Máire Devine (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I wish to echo not what the previous Senator has said but the comments of other Senators in their condemnation of the vile, nauseating and atrocious attempt to denigrate Sergeant McCabe in recent years.

I have another concern with regard to this matter. Notwithstanding the need to play politics with it – it is political – we need to consider the damage it is causing to Tusla and the children we are trying to protect through that agency, as set up by the Government. That is of utmost and equal concern. This is relevant for vulnerable children and those who, perhaps, have been misguided in their recording in Tusla. That matter is seriously concerning, but let us deal with it on another day.

I second the amendment to the Order of Business from Senator Conway-Walsh. St. Valentine's night of 36 years ago is burned into our collective memories. A total of 48 young people on the north side of Dublin never came home. They lost their lives in the Stardust fire. These young people lost their lives and hundreds of their friends and lovers were injured horrifically. Words cannot fully describe the extraordinary pain visited on the affected families, including mothers, fathers, brothers and sisters, for the past 36 years as a result of that dreadful night in 1981. The journey these families have had to go through began then and continues to this day. It has included the flawed Keane report of 1982, which added much pain to the families, and the Coffey review of 2009, which contained an unpublished recommendation for a new inquiry.

The Government now has the power to take action and help discover the truth. Moreover, it has the power to create a commission of investigation. The State claims it needs new evidence. The families have handed over that new evidence. The State can now go ahead and attempt to uncover the truth of this murky night in our collective history.

The families of those who died long before their time, those who were injured physically and psychologically and their parents and sisters continue to vigorously pursue the truth for their loved ones. We should all be ashamed of the inaction of this Government and previous Governments, as well as the thwarting and procrastination in respect of this horrific tragedy visited on young people from working-class communities in this city. They are seeking justice and we need to assist them in every way possible.