Joe Flaherty (Fianna Fail)

Thank you very much, Senator Byrne. We have just one more speaker offering. Before I bring in Senator Martin Conway, I might just make some observations myself. The €15 million for the post office network was a huge part of the budget and was very much a key plank in our programme for Government. It underpins the absolute commitment of this Government and previous incarnations of it to the post office network and rural Ireland generally.

It is also important that we pay tribute today to the management of An Post, in particular to David Redmond. It is fair to say that while he has been at the helm of this organisation, he has been a catalyst for great change and progress. We have seen An Post's earnings increase from €38 million to €55 million and its revenue breach the €1 billion mark for the first time. One of the more humorous highlights of the summer was when he had to interrupt his holiday in Italy in July to take umbrage with somebody leaking information that suggested An Post's future was not as rosy as might otherwise be thought. He dealt with that very well. I have been a great advocate and admirer of his work in An Post, as has the chairman of An Post, Kieran Mulvey, who I understand is undergoing a short hospital stay at the moment. We wish him very well.

I commend Senator Evanne Ní Chuilinn on her stellar defence of the GPO building. It was indeed irksome and somewhat tiring to see a political party highlight that project earlier in the year. It was disappointing. The best way to see history is to see it continue in a living environment. I now invite our final contributor, Senator Martin Conway, to make his contribution.