Darragh O'Brien (Fianna Fail)

I would never try to silence any of my colleagues on any matter, regardless of their opinions. If we do not allow freedom of expression in this House, what is the basis for the debate? I ask the Leader to be constructive so that the Taoiseach may be aware today that the Seanad exists. We, as Opposition, have tabled a number of Bills, some very important, for example, Senator MacSharry's Bill, the Family Home Bill 2011, which was only beaten by three votes. That Bill, if passed, would have been enacted a year ago and would have afforded protection to homeowners, particularly the 12% or 13% of homeowners in mortgage arrears. Daily, some of these people are losing their homes and they see nothing being done to resolve the situation since the publication of the Keane report, which was provided to Cabinet in late September last year. We would have had legislation through the House, but for political reasons the Government voted down the Bill by three votes.

I want to see a Seanad in the future that does not abide by a Whip system and I include Fianna Fáil in that. I want people to be able to vote freely on legislation and to introduce Bills. I agree with my colleague Senator Byrne that since the start of this session, the guillotine has been used in both this House and the Dáil more expansively than ever used previously.