Criticism of Senators’ attendance
Senator Mooney condemns an Irish Independent article highlighting two female Senators’ attendance despite one being seriously ill.
I also wish to bring to the attention of the Leader my disquiet, and that of many others, at an article that appeared last week in the Irish Independent written by a journalist who decided that he would use the criteria of the first quarter to highlight what he believed was the absence of Members of this House during the sitting periods. The facts of the article are not in dispute. However, two women Members of this House were highlighted and photographed. The journalist knew that one of them, in particular, was severely ill during that period but he still went ahead with his heartless article. The other female Member, Senator Imelda Henry, who is a very dear friend of mine and a good colleague to everyone here, had very traumatic personal experiences during that same period, which meant that she was unable to attend this House as often as she would have liked. These are just two examples.