James Heffernan (Labour) | Oireachtas source

I join with colleagues who have paid tribute to the Minister for Education and Skills, Deputy Quinn. He has been a fantastic Minister and has had a fantastic innings in politics. While I might not agree with his merger of the Labour Party and the Democratic Left, that is a debate for another day. He has replaced dilapidated prefabricated buildings throughout the country with bricks and mortar, which was sidestepped by many previous Ministers for education. As a former primary teacher who had the fantastic privilege of teaching junior infants, I came to know a certain number of nursery rhymes.

Little Jack Horner
Sat in a corner,
Eating his Christmas pie;
He put in his thumb,
And pulled out a plum,
And said, "What a good boy am I."