I second Senator Marie Louise O'Donnell's proposal.

I raise the question of the Pope's visit. I was disturbed to hear on the wireless over the weekend about groups of people who are each buying blocks of 660 tickets and then deciding not to use them in order to reduce the numbers at this event and prevent other decent people who want to go from being allowed to attend. That is extremely mean minded. I do not agree with it at all. I have issues with the Vatican but the way to deal with that is in a dignified way and not this kind of attempt to wreck the visit. I appeal to those with these large numbers of tickets to release them so that decent, ordinary Irish Catholics can go to see the Pope.

I refer to the presidential election. I notice Fianna Fáil has now thrown its weight in behind Michael D. Higgins. It has also instructed Members of the Oireachtas and members of local authorities not to support any other candidate except Michael D. That is very dangerous, and I am quite sure Fine Gael will follow suit. I was blocked during the 2011 election. I was not allowed even to speak to Galway County Council as a result of the operations of Deputy Hildegarde Naughton, who was then the Mayor of Galway. She put a ban on that. This is quite wrong. On the previous occasion, until I entered the race there was going to be no race. The political parties were hugger-muggering. They were moving towards selecting an agreed candidate because the parties do not like having presidential races. They have absolute contempt for the Office of the President in political terms. They could not be bothered running anybody.

I know they say Michael D. is an excellent candidate, which he is, and he has been a very good President, but in a general election, if candidate Kelly from Fine Gael was an excellent candidate would Fianna Fáil stand back and say, "Ah no. We wouldn't go up against Deputy Kelly. He's an excellent candidate."?

They would not.

Of course they would not because they take it seriously. They do not take seriously-----

I know that but that is no reason to block other people. The Senator's party is blocking other people. That is what I am objecting to. You can suck up to Michael D. as much as you like.

The Senator had a free run the last time.

Everything is rigged in favour of the political parties.

It is not.

Ciúnas.

It certainly is. The nomination process is heavily rigged in favour of the political parties. The parties do not have to go through any process. They just decide to plonk somebody in.

Thank you. Time, Senator.

Okay, but there were quite a few interruptions. In addition, the finance is totally skewed to massively favour the parties. At the Constitutional Convention I put forward a motion that would amend that. It was passed by 98% of the people present. It was by far the highest percentage and nothing has ever been done about it. We must look at the office of the presidency in terms of the way in which it is regulated, the method of nomination and the method of financing to ensure we have a level playing field to allow people go for election.

Finally, I am fed up listening to people saying, "Oh, I would go only for Michael D." Why do they not have the courage to go anyway?

Hear, hear.

I ran. Michael D. ran. I was a great friend and colleague of Michael D. and I said to him that if I was not running myself, I would be out on a bus canvassing for him. That is how highly I felt about him, but it did not stop me because I wanted to run. We should encourage that kind of attitude in people because with the best will in the world, do we want a President who will be 85 in the last year?

Steady.

Forget about saying "ageism". It is the truth.

The Senator is bending the rules. He is well over the time.

He has been doing it for years.

I will defer to the Cathaoirleach as long as we recognise that the political parties are bending the rules in running for the Presidency.