Paul Daly (Fianna Fail)

I, too, would like to welcome Anne, Amy and the family members. I make special mention of Tracy. I also came in here in 2016, a little wet behind the ears, for the term of the famous confidence-and-supply Government. Our colleagues in the Dáil were pushing the abstain button. We did not have such a thing here, so we actually had a bit of craic, for want of a better word. We managed to get things like Good Friday drinking legislation through. We were on the other side of the House and Billy was here. The odd time there was something coming down the line, such as a division, our Fianna Fáil Cathaoirleach, Denis O’Donovan, would go missing, which meant Paul Coghlan – the Lord be good to him – had to take the Chair, meaning the Government would have one vote less. Our next target was Billy. Billy, having the courage of his convictions, had a great way of saying “I agree on the topic and am voting with you”, but he would always qualify that by saying “although I am very grateful to Enda for having appointed me”. He felt it lessened the sin of voting against the Government. However, those were different times and there was probably different politics, but I got to know Billy very well then and I really enjoyed his company.

When I first became a Member, my mother, proud of my being here, started to watch the proceedings on the television. She formed an opinion on all the Senators, a kind of league table. I will tell the Senators where they were on it some other day, but Billy was very high up. I can pay Billy no greater compliment than this: my niece decided to go to Chicago. Billy’s number was available and he told us all to contact him if there was ever anybody emigrating. My mother, being the granny, and my sister, being my niece's mother, were obviously worried about their girl going to Chicago. When I shared with them that I had given my niece Billy Lawless’s number, you could see the relaxation coming over them. Owing to the image Billy had portrayed over the television, they were happy and comfortable, and the worry was gone. Regardless of whether the number was ever used, the fact that she was armed with Billy Lawless’s number made them so comfortable at home. That says everything. I enjoyed a few evenings at the end of the bar with Billy. I learned very early in that relationship that I was far better served listening than talking. You could listen to Billy Lawless all night. Early on, when we were getting to know each other, he found out I was from Kilbeggan, which was one of the bottlenecks on the old Galway-Dublin road before the motorway. We had a good session with the conversation about his trips through all those bottlenecks, landmarks and all the different watering holes from Galway to Dublin. You could talk to Billy about anything but, as I said, you were better served by listening. I am glad I learned that early.

If I have one regret in life, it is that I never got to honour my invitation to Chicago while Billy was alive. Go ndéana Dia trócaire ar a anam uasal.