Gerard Craughwell (Independent) | Oireachtas source

As one of my colleagues on the other side of the House said, somebody kicked an own goal and that is the only reason I am here. The bottom line is that I do not believe Fine Gael will put up a candidate. I compliment Fianna Fáil and hope Sinn Féin will consider it. Indeed, if there is a person who is independent and is looking for a signature, my signature is here waiting.

I believe the candidate who is now nominated is a worthy person. She has been through a lot in her life and is highly articulate. Like any other victim of abuse who is equally articulate, she would be a great asset to this House. I will welcome her when she comes here.

I ask the Leader to establish how it was that the National Monuments Service allowed the destruction of over 75% of a bronze age road in Mayne bog in Coole in County Westmeath. We had some debate here about the Beit collection previously. It appears the company in question in this instance was trying as hard as it could to comply. No instruction came from the National Monuments Service or Dúchas; nobody told the company what it could not do so it ripped up an archaeological site. It is outrageous.