Malcolm Byrne (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I welcome Senator Nikki Bradley. Your first day in the House is always very special so enjoy it, and get the run of the place, as they say. We look forward to Senator Bradley's contribution for however long the House will continue to sit. We are continually told it will probably be until March of next year. That is the official line.

I am a member of the Oireachtas media committee. Yesterday, we had a very useful discussion on the question of journalists reporting in conflict zones and the threats posed to journalists in the real and online worlds. One of the issues raised by the National Union of Journalists was the September 2001 case of Martin O'Hagan, an investigative journalist. Until the death of Lyra McKee a few years ago, he was the only journalist killed during the Troubles. Martin O'Hagan's death clearly marked out a very sad chapter in journalism on this island. There have long been calls, including by the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs, for an investigation into his death. Now that a new British Government is in place, I ask the Leader, on behalf of the House, to contact the Tánaiste to ask him to seek a full investigation into the death of Martin O'Hagan. Journalists provide a very important insight. They speak truth to power. It is important for us in a democracy to stand up and protect the work they do. The full story of Martin O'Hagan's death has never emerged. With a new Labour Government and a new Secretary of State in the North, we might find there will be a full investigation.