Rónán Mullen (Independent)

First, I commend our leaders - President Higgins and Mrs. Higgins and our Taoiseach and Tánaiste - on representing our country so well at Pope Francis's funeral. Everybody will agree this was a deeply fascinating pontificate and the late Pope Francis was a voice of conscience on many issues. He made us all, whatever our views, sit up and think on many important issues of the day. Ar dheis Dé go raibh sé.

This would be a good opportunity for a revival or to see more of the church-State dialogues that had been going on but which have only really been happening haphazardly in this country. There is great potential in meetings between the Government and the different faith communities, including non-believers. Some steps have been taken on this in recent years but not enough. There are many issues we could make progress on in our society. There are many people searching for meaning and many social challenges in our world in which voices of faith have an important contribution to make. I ask for a debate on this and on whether we could see a renewal of that. Issues like education, human dignity and many things need to be thrashed out and there needs to be much wider consultation. Voices of faith are an important part of the solution to many of the problems we have in our society today.

I also wish to briefly mention the death of Bishop Brendan Comiskey, whom I knew personally. I note what Colm O'Gorman had to say this morning in that we all know the catastrophic consequences of the failure of church leaders and other leaders in society in handling properly reports of abuse down through the years. We all know the tragedy which flowed from all that and it can never be forgotten. It was, at the same time, Shakespeare who talked of the good people do often being interred with their bones. Knowing Bishop Comiskey and some of his family members personally, I can say he was a very well loved and lovable person who did an awful lot of good, particularly as an ecumenist, in his role in founding the Christian Media Trust and so on. That is to be remembered today where we have a mature understanding of the undeniable tragedies and failings of the past that can never be denied but also that the good in people should never be forgotten. It is a complex reality and one we must all grapple with. I extend my sympathy to his congregation and family on his sad loss.