Niall Ó Donnghaile (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

It has been said she is the first mayor of Belfast to address a sitting of the Seanad, and I know how important and special that is to her and to Belfast City Council. Other colleagues have rightly acknowledged the presence of Belfast City Council CEO, Suzanne Wylie, another champion for the new and better Belfast. I also extend my thanks and appreciation, through the Leas-Chathaoirleach, to the Cathaoirleach, the Leader of the Seanad and the other Seanadoirí who made this visit possible.

I think we all get it. We all appreciate, not least given the climate we are in, the significance and importance of having such a visit today. Today is one of those days when the Seanad and we, as Members, can display the leadership this nation and its people need. Today, the Seanad is a warm house for the people Deirdre represents in Belfast City Council, the Nationalist and Unionist people and the increasing number of people our city welcomes from a range of different political, cultural, ethnic and linguistic backgrounds. In Deirdre, that changing, diverse and wonderfully authentic Belfast are all represented in this Chamber today. Today, the Seanad is a microcosm of Ireland and also of Ireland’s diverse and rich tapestry of people. We are a shared institution, one that welcomes people, voices and views which do not always get the chance to be heard, but which can be heard through our Seanad.

This is very important because Ireland is in transition, shaped by a process, in particular a political process, with the Irish Government in a central and lead role, as is required by today’s political circumstances and citizens' expectations. Deirdre’s presence and the presence of Seanadóir Marshall and, indeed, my own contribution here, demonstrate the importance of this institution to the people of the North. Only this week, 1,000 people from many influential backgrounds in the North appealed directly to the Taoiseach to protect and guarantee their rights and the rights of all of the people of the North, including those who want to leave the EU, in this most precarious period around Brexit. As touched on by Senator Craughwell, this includes the people Deirdre has committed to championing during her term in office - those who want an Acht na Gaeilge, want marriage equality, access to proper and appropriate healthcare for women and access to truth and legacy mechanisms. I commend the Taoiseach and the Tánaiste for their positive response to the recent appeal from the North and their repeated assurance that the people of the North will never again be abandoned. We know political and civic leaders like Deirdre will hold them to account in that regard.

The Seanad has clearly shown today a very good example of what this assurance can mean in practice. I assure the Leas-Chathaoirleach that the people of Belfast and across the North are delighted by what they see occurring here today. The Seanad and the Dáil are important institutions in the lives of the people of this State but they are also very important institutions for the people of the North. The presence of the Árdmhéara and her speech reflect that reality but they also reflect the changing realities of our city and the demands from the people there. I am inspired by the theme for her time in office - empowerment, equality and prosperity - universal sentiments that all of us in political and civic life should aspire to seeing realised fully. Stronger links between all the institutions on this island which serve our citizens and help to govern people’s lives make sense on many fronts, not least on the economic front. We can see from the emphasis in Deirdre’s speech just how important both of our main councils in Dublin and Belfast will be, working together for the people who live along the eastern corridor and the positive reverberations that can be felt from that throughout Ireland. This economic collaboration is important at any time but it is particularly important in this crisis-driven Brexit period. Considered, agreed and implemented island-wide, economic co-operation will go some way to restoring confidence in local, regional and State economies at this time of deep uncertainty.

There is a phrase in Irish: ní neart go cur le chéile – strength in unity. That strength in unity is evident in the Seanad with Deirdre’s presence today. Again, go raibh céad míle maith agat. I thank her and the Seanad. Like other Seanadoirí, I believe her presence is timely, given, as Senator Ardagh noted, the location of the Fearless Girl statute here. She is a fearless girl, she is a fearless woman, she is fearless republican, she is a fearless Market woman and a fearless Árdmhéara. We thank her for her contribution and her work, and we wish her every success in the time ahead. I assure her we will take her up on the invitation to continue and build upon that engagement between her elected institution and this one, between our own city and Dublin. Go raibh céad míle maith agat on behalf of the Sinn Féin group.