Trevor Ó Clochartaigh (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Mar ionadaí do cheannaire Shinn Féin sa Seanad, is mór an onóir dom cur leis na ráitisí ar comóradh 90 bliain bunú an Teach ársa seo.

Táim an-aireach faoi chuid de na taibhsí atá sa Teach ón am sin, agus cuid mhaith acu linn, b'fheidir, leis an gceiliúradh seo a dhéanamh. Tá se iontach tábhachtach go dtabharfaí aitheantas don obair iontach atá déanta sa Teach seo le 90 bliain anuas agus don obair iontach atá fós ar siúl ann.

It is 90 years today since the Seanad, or a version of the Seanad, first sat, and much has changed since then. That Chamber was established after a long period of division and conflict. The Seanad was envisioned as a Chamber which could offset the powers of the executive by providing checks and balances. Realistically, however, it has never been like that. The Seanad we know today was not that first one, but the Seanad of de Valera's 1937 Constitution which was ostensibly established on a model of extracting expertise in various fields. This was, however, a corporatist and largely undemocratic approach and the product of a time when long discredited corporatist politics were in vogue. Somehow or other, and despite numerous reports and proposals to vary that, we are still stuck with this model. It is because we are stuck with that model that there are calls for its abolition, not least from the Taoiseach himself.

There have been numerous opportunities to do something about the structure of the Seanad. It is my view, and I believe a widely shared one, that the Seanad as currently constituted is undemocratic, unrepresentative and does not have a clear enough purpose. This does not mean there is no function for a second Chamber. It is not right or proper simply to remove one arm of the Houses of the Oireachtas without offering alternatives. Sinn Féin has proposed alternatives.

I commend Senators who put together the "Open it, Don?t Close it" report, which has been very valuable. The report usefully highlights that, even without constitutional reform, we can make elections to the Seanad more democratic by expanding the franchise, which is crucial for it to have any validity. The Seanad is clearly an appropriate place to provide representation to Irish citizens in the North and to the diaspora. These are categories of citizen that have no say in the political life of the State, and that situation must be corrected. We could also very much utilise the Seanad as a forum for scrutiny of European legislation.

On a day as auspicious as this, however, I pay tribute to all those who have passed through the Seanad, including those previously mentioned. I will not go over the names again because they are on the record. While taking into account all the political conflict we may have in the Chamber, it is not in question that people work very hard in here. They are here for the right reasons, including the betterment of the State. I congratulate all those who, in their own way, challenged the prevailing consensus of the time.

If the Seanad is to survive another nine years, however, not to mind 90, it needs to change and become more democratic. I appeal to the Government, especially the Taoiseach, to give us the chance for that to happen. The constitutional convention would probably be an appropriate forum by which to do that.

Mar dhuine a labhrann Gaeilge agus a bhfuil an-suim agam i gcúrsaí Ghaeilge, is fiú luadh go bhfuil úsáid na Gaeilge sa Seand seo ach go h-áirithe ardaithe go mór agus gur iontach an deis í an Seanad leis an nGaeilge a chur chun cinn sa saol poiblí. Molaim chuile dhuine atá tar éis é sin a dhéanamh, agus molaim d'éinne atá ag smaoineamh ar é a dhéanamh, é a dhéanamh chomh luath agus is féidir.

Molaim go h-ard an Chathaoirligh reatha, an Seanadóir Paddy Burke. Tá sé ag déanamh fíor-jab mar Chathaoirleach agus mar dhuine neamhspleách. Molaim chomh maith na ceannairí de na grúpaí éagsúla. Cé go mbíonn muid ag sparáil, mar a déarfá, ó am go chéile, tá an chairdeas fós ann, agus is ar mhaithe le chur chun cinn na díospóireachta a mbíonn muid ag sparáil. Molaim chomh maith an fhoireann ar fad a bhíonn ag obair linn: an Cléireach agus a cuid cairde sna h-oifigí, agus na h-uiséirí a dhéanann sár-obair ar fad agus a thugann an-cabhair dúinn. Guím breithlá shona ar mo chomh-Sheanadóirí agus tá súil agam go mba fada buan iad agus go mba fada buan an Teach seo.