Jim Walsh (Fianna Fail)

Given the day that it is that is in it, I join Senators Coghlan and Norris in condemning homophobic bullying. We are all aware of the consequences of bullying and, in the case of the gay community, it poses tremendous difficulties for people, particularly at a time when they are trying to come to terms with their sexual orientation. It is very difficult. We should condemn it across the board but it also needs to be said, for balance, that the gay community is not without its coterie of bullies. Anecdotally, in colleges, people who are not gay come under certain pressure. I was involved in the debate on civil partnership and I took a particularly strong line because I thought it was overly analogous to marriage. As a consequence, on social media and in my home town I was condemned as a homophobe and a misogynist bigot.