Michael Mullins (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I join my colleagues in extending sympathy to Senator Deirdre Clune on the death of her mother, Margaret Barry, and the family of the late Deputy Shane McEntee. We all remember with great fondness the very fine, robust contributions he made in this House on many occasions. We will all miss him and his wisdom and advice. Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam uasal.

I ofen find myself agreeing with Senator Labhras Ó Murchú who made a lot of sense when he spoke earlier. We should be talking up the many positives in the country.

I ask the Leader to arrange a session to allow us to present positive suggestions and initiatives which would help the Government to build on the progress it is making. We had a similar discussion on the issue of jobs but I do not propose to confine this session to jobs. It could range across the public sector and the economy. I believe Members would relish the opportunity to feed into that sort of think tank.

I call on the Government to extend an official invitation to President Obama on the 50th anniversary of the visit of President Kennedy in 1963. It would be a huge boost to The Gathering and he could retrace the steps of President Kennedy by including a visit to Galway on his itinerary.