Martin Conway (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I listened with great interest, as I always do, to our long-established and learned colleague, Senator Burke. I often think about what would happen if I lost my seat. The Houses of the Oireachtas have a duty of care to people who have given good service but through no fault of their own are not re-elected. There should be a significant retraining and education programme to assist those people. That point should be considered by the Houses of the Oireachtas.

This is my first time welcoming the Minister of State to the House. He has been a good friend of mine for a long time and it is great to address him as Minister of State. He holidays in my village and he will continue to do so. He has a deep interest in education. He is most welcome to the House. We look forward to seeing him over Christmas.