Dáil Éireann debate -
Wednesday, 25 Nov 2015

Vol. 898 No. 1

Tributes to Retiring Member of Staff

The Taoiseach

I beg the indulgence of the Ceann Comhairle to extend my congratulations and those of the House to Mr. Bernard Hand, who is present and who will leave us this week as he retires. Bernard joined the Houses of the Oireachtas almost 20 years ago and in that time he has seen four general elections, welcomed new Members and, sadly, said farewell to others. He did so always in the most professional and courteous manner and maintained the highest standards that are the hallmark of the parliamentary staff in the Houses of the Oireachtas. He has greeted thousands of visitors to Leinster House with his own inimitable friendly smile. He ensured that when they left the building, they had happy memories of their visit here. Bernard follows the fortunes of the Dubs and has had a golden period since 2011 to our own detriment in Mayo. He will not take offence when I remind him that there are a few of us with loyalties to other counties, but we wish him well with his enhanced opportunity to support his favourite team. Bernard's new-found freedom will give him more time with his wife, Laura, and his five children Robert, Damien, Aishling, Ciarán and Laura. I understand he also has four wonderful grandchildren, Meabh, Caoimhe, Dara and Ronán.

As he leaves us, he can be very proud of his service to the State and the people who are elected to serve in this House and the Seanad. On behalf of all our colleagues, I thank him for his many years of first-class service and wish him the very best of good health and fortune with his wife and family in the many years ahead.

Minister for Social Protection (Deputy Joan Burton)

I congratulate Mr. Bernard Hand on behalf of the Labour Party and all those who have come to Dáil Éireann and the Seanad and enjoyed the privilege of being taken under his very protective wing and shown the ropes. They were given lots of very quiet, good and solid advice as to how to get things done in here. If Bernard ever wants a second career-----

Deputy Willie O'Dea

Not in the Labour Party.

Deputy Joan Burton

-----it could be as one of these hot-shot consultants who tell one how to do things. He has provided amazing service to the Members of the Oireachtas and also to the many visitors who have visited Leinster House. Like many of the people who work on the staff of the Houses, he has been particularly adept at giving guided tours. His knowledge of the history of Leinster House is extraordinary. For a lot of people down the years who have come to the House and had access to Bernard's unique store of knowledge, it has been a very pleasant experience. I wish him and his wife and family every good fortune as he moves into retirement. I know he has many plans and I hope they include travel and sunshine, particularly in the wintry months. The Dubs are doing okay. There are up and coming teams working at it over a long period. Hope never dies.

Deputy Dara Calleary

That is the Labour ethos.

Deputy Joan Burton

I congratulate Mr. Hand and thank him for all of the pleasant occasions he has facilitated in the Houses of the Oireachtas.

Deputy Micheál Martin

Ar mo shon féin agus ar son Fhianna Fáil, ba mhaith liom buíochas a ghabháil leat, Bernard, as ucht an méid oibre atá curtha isteach agat i rith na mblianta sa Teach seo. Táimid go léir fíorbhuíoch díot. Tá súil agam go mbainfidh tú taitneamh agus sásamh as na blianta atá le teacht.

I join the Taoiseach and the Tánaiste in thanking Mr. Bernard Hand for his years of service to the House. I wish him all the best on his retirement after 20 years of exemplary service to the Houses of the Oireachtas. He is a team leader in every sense and has reflected the very special contribution the ushers of the Houses have made over a long time to the ambience and atmosphere here. They have exuded a sense of calm but also firm - I hate to use the word "control" - management of the Houses. Unlike other Parliaments, ours has an easy informality on one level, but there is equally a sense that things are exceptionally well managed.

I draw this conclusion from the many visitors to the Oireachtas: students, young children and others who do not initially know what they are entering. They have a vision or sense of it, but their feedback after being brought on tours or breathing in the ambience is significant. This is in large measure due to the dignity and calmness that Bernard and his colleagues have brought to the task. We are forever in Bernard's debt for his contribution.

