Martin Conway (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

An-mhaith, a chara, an-mhaith. He is pleasure to know. I have known Senator Joe O’Reilly since I was in Young Fine Gael a long time ago. I remember when he ran for the European elections in, I believe, 2009. We had great fun at the time. His work in the Council of Europe is very impressive.

As regards Senator Daly, Mark is Mark. He pushed the boundaries beyond everyone’s expectations, as Cathaoirleach of Seanad Éireann. He did a wonderful job. As I said to him privately and in the House yesterday, I do not believe Seanad 100 could have been any better. No stone was left unturned and there was nothing else that could have been done. I have no doubt that in his role as Leas-Chathaoirleach of Seanad Éireann, he will be different, will bring his style to it and will push the boundaries. We will encourage and support him in that.

I acknowledge my good friend, Senator Kyne, who is stepping down as Government Chief Whip. He does his business in a quiet but determined way and he gets results. His experience in Cabinet stood to him in his role as Chief Whip. I wish Senator Gallagher all the best in assuming the role of Chief Whip. We will do everything we can to support him.

I also congratulate Senator Chambers who will be a wonderful Leader of the Seanad. She has a hard act to follow in Senator Doherty, who also brought her Cabinet experience to her role as Leader of the Seanad. That experience was worth a lot. Senator Chambers will be her own woman and will probably do things differently as well. We will be looking for many debates from the new Leader. Her job is to get as many Government Ministers into the House as possible. I wish her well.