I thank the Leader of the House for honouring his commitment this morning to allocate time for statements on the current political situation.
What makes politics different to virtually any other occupation or vocation is its element of sheer drama and theatre. During the past few days we have lived through a real life drama with elements which nobody could predict and with outcomes nobody could foresee. Even as we speak today elements of this drama have still to be worked out. That is what makes Parliament the theatre in which great national dramas take place.
Those of us who had the privilege of being present in the other House this morning for a moment of history cannot but have been moved by the way in which Albert Reynolds announced his resignation as Taoiseach. He did so in a manly, open way. He confronted the situation and explained himself in his own straightforward language. He explained his reasons for resigning with good humour and fortitude under what must have been very trying and difficult circumstances.
Like the two previous speakers, I have a great personal regard for Albert Reynolds. He has been a good friend of this House. He spoke here on some important occasions. He took this House seriously and shared his views with us at a number of important junctures. He will be remembered as the person who gave the peace process its dramatic and extraordinary impetus during the past couple of months. Each Taoiseach in recent years brought his own particular approach to finding a solution to the problems in Northern Ireland. Whether it was Liam Cosgrave at Sunningdale or Jack Lynch in his patient efforts to combat terror or Garret FitzGerald in the Anglo-Irish Agreement or Charles Haughey's historic breakthroughs during his term of office, each brought his distinctive mark to furthering the peace process. However, Albert Reynolds' contribution was different and, perhaps, greater in kind. It was he who cut the Gordian knot. He opened the gates which made possible the start of a process which we all hope will lead to lasting peace and reconciliation on this island. He will be remembered for that.
He will be remembered as a Taoiseach who was direct, open and accessible and who had a common sense approach to anything he tackled. He was a Taoiseach who was always willing to be helpful to anybody who approached him with a constituency problem. I have reason to be grateful to him for efforts he made when I approached him with constituency problems or with problems which would be helped by his intervention. His door was open. He was direct and told one if something could or could not be done. Enoch Powell said that all political careers end in tragedy and it is tragic that Albert Reynolds' career as Taoiseach came to the abrupt and painful end we witnessed this morning. All of us will be glad we were here during his term as Taoiseach and we will have positive yardsticks by which we can measure his performance.
Some of his daughters were my students and his daughter-in-law runs the crêche which my son attends, so I have a close personal relationship with the Reynolds family. I wish them fortitude through this difficult time. All of us are human and we know what it is like when things like this happen. None of us, however, will have to experience the publicity or the intensity of scrutiny which will beset that family during this time. I wish them a return to calmer waters to pursue the many enjoyable pursuits which weld them together as a family.
On the broader political front, we face a moment of extraordinary political crisis. We do not have a Government at present and we might have to go to the country to secure a new Government. However, we have learned from the experience of the past number of years that it is possible for talks to take place to see if an alternative Government can be established. My party for its part will approach talks with the leaders of other parties in an open and constructive manner. We will have just one concern, that the national interest shall supersede everything else. If we can form a Government with other parties we shall do so constructively and openly. There will be no hidden agenda; everything will be out in the open. I wish to put on record our willingness to engage in constructive discussions and our determination to do so openly in a structured way. I hope and I believe that this particular crisis can be resolved speedily and in a manner which is to the satisfaction of both Houses of Parliament, but most of all in a way which is in the best interest of the country.
I have no doubt that the best interest of the country lies in a Government led by Deputy John Bruton, a partnership Government involving all parties except, I am sorry to say, Fianna Fáil. It is my strong view that the Fianna Fáil Party needs a period in opposition to sort out and refocus itself. A period absented from Government would be good for Fianna Fáil and would be in the national interest. It would be our privilege if we can be part of and lead in partnership an alternative Government. Fine Gael has a reforming zeal which it could bring to any new Administration. However, that is a matter for the days ahead and will be resolved one way or another.
It is also important to put on record the debt of gratitude the country owes to the new Attorney General, Mr. Eoghan Fitzsimons, who is a colleague of mine from our days at university together. I have known him a long time and he has always been a strong Fianna Fáil supporter. However, this did not deter him from doing his duty as he saw it, even it meant that friendships of many years were sundered and great damage was done to the party which appointed him. He has been a model of extraordinary integrity in the way he approached his task. He restored a sense of integrity to the battered public reputations of our institutions when he acted so speedily. Irrespective of party. we are fortunate that our public life can produce people of the calibre of Mr. Eoghan Fitzsimons at times such as this.
The peace process, despite what the "thiar" Tánaiste, as he was described this morning, said yesterday, is still fragile. However, one message must go out clearly from all sides of the House, which is the utter commitment of all parties to maintaining the peace process. We all remember the debates in the House on Northern Ireland. We, in conjunction with all outside observers, must have been struck by the extraordinary degree of solidarity and national unity, expressed in this and the other House by party leaders and spokespersons. At this moment of crisis, this solidarity will be a source of great strength to the preservation of the peace process.
I have another point to make, which does not give me any pleasure. The events of the past few days have shown sections of Irish politics in a most unfavourable light and have raised many questions which have still to be answered. One question above all else must be answered before the body politic can be purged and before it can return to the job of Government building. This question is simple. It concerns the knowledge of Fianna Fáil members of the Cabinet of the conflict of evidence, what they knew when the Taoiseach went into the House to make his statement. Did they know? Were they complicit? If so, what action will be taken? We need to know: that question needs to be answered before any further progress can be made.
The lesson above all others from the past couple of weeks is that unless there is openness, transparency and comprehensive truth in public life clouds and question marks will hang over public life and will result in sores and abcesses which will poison the system. "Trust" and "partnership" are wonderful words but they can only exist where there is a deep foundation of truth and mutual respect. Until this question is answered fully and comprehensively — let heads fall where they may if the answers point in a certain direction — we cannot move ahead to the formation of any new Administration.
I thank the Cathaoirleach for the time to put these thoughts to the House. We face into an unprecedented political crisis, a time of drama and uncertainty. It is not just the eyes of our fellow citizens which are on the Houses of Parliament; the eyes of the world are looking at the way we conduct our business; it is important we do so with dignity and mutual respect in a structured way so that we can move from this political vacuum and ensure that, whatever the outcome the country is moving ahead with the peace process in safe hands towards economic revitalisation and, most of all, a restoration of trust in our institutions of State.
