Comhghairdeas leis an gCathaoirleach agus le Ceannaire an Tí. Bhí mé an-sásta cloisteáil go raibh an Seanadóir Trevor Ó Clochartaigh ag labhairt ar ball ó thaobh Gaeilge a úsáid mar is í an Ghaeilge an chéad teanga atá agamsa.

I had to learn English which means that English is my second language. People sometimes say to me that they know from the way I speak English I grew up speaking Irish. I do not know if that is a compliment or otherwise. Gabhaim buíochas leis an gCathaoirleach as ucht an deis labhairt ar feadh nóiméad nó dhó. In this House I feel like a square pin in a round hole or whatever because I come from a different space. I am still working my way around, but I have learned two things. First, there is tremendous passion in this room and I feel very privileged to be part of this group. Senators really mean what they are talking about and are totally passionate, which will make a difference.

Second, as Senators, we come from so many backgrounds. I do not want to pick out one person, but it is really important that we have somebody here to represent the diaspora and that person is Senator Billy Lawless. I hope someone in the media is listening to me. Senator Billy Lawless has employed not only my daughter but hundreds of sons and daughters of people from all over Ireland. Fair play to him. Not only that - it has not just been him - other Irish people living abroad back each other up. Sometimes I ask the following question. Could we not back each other up a little more on this island? It is for that reason I believe I can work with everybody in the Seanad and hope everybody here can work with me. It is not really Seanad reform that I seek. I want it to be reinvented, which goes a little deeper than reform, because we can and will make a difference. For me, the measurement of whatever length of time I will be in the Seanad, will be asking myself what little contribution I made and what did we do as a group to make a real difference.

I ask the Cathaoirleach to invite the Minister for Education and Skills to the House to address two issues. The first is the drop-out rate at third level, with many people who take the leaving certificate examinations and go on to third level dropping out within 12 months. In some third level institutions the rate is 25%, while in others it is around 12%. That is a huge loss to the economy and the country and I would like to know why it is happening and what can be done about it.

The second issue relating to education, about which a number of people have contacted me, albeit not recently but in the middle and more distant past, is the level of depression and stress among secondary schoolchildren. This is significant in the context of fighting depression in adult life. Teachers, particularly career guidance teachers, should be supported and equipped to deal with it in the first instance. I would appreciate it if we could invite the Minister to address the House on these issues.