Paschal Mooney (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I am pleased that reference was made to the individual who wrote that scurrilous article, which was riddled with ignorance, about this House and the Dáil. I will not enhance or otherwise refer to her further which would give her more publicity. She should check her facts. My late father, God be good to him, always bemoaned the fact that journalists, even in his time, did not check their facts. If there is any criticism, facts must be checked.

I wish to be associated with remarks made by Senator Hayden about Francis Ledwidge. I also grew up with his poetry and the opening line of his poem, Lament for Thomas MacDonagh, about the 1916 signatory whom he befriended, "He shall not hear the bittern cry", still rings true to this day, and I was not one to remember poetry all that well. I visited the spot where Francis Ledwidge was killed. A stray shell came over a hill. He was ganger on Meath County Council and his expertise was used. He was with a bunch of other soldiers who were clearing a road, actually more of a laneway, but the imagery I remember in particular is the Irish tricolour flying proudly on the spot where an Irish patriot died. It is wonderful that An Post is going to acknowledge him.

Last Monday was the 60th anniversary of Ireland's accession to the United Nations. Although the United Nations was formed in 1945, Ireland did not become a member until 1955 because the Soviet Union objected to Ireland's membership. The de Valera Government applied for membership of the UN but the Soviet Union blocked it because Ireland did not have diplomatic relations with Moscow. However, in the early stages of the foundations of the Free State, strong representations were made to the then emerging Soviet Union and there was developing ties between the Soviet Union and Ireland in the context of independence. All that fell away primarily because of the 1930s, fascism, anti-communist feeling and the strong influence of the Catholic Church at that time. The Soviet-Irish relationship lay fallow, and when Ireland applied for membership of the UN, it was blocked by the Soviet Union.In 1927, when the Fianna Fáil Party first entered Leinster House, one of the platforms included in its manifesto was the opening of diplomatic relations with the Soviet Union. This calls to mind a comment my dad used to make that Fianna Fáil was viewed as a group of communists and radicals and its members were ex-communicated by the church left, right and centre. I like to think that radicalism remains at the heart of the party to this day. I wish to record that this is the 60th anniversary of Ireland's accession to the United Nations.