Joe O'Reilly (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Given I have an unavoidable long-standing prior commitment tonight, I would like to join with colleagues in expressing sympathy to the family and friends of Martin McGuinness and to the Sinn Féin Party.It is a reasonable definition of leadership to say that a leader should be fit to embrace change, identify the need for new directions when appropriate and bring people with him or her in doing that. Martin McGuinness exemplified that in an enormous way. To be fit to adapt to change and interpret the environment according to changed circumstances is a particular ability and the capacity to bring others along when doing it is a great facility. I am of the view that he had that and he was a man of peace.

When he embraced the peace process, he engaged in an extraordinary set of personal initiatives during that time in order to reinforce the process. They were all very courageous and not easy, and some of them politically risky for him, I am sure. He merits our sympathy and I commend the Leader on setting aside time to discuss that tonight. I live in the Border area. As I think I said to Senator Conway-Walsh earlier, a fitting tribute to Martin McGuinness would be a continuation of the peace process, a building of peace on our island, a strengthening of peace at community level and the abolition of sectarianism wherever possible by interchange between North and South, etc. I offer my sincere sympathies to all Martin's colleagues.

I join colleagues in paying tribute to the late Captain Dara Fitzpatrick. She was a woman of exemplary courage and was an exemplary giver all her life. She had a strong family connection in my area. Her family on the Fitzpatrick side come from Cootehill, County Cavan, and its hinterland. A number of her aunts and uncles are neighbours of mine. The former Ceann Comhairle, Tom Fitzpatrick, was a granduncle of hers. I offer my sympathy to her family.

May I finally-----