Joe O'Reilly (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I, too, rise to join in the words of sympathy to John Connor's family. I knew John very well down the years. I knew him on a number of levels. I knew him politically as an elected colleague. I also knew him through family in that my in-laws are all in Roscommon. They were all friends of his and I knew him in that fashion as well. I had the privilege with my wife of visiting just before Christmas and I spoke to him on the telephone at Christmas. He was very well and he was very enthusiastic about the future. He had many great plans. One of his great passions and loves was to travel. He outlined to me an extraordinary journey he had mapped out to take this January and February through Asia. He had virtually travelled all of the world as it was. We had a wonderful meeting with him then and a lovely visit to his very beautiful home in its lovely setting. He was very hospitable and very warm by nature. He was an extraordinary conversationalist with extraordinary knowledge across a range of areas. He was so well read and he knew everything right across the arts, current affairs and right into agriculture, with technical knowledge of everything. It was quite extraordinary and you seldom get it. I am not sure how often one would meet that. He was a really cultured man. Everyone speaks of his oratory, which is well justified and merited. He was very much in the mould and probably quite inspired by James Dillon, his neighbour from Frenchpark, in that he spoke like James Dillon and he had the same turns of phrase and same classical knowledge with an extraordinary skill as a debater. He had a conviction and passion, and a love for the people of Roscommon for whom he worked very hard. All I can say is that he is a great loss as a colleague and as a friend. He is a great loss to political life and political activism. I am very heartened by the words right across the House about him today.