I understand that, by general agreement, it is proposed to take the expressions of sympathy first before matters under Standing Order 31 and the remainder of the Order of Business.
Death of Member: Expressions of Sympathy.
It is proposed that expressions of sympathy on the death of Deputy Jim Kemmy should be taken now and the Order of Business should be taken after that. It is proposed that the expressions of sympathy should be confined to the Taoiseach and party leaders, or a nominated person for the party, and should not exceed five minutes in each case.
Are the arrangements for the taking of the expressions of sympathy agreed? Agreed.
On behalf of the Labour Party, I welcome this opportunity and I thank the House for agreeing to the taking of these expressions of sympathy. This House is a poorer place after the sad, untimely passing of Deputy Jim Kemmy, the chairman of the Labour Party. We were all aware that our colleague was seriously ill, an illness which he bore stoically with courage and fortitude, as he approached all aspects of his life.
It is obvious from the many tributes paid to Jim Kemmy over the past few days that he was a very popular Member of this House and was respected by all sides. That respect was earned by his many years of service in this House, as a trade unionist and as a member of Limerick Corporation where he very proudly served as mayor, and in his life in Limerick in general.
Many have described Jim Kemmy as a big man on the landscape, and that he was. He was born in Limerick in 1936 and he understood well the harshness of life for many in his native city, particularly in the 1930s and 1940s. He also experienced the trauma of exile as he went to England in the 1950s. On his return in 1960 he became an active trade unionist, particularly in the stonemasons' and bricklayers' union, and was an active stonemason.
He had an active life in politics for over 30 years, some of which, as is well known, was outside the Labour Party when he led the Democratic Socialist Party. I and my colleagues in the Labour Party were particularly glad that in more recent times he rejoined the Labour Party after the merger of our parties took place. The high esteem in which he was held by our party was evidenced by the fact that he went on to become the vice-chairman and then chairman of our party.
Of course, Jim Kemmy also had another life outside politics which was equally important to him. He was, by and large, self-educated. He was widely read and the proud editor of the Old Limerick Journal for many years. He was a great supporter of the arts in his native city and throughout the country and his fine work, The Limerick Anthology, was published last year. Many people are aware that he was looking forward to the publication of the compendium of Limerick literature, which was due to take place in November.
His politics were influenced by strong views on poverty, personal freedom and the national question. He voiced his views without fear or favour over many years and on many occasions when it was neither fashionable nor profitable to so do. If anybody doubted his stature and standing in the city he loved so well, they would have been left in no doubt on the streets of Limerick yesterday afternoon. The people of Limerick lined the streets to say farewell to one of its favourite sons.
His companion Patsy, his brother Joe, his sisters Maureen and Joan and their families, all of whom are rightly very proud of Jim Kemmy and his achievements, will mourn his passing and they have our sincere sympathy on this sad occasion. Jim Kemmy was a man of the people in the truest meaning of that expression, whether as a stonemason, trade unionist, politician, local historian or friend of many Members of this House. We all mourn his passing, untimely as it was.
I wish to join with the Leader of the Labour Party in expressing our sympathy on the death of Deputy Jim Kemmy. He was a great character and Deputy Spring is correct in saying this House has suffered a great loss.
Not too long ago he described his friend Frank McCourt's book, Angela's Ashes, as the “best book ever written about working class life in Limerick”. Frank McCourt calls his powerful story “a small hymn to the exaltation of women”. Jim Kemmy stood for the real men and women of Limerick. In the hearts and minds of Limerick people everywhere there has been “a small hymn to the exaltation of Jim Kemmy”, ever since they heard of his passing last week.
He was a gifted man of contrasts in pursuit of the common good, driven like his heroes, Connolly and Larkin, and his feisty contemporary, Noel Browne, of whom he spoke here recently, to crusade without ceasing for the real causes of the real people.
Rough as the stones he shaped with his stonemason's hands when the cause necessitated it, as we found in the Fianna Fáil Party on a number of occasions, he never allowed anyone to take him or his causes for granted. He was the strong man for those who had not the strength to oppose the establishment, and the voice of those who were voiceless in their disadvantage or distance from the levers of power. He was never afraid to break the links of comfort which can be found in party or power and go it alone for the sake of what, in his eyes, was right, just and equitable.
Limerick can be immensely proud of this man who left school at 15 to become an apprentice stonemason and who, two years later, became the breadwinner of his family.
His introduction to the trade union movement in London marked a decisive option for his life's work and it became the bedrock of his inspiration, his relentless campaigning and his lifelong pursuit and love of learning.
