Diarmuid Wilson (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

It is a very important development for the future of our country.

I join other colleagues in wishing Pope Benedict well in his retirement. I wish him a long and peaceful retirement in the Vatican or wherever he decides to reside. He made a very courageous decision to retire, the first Pope to do so in almost 600 years.

When is the Education and Training Boards Bill going to arrive into the House? I join the leader of my party in the Seanad, Senator O'Brien, in calling for the Minister for Justice and Equality to come into the House. The gardaí are operating in deplorable circumstances. In Cavan town there are six detectives and they have no unmarked car. The traffic corps is operating with an almost defunct squad car. Court houses have been closed and policing districts are being amalgamated, with gardaí being forced to move up to 30 miles from their families without compensation. I will not mention the mess the same Minister has made of the Defence Forces but I will not allow him to do the same to the honourable and decent people in the Garda Síochána who protect us on a daily basis.