Senator John McGahon - speech from 23 Oct 2020

I suppose the first point is, I want to follow up, and Minister Fein, this has nothing to do with you, unfortunately you're just the minister who's in here today and I've spent the last two days listening to members from all sides of the house talk about the concept of rushing through legislation and Senator Ward very eloquently put it there. My own two cents on that issue is that it's becoming a bit like the boy who cried wolf if we're continuously saying this is emergency legislation and we need to get it through and it's becoming more and more difficult for, I certainly know myself as a government senator, to be able to continuously defend that to members of the opposition when we say that it's emergency legislation. On a more positive note, what I would like to say, Minister, is for any of us who have ambitions to be elected to the next door, you have the blueprint from the Senate where you did it and you were made a minister on your first day, so I'd like to congratulate you on that, a guy who's never lost an election in his 21 years, whereas I think a lot of us have lost elections more often than that, but Minister, what I want to talk about is, and I wasn't planning on coming down to this debate, I saw it in my office and when I saw Senator Byrne so elegantly speak about some of the anti-mask protests, and I really want to focus on some of my comments on that, and while at every stage of this debate we need to really encourage the Irish people to go along with this and do it by consent, there are some people who will continuously flout that, that their opposition to the democratic institutions of this state is one of such hatred that they will flout it at every single opportunity. And I listened to Senator McCallion's and Senator Higgins' points there, that to say, well, perhaps this is too prohibitive, or perhaps it's too dangerous that we go too far by fining people. Oh, sorry, no, Senator McCallion, yeah, of course, sorry, apologies. And that, where you said that, you know, sorry, and I'll quote it, that it will affect the solidarity of people perhaps. I actually don't, with all due respect, think it will affect the solidarity of people, I think it will actually enhance the solidarity of people, and I'll explain why. The reason behind that is, I have seen it so many times, of people saying to me, I'm abiding by the rules, my family are abiding by the rules, we're doing this, we're doing that, we're breaking our backs to do the right thing. And yet they are constantly seeing people on Facebook, people online, people on social media videos, constantly flouting that, going out of their way to do it. And they say, well, why aren't those people, you know, there's no, there's no deterrent. Why aren't those people being fined for continuously breaking the law? So I think it will actually be a way to actually enhance solidarity amongst the Irish people to buy into this. And it's a last resort. There's not going to be a concept of a member on Gardaíche O'Connor walking around with a notebook and a pen, doling out fines left, right and centre. That's not the case. It's a last resort. But my point is really clear about this. And it happened to me a couple of weeks ago, six weeks ago, I was in Dublin on a Saturday and I got caught up in the middle of one of these bloody anti-mask protests. I stand waiting for a bus and the abuse that these head the balls, for want of a better word, gave to an elderly couple standing beside me, waiting for a bus who were wearing masks, coming up with their mobile phones, sticking it in their faces, saying take off your mask. It was madness, of the highest degree and totally and utterly wrong, totally and utterly wrong in every sense of the word. And that's why I think this legislation is needed. That's why I believe this legislation is needed. And while Senator McDougall has, and Senator Ward and everyone else here has pointed out some various flaws, which is the problem of rushing stuff through in one day, I was still fully supported, Minister Feehan, and still fully support you in this. And the last couple of points I want to make in relation to these anti-mask protesters, one of the things that galls me the most, and that I saw that day, was their use of our national flag, their use of the tricolour, to try and say that they are these self-described patriots. They're nothing further from the truth in terms of patriots, they're the opposite of it. I'll tell you who the real patriots are, it's the doctors, it's the nurses, it's the teachers, it's the frontline staff, who have been fighting this battle day and night against COVID since it arrived to our shores at the start of this year. They're the real patriots, they're the real people, and they are and should be applauded every day in this country. It's not the people who go out onto the streets of our capital to cause protest, to cause upset, to rabble rouse, to undermine the democratic institutions of our state and this house. They're not patriots, not in any sense of the word. And I think it's really important that politicians in this house, and that the public right across the country, take a strong stand against them and say that that is not acceptable, and that behaviour is not acceptable. And we increase the solidarity amongst the Irish people by saying that if you have people who are continuously going to flout the laws of this land, who are going to put people in danger, put people under threat, and give a two-fingered salute to everyone else who's having to get along with this and work towards the better engagement of our country, then something has to happen. There has to be some level of a deterrent. As Senator Byrne alluded to it, where he nearly went as far as imprisonment. I don't know if I would go that far, but you're not far wrong off it. You're really not. And we have seen it online. It's nearly like a badge of honour that they have walking around with their mobile phones out shouting and screaming at people. And I saw them shouting and screaming at ushers and staff members of this house as they were walking in to do their daily jobs in this house. That's so totally and utterly wrong. So to conclude, Minister, it's great to see you in this house. You're doing a great job in your ministry. And I really, really want to put on the record of this house that I think this legislation is important to tackle the very people that I have spent the last five minutes talking about. Thank you, Senator. Thank you, Senator.