Maurice Cummins (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I wish to join in the tributes to Senator McAleese. It is regrettable that he has had to stand down. Due to his long and hard workload outside of the Seanad he was not able to spend as much time with us as he would have liked. He was not a regular speaker here but he made some valuable contributions. I also compliment him on his work behind the scenes in bringing communities from all sides of the divide in Northern Ireland together. It is an ongoing process and work that he will continue. It culminated in the invitation he extended to the Orange Order to address the House which was an important day.

Over the next number of weeks and months we will discuss his report on the Magdalen laundries and we all look forward to receiving a copy of it later this afternoon. He did tremendous work in that regard and should be complimented on it. I also compliment him on his work during his short tenure with us. I am sure that he has made many friends and acquaintances here and ones that will continue to be his friends for many years to come.