Frank Feighan (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Last Saturday in the Guild Hall in Derry in solidarity with my colleagues I attended a commemoration to mark the 50th anniversary of the civil rights march. I was delighted to meet Pat Hume, wife of John Hume, and many others. It was a very moving cross-community event, at which President Higgins received a standing ovation for his speech on civil rights which ranged from poverty, inequality and injustices. It was nice to see such a cross-community event being held in the Guild Hall, which shows how far we have come in the past 50 years. I am very concerned by the results of a recent poll which show that 87% of "Leave" voters in Northern Ireland would absolutely put the price of Brexit above the collapse of the peace process. We must be very vigilant in the coming months to ensure we keep not only the lines of communication open but also cross-community events. We must never forget people such as Eamon McCann, Ivan Cooper, John Hume and many more who turned up on that fateful day which changed the course of history on the island of Ireland.

What happened last Saturday night at the UFC event was not good for the standing of the Tricolour. What went on inside and outside the octagon, with people parading the Tricolour, was not good for the country. We should reflect on what we call a sport. It is a sport for some, but I do not think it created a great shopfront for the country. It was very disappointing. I hope that in the coming months and years we will not see a repeat of what happened last Saturday night.