Paul Coghlan (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I agree with Senator Mary Ann O'Brien on labelling. I am not a member of the Joint Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine but I certainly would have liked to meet the representatives of RGDATA. I support their cause. I have the honour of having been nominated to the Seanad by that body since I came to the House 16 years ago. I feel for its members in respect of the 90,000 employed in the sector. I feel for them in so many regards, but there are other ways of dealing with the issue. I am sure the Leader will explain why Senators did not feel obliged to attend the joint committee. It may have been a clash with the Order of Business, but I do not know as I was paired due to my attendance in Letterkenny at the British-Irish Parliamentary Assembly.

I wish Mr. Tim Vaughan, the editor of theIrish Examiner,and all of the staff well. I agree with the rescheduling and hope it will be successful for everyone involved. It is a wonderful newspaper which is widely read throughout the south of the country and we would not want to see it suffer or jobs lost.

I could not be present yesterday owing to other commitments at the briefing on the Fr. Molloy case, but some of the people involved, including Ms Gemma O'Doherty, have been in touch with me and I hope to meet them. A great deal of information has come to light since the incident. As I think Senator David Norris said, there was a cover-up.