Paschal Mooney (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I join with those who have commented on the concessions made by the Minister for Education and Skills, Deputy Jan O'Sullivan, on junior certificate reform. I applaud the teachers' unions, and particularly the TUI, which stood alone on the issue initially and was joined later by the other teacher unions so that a collective approach was taken. This has obviously resulted in a rowing back by the Minister. I think she did it on a common-sense basis. I got calls from my own local teachers in the school in Drumshanbo, which is a TUI school, who are very pleased with the developments. I hope that a mutually acceptable conclusion will be reached in the best interests of all the pupils of Ireland because, ultimately, this is about them and their future. I wish the Minister well in that regard.

I wish to raise an issue that, rather surprisingly, has not come before the Chamber - that is, the remarks in New York last week by the president of Sinn Féin, a Member of the other House, Deputy Gerry Adams. I preface my remarks by saying that this is not an anti-Sinn-Féin comment or reference. This is about a comment he made, which he said was a joke, in front of corporate America. The people who have attended that dinner down through the years are the CEOs of some of the largest corporate entities in America. It is quite extraordinary that they would turn up for a Sinn Féin dinner while Fine Gael, the Labour Party and Fianna Fáil would not be able to attract such people to a dinner. I fail to understand the gulf of knowledge-----