Sean Barrett (Independent) | Oireachtas source

On Friday last, my research assistant - who is well known to the Minister of State - presented to the Department some 400 pages of photocopied articles relating to the regulation of banking. He is one of the people the Government is seeking to fire. If I am not a Senator, I cannot keep him in employment. He delivered those articles free of charge. His costs are included in the Government's bogus figures in respect of how much it costs to run the Seanad. Much of what we do involves working for Departments which need the expertise which Members of the Seanad possess. This fact must be acknowledged, even if the Government likes to treat people in the way in which my research assistant is being treated.

The Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport, Deputy Varadkar, has been in contact with me in respect of his road safety legislation. I will charge him for whatever research I carry out on his behalf in this regard and there will be the usual cries regarding useless Senators wasting money. This is despite the fact that we will assist in drawing up a better Bill for a Department which does not have a great reputation for preparing legislation. We are here to help and that is why we all came to this House following the most recent election. The Minister of State can inform his friend the Taoiseach that he has completely managed to demoralise his own team, the members of which are slumped in their seats across the way.

We are idealistic individuals and we are interested in bringing forward ideas. In the context of our treatment at the hands of the Taoiseach, the seat I occupy was held by many who came before me. Of the 190 or so successive Heads of State who - at College Green, at Westminster and here - held responsibility in this area, it is the Taoiseach who has chosen to proceed with abolition. He has stated that this is nothing personal to the current Members of the Seanad. It is highly personal when we work our socks off in order to bring forward legislation, etc.