Diarmuid Wilson (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I am going to stick to the English language, if Senator Norris does not mind.

Senator O'Reilly is a native of Mountain Lodge, County Cavan. He is the son of the late Francis O'Reilly, a founding member of the Irish Creamery Milk Suppliers Association, and his wife Susan. Incidentally, God be good to her, she lived to her 96th year, so Joe could be around for some time yet.At a time of limited education and mass emigration, Joe's father Francie was the local scribe for the people of Mountain Lodge, Laragh and Kill, a trade Joe picked up on at a very young age and put to great use politically in subsequent years. He attended St. Aidan's comprehensive school in Cootehill, along with a future constituency colleague of his and ours, the Minister, Deputy Heather Humphreys, although if given the opportunity she always stresses that she was in first year when Joe was sitting his leaving certificate. He went on to earn a BA degree in Irish at UCD, a first class honours master's degree in history, a higher diploma in education, a national school teaching qualification and the very highly rated diploma in law to which I referred earlier. He taught at all three levels of education before settling on national school teaching. I know from my former role as a Youthreach co-ordinator that Joe had a great passion for working to tackle educational disadvantage in Cavan town before it became common practice. Joe was a great debater while in UCD and even before he got to UCD he won many national debating awards as Béarla and as Gaeilge. It is worth noting that his classmates in UCD included our constituency colleague, Deputy Brendan Smith, Deputy Charles Flanagan and Professor Gerry Boyle, who is now head of Teagasc. Joe is following in great footsteps and is rightly going into high office. If the vote goes the right way his elevation will be well deserved.

Senator Joe O'Reilly has shown great personal and political resilience in his life, while weathering family tragedy and political loss. He has always kept a very strong sense of self, while displaying a great sense of humour and a huge capacity for helping others, maintaining friendships and making new friends. He was elected to this House in 1989 and in 2007, but there was a gap of 15 years when he was not a Member of the Oireachtas. The next comparable gap I can find is in the case of my party colleague and former Senator, Terry Leyden, who was out of the Oireachtas for ten years. Even during the time when Senator Joe O'Reilly was not in this House, the people of County Cavan affectionately called him "Senator Joe". It is also worth noting that he has been elected to this House on three separate panels: cultural and education, industrial and commercial and labour. In this feat, he emulates his great friend, and a great friend and mentor of mine from the 1980s, the late Senator Andy O'Brien, who was also elected on three panels and spent 18 years in this House.

Joe was chairman of Cavan County Council from 2004 to 2005. I was honoured to serve with Joe on that council from 1999 to 2004. He initiated the chairman's award, which continues to this day. He represented Cavan County Council in two different electoral areas, Cavan and Bailieborough, as well as serving on County Cavan VEC, which allowed him to share and develop his love for education. He served in the Dáil from 2011 to 2016 but, sadly, lost his seat by a very narrow margin against the backdrop of the constituency losing a seat and significant territory. He has been a Member of this House since 2016. As both a Dáil Deputy and Senator, Joe is known for his wide network of clinics and his personal attention to ensuring any query brought to him is pursued as far as it can possibly go.

Joe is a founding chairman of Bailieborough Mental Health Association and both he and his wife Mary have used the Hideout bar, which they still own - I hope it is serving food - to host many worthwhile charitable fundraising events down through the years, especially for the Irish Wheelchair Association. Some Senators might be amazed to discover that Joe was also well known as the PRO of the Cavan Ploughing Association.

Senator Joe O'Reilly is a good man.He has devoted his entire adult life to politics, his community and the Fine Gael party while also nurturing a family and not forgetting his friends. There has been much talk of new politics in recent years but Senator Joe O'Reilly represents everything good about old politics - decency, loyalty, courtesy, kindness and consideration. The new politics needs more of these values. To paraphrase James Dillon, who was a hero of the Senator's, Senator O'Reilly has shown that politics is a vocation. Even though it has drawn him into stormy waters as well as calm ones, he has not given up or given in. The people of County Cavan are proud of him. I trust that, in presiding as Leas-Chathaoirleach of the House, the Senator will remember another great maxim of Dillon's also: united we stand and divided we fall. I wish the Senator the very best of luck.