Frank Feighan (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I also welcome Maire Ardagh to the House. I knew her late husband, Seán. He was a gentleman and in opposition would always offer a smile and a "hello" and was always very helpful. Mrs. Ardagh should be very proud of her daughter, Senator Catherine Ardagh, who is well regarded in this House. It is great to see that line continuing.

I also congratulate our colleague, Senator Ruane. We are all very proud of her. She represents our House in a unique way. The literary award she won last night was a great achievement for her. It was also a great night for the Seanad.

I listened to Senator Lawless's contribution and I thank him for all the work he has done on Capitol Hill. It is hugely important and relevant. The Senator, Deputy John Deasy and many others have articulated the issue of the undocumented Irish in their own way, in a nice way, behind the scenes and without escalating the matter. I appreciate that and I hope their efforts work out.

I listened to Senators talking about broadband. The will make an observation, although I normally do not enter into political discussion. Sinn Féin is an all-Ireland party and any time I go across the Border I cannot get 2G, 3G, 4G or 5G. I get general packet radio service or GPRS. While we have done a great deal on broadband, we can do an awful lot more. I would like to know what the difference is in connection rates between the Twenty-six Counties and the North of Ireland, where Sinn Féin is in government. It is easy to blame people. I could be proved wrong, but any time I go across the Border I wonder why I can only access GPRS because we stopped using it here 15 or 20 years ago. Perhaps we should stand back and think before we say these things but perhaps I am wrong.

The Hauntings Soldier in St. Stephen's Green was an absolute joy and galvanised the opinion of a great number of people in remembrance of the relatives of the 200,000 Irishmen who served in the First World War. It was wonderful to see. While we have a memorial garden in Islandbridge, perhaps now is the time to have a permanent statue of a smaller size of the Hauntings Soldier in St. Stephen's Green. I saw a recent poll showing that up to 60% of people thought that would be a good idea and were in favour of it.