Darragh O'Brien (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Ar dtús, is mór an onóir dom a bheith anseo mar cheannaire Fhianna Fáil sa Seanad, le labhairt ar an cheiliúradh speisialta seo. As leader of the Fianna Fáil group I am honoured to speak on behalf of my party on the 90th anniversary of the House to mark its contribution to the State. I fear many of our colleagues will mention the same names of some auspicious previous Members. It is important to note their contribution in the House.

Some 90 years ago when the Seanad was first established its purpose was to include Upper House representatives from minorities or interests not represented adequately in the Dáil, as the distinguished historian and former Senator, John A. Murphy, put it, this meant not only Protestant or Unionist representatives but people of specialist knowledge and experience or with a record of public service. We can thank the first Seanad on how it enabled the minority communities in what was then the Irish Free State to become part of our political and democratic process here. The importance of what happened by way of allowing the southern Unionist representation, in particular, southern Protestant and Presbyterian and other minorities, such as the Jewish faith, proper representation in the Upper House was crucially important. Many new European countries as they were then, failed in this respect at the first hurdle. The first Seanad which played a crucial role that has not been properly teased out or given the credit due, was forward thinking. I am proud to say that the first Seanad achieved the same. Its membership was made up not only of Roman Catholics but Protestants and Jews and included many Unionists, several peers, a former British army general, artists, writers and republicans. It was as diverse a body as might be imagined in the period after the establishment of the new State. All its members were united by their desire and willingness to serve Ireland.

The list of Members of the Seanad reflects the breadth of talent who took up the challenge. The first Cathaoirleach of the Seanad was Lord Glenavy, former Unionist MP and Lord Chancellor of Ireland, who was overwhelmingly elected as Chair of the House by his fellow Members, an act which set a pattern of bipartisanship, co-operation and collegiality that distinguishes the House to this day, most of the time. We will wait for the Social Welfare Bill next week. His fellow Members included the Nobel laureate, as the Cathaoirleach and the Leader of the House have covered, William Butler Yeats, one of the greatest writers the country has ever produce, Horace Plunkett, pioneer of the co-operative movement in Ireland, Jane Wyse Power, the activist, feminist and business woman, the historian, as the Leader said, Alice Stopford Green, and the surgeon and poet, Oliver St. John Gogarty. Another previous notable Member was Douglas Hyde, the founder of the Gaelic League and first President of Ireland. He deserves a special mention as being a Member of the first Seanad.

Recently we have faced calls for the abolition of the House. While I will not discuss the specifics of the merits of that I draw attention to the fact that these calls are not new. Indeed, the founder of my party, Éamon De Valera, in 1928, called for an end to what he called the costly Seanad for it served no useful function. It would appear that even he recognised the need for an Upper House and proceeded to draw up plans for a new Seanad, the result of which our Members see today.

Each and every Seanad since 1937 - we have another commemoration tomorrow in regard to the Constitution - has had its fair share of distinguished Members, including another President of Ireland, as mentioned, Mary Robinson, and former Taoiseach, Garret FitzGerald. As with the first Seanad, it also included people with specialist knowledge.

The Hon Lady Valerie Goulding, Noel Browne and Robert Malachy Burke were all Members. Benjamin Guinness, the third Earl of Iveagh, held the distinction of being a Member of two Upper Houses at the same time - the Seanad and the House of Lords. I single out two current Members, Senators Norris and Quinn, who would rightly form part of that role of honour of Members over the past 90 years.