Paschal Mooney (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Like my colleagues on all sides of the House I deem it a great honour to have this opportunity to say a few words in tribute to the late former Deputy, Senator and Councillor, John Carty. I wish to convey our deepest sympathy to Kathleen, to his brother, Michael, whom many of us knew as a councillor and personally, and to all the extended family and the Regan family.
I remember shortly after John came to the Dáil in 2002 we were chatting in company. He said that he knew my father. My immediate reaction was to assume that he would have known him through the An Tóstal festival or perhaps as a Member of this House or as a councillor. Actually, it was because John Carty had spent time in my home-town of Drumshambo as an agricultural officer and adviser. I knew the House where he had lived - it is still there - on the Carrick road, where we lived too. I was astonished because it was something that had never occurred to me. Anyway, it brought home to me the breath of knowledge that John held about the west of Ireland and various other parts of Ireland. As Senator Wilson said, he was also in west Cavan and various other places.
I have another memory from his period as a Dáil Deputy. It was at the time of the 2007 election. He lost the election. I was in his company when he was talking to someone about the various things that he had been involved in - we have heard about some of them today. I remember thinking at the time how cruel politics can be, because the man was clearly passionate about his home county and his constituency. He had gone about doing what he believed he should do, like all people who are elected. I remember thinking that perhaps there is some sort of unspoken bond between the elected person and the electorate, whereby the quid pro quois that if the elected person works hard in the best interests of his people then he should get their vote. Anyway, that did not happen in 2007. There is probably an analysis of why it did not happen, but I remember that moment. I am not suggesting he was bitter about it; he was more disappointed than anything else.
Then he came to the Seanad. Interestingly, not long after that conversation, which took place at the front of the House, I lost my Seanad seat and John came to the Seanad. We met up a couple of times when I called in. He was always the same friendly jolly approachable John.
When I came back to the House in the last year of the Fianna Fáil Green Party Administration I discovered that there was a group within the Seanad who came from the west of Ireland and the midlands and who were very close. This has already been referred to briefly by Senator Wilson but I wish to acknowledge it again because my constituency colleague, John Ellis, who is in the House today, was part of the group. He was particularly close to John. The group also included Eamonn Scanlon, my constituency colleague, and of course the redoubtable Johnny Brady. I am not suggesting they made up some sort of Mafia or anything of that nature, but they were a close group. If I sat among them, I would learn more than I could ever learn by taking a course in university on politics or the west of Ireland. These were the sort of people that John was among and he was one of them.
I remember whenever I came to the House while I was not a Member he always had - Senators Wilson, O'Brien and Cummins have referred to this already - a great approachability, kindness and human touch. All of these factors made him an extraordinary human being. Again, I wish to say how proud I am to be part of this tribute to an outstanding public representative, family man and all-round decent human being. Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam dílis.