Ivana Bacik (Independent) | Oireachtas source

Listening to colleagues, I am conscious of what a sad day it is, with so many condolences being offered. On behalf of the Labour Party group, I would like to join with others in offering condolences to the family of Martin McGuinness and to his Sinn Féin colleagues here in the Chamber and elsewhere on their sad loss. As others have said, his legacy as a key negotiator and facilitator of the peace process will live on. For any of us who had the pleasure of meeting him, he was a very warm, pleasant and, indeed, humorous individual. It is fitting that the Leader has added time today for condolences to be offered. I am also glad we have the opportunity to offer condolences on the floor of the House during the Order of Business, which is important on the day his death has been announced. I want to express my own sincere sympathies to his family, friends, colleagues and comrades.

On behalf of the Labour Party group, I also want to offer condolences to the family of Ryan McBride, the Derry City footballer who died so tragically and so young. I want to note those terrible losses in Derry this week.

Along with others, I offer condolences to the family of the crew of rescue helicopter R116, Captain Dara Fitzpatrick, Mark Duffy, Mark Ormsby and Ciarán Smith. We offer our sincere condolences to their families, noting that the search for the three missing crewmen still continues. Others have spoken very eloquently of the immense bravery that has been shown over many years by the personnel of the Coast Guard and the rescue services, like Captain Fitzpatrick and her crew. I want to say how much we are all thinking of them at this sad time.

On more mundane business, I join with Senator Lawless in welcoming the announcement by the Taoiseach that a referendum will be held on giving voting rights to the diaspora in future presidential elections. I was part of the Constitutional Convention that made that recommendation. It is an important one and I hope we will see it take effect very quickly, even if the concern is that this is just an aspirational comment by the Taoiseach and not a real commitment. I am glad to hear Senator Lawless say he was made a promise, so I hope we will see that promise kept and see that referendum delivered in early course.

I commend our colleague, Senator Aodhán Ó Ríordáin, on his initiative in organising an Irish Stand event in New York last Friday to make a stand against some of the narrow values espoused by President Trump. I believe it was an important occasion to mark.

I ask the Leader for an indication as to whether the Sea-Fisheries (Amendment) Bill 2017, scheduled for tomorrow, will be taken through Committee and Remaining Stages, given five amendments have been put down for this Bill. There is some controversy over it and the Cathaoirleach was kind enough to facilitate us in separating Committee Stage from Second Stage. Given only one hour is allocated on the schedule, I ask that either it be adjourned tomorrow if the Bill does not conclude, or that Committee Stage and Report Stage are separated, which I believe would be preferable, given the number of amendments from different colleagues, including Senator Nash.

On another matter for tomorrow's business, I am glad to hear the Government will not be opposing the Pensions (Equal Treatment in Occupational Benefit Scheme)(Amendment) Bill 2016 that I and my Labour Party colleagues are proposing on Second Stage in Private Members' time. I will circulate colleagues with a briefing on that Bill before Private Members' time tomorrow. I very much welcome the support in principle from the Government for the Bill.

I welcome the fact a settlement has been agreed between the Clerys workers and Natrium.