Sharon Keogan (Independent) | Oireachtas source

The Minister is very welcome here today. It is probably the last time before the big election and it will be our last chance to address her. Any day coming into a Chamber to announce €2.6 billion in State welfare is a good day. I will not be opposing the Bill which has certainly ticked many boxes.

I agree with many of the speakers on the Opposition benches that the means test for the carer's allowance should be abolished there because carers are the unsung heroes in our State. I also concur with Sinn Féin with regard to parental leave on the death of a child. I very much support its amendment on that.

I speak here today as a Cavan woman. The Minister has represented the people of the Cavan-Monaghan area since she was first elected to local government in 2004 and into the Dáil here in 2011. She has been a very formidable politician. The truth is that politics is not for weak men and weak women. She has been a very strong female in politics and someone that each and every one of us in political life would have looked up to.We may not have always agreed on certain politics and policy but the Minister has stood out as one of the finest female politicians this country has seen in many decades. She has held many ministerial portfolios during those 13 years in Dáil Éireann. The Minister will be missed by the country and I am sure she will be missed by all the people in Cavan and Monaghan. It is a massive achievement for the Minister as a person. She is the first Presbyterian in Dáil Éireann. There are barriers that she has broken down, and particularly in Cavan-Monaghan which is a very republican constituency. That in itself is a massive achievement and it shows where our country is heading going forward.

The biggest shock for any individual the day the news came was probably for Councillor TP O'Reilly. I would say TP was thinking "Oh my gosh" as he was not expecting that, like the rest of us. I wish T. P. well. He has massive shoes to fill but I wish him well on his journey to try to retain that seat for Fine Gael.

I wish to raise one issue with the Minister because I might not get to raise it again. It has nothing to do with this Bill, so forgive me for digressing. Section 6 of the Civil Registration (Amendment) Act 2014 remains uncommenced. It is the section that relates to births and the naming of the child's parents on the documents in cases where the parents are not married. There are a lot of fathers out there waiting to find out when section 6 will be commenced. I raised this issue with the Minister previously and she said she would look into it.

What I liked about the Minister was that any time I put down a Commencement matter, if she could not make it in, she always sent a note to apologise to us that she would not be in the following morning to take it. That means a lot. The Minister, Deputy Humphreys, was the only Minister who did this. I thank her for the respect she showed to this House.

I really wish the Minister well. She has been a trailblazer and I am sure she will enjoy many years of fine retirement and good health with her family.