity to better himself or herself through education and to have a roof over his or her head.

The most distressing thing I have seen since I came to the House is a homeless person sleeping across the street from the Kildare Street entrance to the House. He has been there every day since I came to the House. That person has been homeless in all the time since I came to Leinster House. We have a duty of care and a responsibility to ensure we alleviate such absolute poverty. There is no reason or excuse for it. We are a wealthy nation and the people who can afford to pay must pay——