All the strands of his life — his trade unionism, his publication of the Limerick Socialist, his proud task as editor of the Old Limerick Journal, his strong personal views on social and moral issues and that special fire that burned within him — all led inevitably to a role in public life. He was elected to Limerick County Council in 1974 — without the robes — and became an alderman in 1979 and Lord Mayor of his beloved Limerick on two occasions.
We all know the history of his membership of this House, from his dramatic arrival as an Independent in 1981 to his even more dramatic actions in January 1982, his return in February and his departure for five years in November of the same year. Whether as an Independent, a member of his Democratic Socialist Party or his final seven years as a high profile member of the Labour Party, Jim Kemmy's voice was never one which could be stilled. He mellowed in his role as vice-chairman and ultimately chairman of the Labour Party, but no party structures could ever quiet his restless spirit or keep his unique speaking voice off the national airwaves.
It was my privilege to know him well and to visit him during his final illness. I was deeply impressed by his wry fortitude and the silent bravery with which he bore his sickness, reminding me of Frank Cluskey who also battled so bravely with his illness. For many years I knew him personally through his work with the trade union movement.
No one could ever doubt his sincerity and integrity, but it took a while and personal contact to appreciate his great learning, his love of old buildings and art, his vast knowledge of global issues and local history, his love for life and people's right to live their lives as free people in a just society.
Our sympathies go to his companion Patsy, his brother Joe, his two sisters, Maureen and Joan, and all his colleagues and friends in the Labour Party. On behalf of Fianna Fáil, I wish to express our sympathy to all his parliamentary colleagues who I know miss him even more than the rest of us. Ar dheis láimh Dé go raibh anam dílis Jim Kemmy, and nár laige a chuimhne go deo.
On behalf of the Fine Gael Party, I wish to join with Deputy Spring and the Labour Party, who so grievously feel this loss, and with all Members of the House in expressing sympathy to Joe Kemmy, his sisters Joan and Maureen, and Patsy Harrold on this dreadful loss.
I spoke to Jim Kemmy four days before he died and his interest in politics was as alive and acute then as ever. He was experiencing extreme pain, as he did for most of his last illness. He was a man of great fortitude who would describe himself as having a high threshold for pain, but he was shocked by the extent of the suffering he had to undergo. However, he did not lose his dignity or his sense of perspective and could speak about it, even at that extreme moment coming towards the end of his life, with detachment and understanding. The way in which he bore his final illness gives hope and understanding and sets an example to all who face this dreadful moment of death, particularly those who experience a painful death, as Jim did.
It is also worth acknowledging that despite suffering this illness he did not became self-centred. On my return from the other side of the world this morning I received a letter from Jim Kemmy, written by him two days before he died, thanking me for having visited him. That says all that needs to be said about the way in which he appreciated what others did for him. He thought of others and the generosity shown to him. The way he lived his life and bore his final illness was an example and a service to all who knew him, whether as constituents, fellow politicians or others.
I would single out Jim Kemmy for the courageous stand he took on the national question. It was not a popular point of view to advocate — that there are two legitimate nationalities on the island, British and Irish, and that both should be respected. He was a socialist who understood before many others that there could not be reconciliation between the two traditions without respect by each tradition for the other. A sense of the paramountcy of respect for others, particularly those with differing opinions, was at the heart of Jim Kemmy's socialism. His socialism was founded in respect for the dignity of each individual. The quotations from Angela's Ashes to which the Taoiseach referred sum up aptly that sense of respect for others, no matter what the misfortunes they face, which characterised Jim Kemmy's life and work.
He was a politician who had a great sense of history; a sense that our work here is but a moment, a passing phase in a great sweep of events. He was proud of the history of his own city and through it he came to understand that the dilemmas we face today are not new. Rather, there is a recurring process of problem solving which is part of our occupation.
Jim Kemmy said something to me which is relevant to the House and which deserves repetition, although I cannot now ask his permission to repeat it. He told me that we in politics should have more respect for our profession. He said that we should not allow others to denigrate it. For the most part those politicians who stand for election and serve in office do so for good motives. Whatever we may do to eradicate failings in our system we should not allow the public to get the mistaken impression that democratic politics in Ireland is other than service by people who enter the profession largely from selfless not self-serving motives. That was the message from Jim Kemmy with which I left St. James Hospital a few days before he died. I did not expect to pass it on to the House in these circumstances because he expected to recover from his illness. However, it is a message of which we should take account.
On behalf of the Progressive Democrats I join in the tributes and expressions of sympathy on the death of Jim Kemmy. I was greatly saddened to learn of his death. Although I knew he had been ill for some time the eventual speed of his death was shattering. When he and I started out together in Limerick politics 30 years ago there were sharp differences between us. I am glad that in recent years we became good friends and I recognised in him a man of great sincerity and integrity.