Regarding the success of the Dublin football team, it has been a great couple of years. There was a good phrase once about Cork: the mushroom may fade, but Cork never will. We are there at any stage in any year. Mayo had better hurry up because we will not hang around too much longer for Mayo to do it.

The Taoiseach

Well done.

Deputy Micheál Martin

There is a sense that one is returning to normality when one retires from this House, Bernard.

Deputy Jerry Buttimer

Deputy Martin had better hurry.

Deputy Micheál Martin

Your family and, in particular, your grandchildren will assist you in that return to normality in the months and years ahead. Well done and thank you very much.

Deputies

Hear, hear.

Deputy Gerry Adams

Ba mhaith liom mo bhuíochas ar mo shon féin agus ar son Shinn Féin a ghabháil le Bernard. Nuair a tháinig mé anseo cúpla bliain ó shin, bhí sé an-chairdiúil agus an-deas, mar a bhfuil na daoine uilig anseo. Mar a dúirt mé, tá mé fíorbhuíoch díot, Bernard. If I remember rightly, he has a Monaghan connection. There is a good Ulster element to all of that.

Deputy Mary Lou McDonald

He is a Dub.

The Taoiseach

Deputy Adams cannot steal them all.

Deputy Jerry Buttimer

He is a Dub.

Deputy Gerry Adams

He is. I wish him well. He is, as the Taoiseach, Tánaiste and leader of Fianna Fáil stated, always cheerful and always has a smile. He was very cordial when first I joined the Dáil. That is a mark of all of the staff. He is now in a new chapter of his life and I wish him and his wife Laura the very best and a long and healthy retirement. I also hope that he gets to enjoy his grandchildren. Go raibh míle maith agat, Bernard.

Deputy Denis Naughten

I will be brief. I want to be associated with the tributes that have been paid to Bernard. We are roughly around the same vintage in the Oireachtas.

Deputy Dara Calleary

He kept his hair.

Deputy Denis Naughten

I wish him every success in his retirement. We will all miss the updates on the Dublin club championship and, depending on how Dublin progressed at the weekend, the humour that we would meet when we came in on Tuesday. There was the odd time when some of us from the country had the opportunity to have a smile on our faces coming through the door. We look forward to Bernard visiting Hyde Park in Roscommon during the league. I hope that we will cause a few upsets for the Dubs.

I want to take this opportunity to wish you every success in your retirement. I know that Bernard is looking forward to having a large amount of time to fulfil babysitting duties. A large part of his diary will be filled up by that. I wish you, your wife Laura and your family every success and every good health in your retirement. Do not be a stranger around here.

Deputy Mary Lou McDonald

Well said.

An Ceann Comhairle

On behalf of the other Members of the House, I would like to wish Bernard every success and good health during his retirement. For almost 20 years, he has served all of us with a great deal of loyalty and diligence. Above all, his was a quiet efficiency in the Chamber, particularly during Leaders' Questions and the Order of Business. When he kindly takes the cloak off me outside, he says: "That was a tough one today, a Cheann Comhairle."

Deputy Bernard J. Durkan

Every day.

Deputy Andrew Doyle

Better than Parnell Park.

The Taoiseach

We can thank Deputy Mathews.

An Ceann Comhairle

I will miss that, but I know that he will have a very active retirement. He has plenty of things to do, as previous speakers have said. His association with the GAA is well known. I believe that Trinity Gaels is the team that he follows. In case Deputies do not know, he refereed at senior level and wore the Dublin jersey against Armagh.

Deputy Micheál Martin

Fair play.

An Ceann Comhairle

He is a man of hidden talents-----

The Taoiseach

And great substance.

An Ceann Comhairle

-----but also a man of great decency.

Deputies

Hear, hear.

An Ceann Comhairle

We cannot thank the ushers enough for the help and assistance they give us and our friends and colleagues who visit the Oireachtas. They treat people with courtesy. They are the front line.

You will genuinely be missed and I wish you good health with your family for the next X number of years, which is the most important thing. Thank you very much.