Brian Ó Domhnaill (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I want to join others in condemning the comments made by the Minister of State, Deputy Cannon. During his term as a Senator, he used this House for his political advancement as a member of the Progressive Democrats, as an Independent and as a member of Fine Gael. Now that he has left this House and become a member of the Government, it appears he has started to engage in the lies that are coming from certain elements within the Government parties. To be fair to Senators from both Government parties, in particular, it is not the case that everyone in the Government parties is acting in this way. The Minister of State, Deputy Cannon, needs to substantiate his claims or withdraw them today because they cannot be allowed to go unchallenged.

I have listened to much of the debate that has been taking place in advance of the referendum on Friday. One would expect members of the Government to be looking for a "Yes" vote, particularly in light of the commitment that was given before the last general election. However, I suggest that the most cynical element of the "Yes" campaign is coming from the Sinn Féin Party, which prides itself on representing ordinary people but has no difficulty in accepting the Queen's shilling even though its MPs do not attend sittings of the House of Commons or represent the people in the North of Ireland on any occasion. By choosing not to accept Dáil Éireann at 31 Dáil elections and the subsequent Seanad Éireann elections, it can be said that Sinn Féin did not accept the voice of the people as expressed on 31 occasions. Therefore, it is a bit rich of it to refer to an element of Irish democracy as elitist. I remind the House that in advance of the 2007 Seanad election, Sinn Féin entered into a murky little deal with the Labour Party to ensure Pearse Doherty was elected to this House.