Mary Ann O'Brien (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I wish to support my colleagues, Senators Zappone, Crown and Quinn. I am a Taoiseach’s nominee but I have no problem with what Senator D’Arcy suggested. One of the things that has affected me is getting to know my colleagues in the Seanad. As has been pointed out, this is another light week in the Seanad. We are closing early this evening. There is not a lot of legislation for us to scrutinise this week. One thing I do know about my fellow Senators is that we are here to serve all Irish citizens. We all know the evolutionary process that is needed just to survive in business in today’s world. The Irish population has never been more disillusioned or dissatisfied with us politicians. Could we please come together and take some radical steps within the Constitution to reform ourselves so that we can be an example to the citizens who vote to keep us here? As Senator Zappone said, if we do not get something done before the end of the term it will be another seven years before anything can happen. I hand over to Senators Bradford and Healy Eames.