Paul Bradford (Fine Gael)

Following the Christmas recess, we passed the Electoral Amendment (Political Funding) Bill, which is now before the Dáil for consideration. To a degree, that legislation addresses the concerns raised earlier by Senator Mooney. During my contribution to the Bill on Second Stage, I said the Minister had got the legislation as correct as he possibly could. The alternative to personal or corporate funding of politics is that the taxpayer would pay the bill for political parties. I am not sure how the public would respond to that. Since we debated that Bill here, there have been further developments and controversies about political funding. I hope that during the forthcoming Dáil debate the Minister, and the Government generally, will reflect further to see if additional changes could be made. We must ensure an end to any corrosive impact on the political process by how it is funded. I hope the debate is still open as far as the Government is concerned and that any further legislative changes will revert to the Seanad where the Bill originated.

Reference was made to the abortion debate yesterday in the Lower House and the presentation that took place in the audio-visual room. I attended that particular hearing and was struck by the harrowing tales presented to us by the women present. One would have to be sympathetic to the scenario they presented, but this is a complex matter. I wish it could be solved easily, but it cannot and will not be. The debate has to be dealt with calmly and rationally. I am disappointed by the attempt sometimes to portray pro-life people as being some sort of prehistoric ogres, which they most certainly are not. We must be careful in how we portray and categorise people.

As of today, the only alternative I can see to the pro-life culture of Ireland is the abortion culture of Britain and America. If that is the only alternative on offer, I would certainly prefer the status quo.