Last Friday morning when I heard the sad news it struck me that we needed somebody like him at a time such as this. One could say fairly about him that he gave politicians a good name. He will always be remembered for that. He was a man of great stature, particularly in Limerick. At his funeral yesterday I was reminded that the last Deputy who died in Limerick was my late uncle Donogh O'Malley and although they were different people they were held in enormous affection by the people of Limerick, an affection I have not seen others acquire. The large number of people at the funeral yesterday were testament to that affection.
Jim Kemmy had been a member of Limerick Corporation for 17 years before he was elected Mayor. I was glad my party contributed to his election and helped him to achieve one of his great objectives in public life. He was re-elected subsequently. My party came to an arrangement with him at that time which, although it was difficult for him, he honoured scrupulously. I admired the great scruples with which he gave and kept his word.
He suffered a very severe and painful illness. If any good can be seen in this sad event it is that he is no longer suffering. We should be grateful for that because he fought his illness with great courage and dignity.
One of the greatest reasons we should regret his passing is that he did not have the opportunity to write more about the history of Limerick, particularly its social history. He had much to contribute in that domain and what he wrote was not just good because of its scholarship but because it encouraged others to take an interest in their native places. His achievements in that regard were valuable.
From time to time Jim Kemmy became disenchanted with aspects of public life, not least in this House. However, he never became disenchanted with Limerick. Our city has suffered a severe loss. I offer his partner and his family my deepest sympathy, a sympathy widely shared by the many who came in contact with him. I would like to think that he would wish that at the end of his life we would not just be sad but that we would take the opportunity to celebrate a remarkable life of great variety, generosity, talent and achievement.
I join with colleagues of all parties in mourning the death of Jim Kemmy. He is a great loss to public life in Ireland, to the Dáil and to the left. The greatest loss of all is that to his partner, Patsy, his relatives and the people of Limerick, whom he served well and with distinction and commitment for a long time. As has been said, Jim Kemmy was a political giant. He had a huge impact on the development of socialist thinking in Ireland and was a man of immense courage. He was never afraid to confront difficult issues and was a political trailblazer who tackled those issues when others wanted to sweep them under the carpet.
I particularly admired his innovative thinking on Northern Ireland. He championed recognition of Northern Ireland as a separate entity and recognition of different allegiances on this island which have to be accommodated. He challenged us all to accept the principle of consent, the idea that we must respect those who differ from us even though it may challenge our very notion of who and what we are.
Jim Kemmy was much more than a political leader of stature. He was a writer, historian and craftsman. He gave all of his intellect and ability to those pursuits. He did much to document the history of his native city and to put the common man and woman at the centre of that history. On behalf of Democratic Left I wish his partner, Patsy, his relatives and his colleagues in the Labour Party my deepest sympathy and the sympathy of all the members of Democratic Left.
I extend on behalf of the Green Party, Comhaontas Glas, our sympathy to Patsy and the family of the late Jim Kemmy, to his friends, to the people of Limerick and to his colleagues in the Labour Party. Jim Kemmy was a giant of a man in every way, as has been said. We will miss him in the House for his extraordinarily friendly manner in all circumstances. His manner was always courteous, no matter who he was in conversation with, and he was admired greatly across all parties, which is clear from all speakers. He was a crusader for the disadvantaged in society. He spent years trying to awaken this country to the wrongs of a two-tiered society, and we owe it to him to continue on that crusade as strongly as he did.
Some would call him a maverick, but he was the kind of maverick we need more of in this House and in politics generally. He was not afraid to speak his mind. Many in the Green Party will warmly remember his courageous stance on issues such as Mullaghmore and on hare coursing, which was not easy to do in his area. He criticised the tax amnesty, which was a difficult decision for him at the time. He was also a humanitarian in the wider international sense. He led antiapartheid protests, which should also be remembered.
Jim Kemmy was a man of conviction and courage. Any student of politics will be reminded how he sacrificed a Dáil term because of his principles. In so doing, he associated courage with the world of politics in a way that will always be remembered. Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam uasal.
I have heard everything that has been said and wish to be associated with it. I extend my sympathy and that of my family to Jim Kemmy's family, his sisters, his brother Joe, his partner, Patsy Harrold, and the Labour Party. They have lost a great colleague. He was a fierce, no holds barred political fighter, but at heart a fundamentally decent, humane and caring human being.
I would also like to be associated with the tributes paid to Jim Kemmy. On my behalf and that of my family I extend our sympathy to the Kemmy family, particularly, Joe, Maureen and Joan, to Patsy and all the Harrolds, to the Pilkingtons and to Mary Troy, to all his colleagues in the Labour Party and to all his friends in Limerick.
Members rose in their places.