Jerry Buttimer (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

On behalf of the Government, I gave the Senator time on Deputy Doherty's Bill prior to the summer recess. As a House, we are efficient in passing legislation. I hope we will see more legislation commence here and emanate from the Chamber. We live in a changing and evolving world which presents challenges, not only to the political parties but to us as public representatives. We are embarking on a decade of commemorations. It is important to recognise and compliment Senator Bacik and other Members of the House on their work on Vótáil100 and to look at the change we have made in that 100 years. We are still not an island of freedom. Our party has always put the country first. Fianna Fáil Senators should cast their minds back to the 16 years when they were in government in the context of where we have come from. We are, as a political party, leading the Government. I said on the Order of Business today that we should cast our minds back to where we were seven years ago and compare it with where we are today. Let us reflect on that. We face serious issues and challenges. The concept of the Citizens' Assembly and constitutional convention were important ones in helping the democratic process. Like Raifteirí an File, I believe we must challenge ourselves and lift ourselves up. That is why it is refreshing to hear the Taoiseach's views not only on Seanad reform or on current political events but on life itself. In a reflective, revising Seanad, there is a duty on all of us to recognise what the Constitution says is our role. It is not to hold the Executive to account. It is not to be a mirror image of the Dáil, even though we perhaps try to do that. The speech the Taoiseach made today is one we should reflect on. In her very fine address, Senator Ruane spoke about the republic of opportunity and the role of class in our society. The politics I espouse allows all of us to build a life in which we are all free and can be as Maslow wants us to be and reach our full potential. That is what we should always aim for. That is why I am very proud of the Taoiseach as leader of my party and as Taoiseach because his story reflects on an Ireland of the future and the Ireland of now in which every citizen and every child from every part of our country can aspire to be the Taoiseach of our country.

We are, as the Proclamation says, all cherished equally and so we should be. However, a recovering economy is about investment in the people that we speak about every day. I refer to being able to give citizens the right to buy a house and to be able to access health care. We are spending €6 billion on housing. We have the highest health budget in the history of our State. The Taoiseach is right. It is not just about money alone. If it was, then our health care system would be perfect because we are one of the top five spending countries in the world. I hear people speak about access to the health care system but when an individual does get in, our system is one of the best in the world. We should commend the men and women working in our health care system.