While it is inappropriate for the Chair to comment, I could not agree more.

I welcome two other guests. Adrian Long and Gavin Homan are the guests of the Cathaoirleach of the Seanad, Senator Mark Daly. They are very welcome to the Visitors Gallery and they will be able to see the Cathaoirleach in action later if they wait.

The Leas-Chathaoirleach welcomed the children of Gurteen Central National School from east Galway. These are fifth and sixth class pupils in the school. This epitomises what goes on in Irish education. This is a small, rural school where kids are being looked after, educated and brought through the system. We sometimes do not give our national schools enough credit for the amount of work they do. The principal is here today and he will not be home until late tonight. Again, people do not recognise this.

One of the key issues, and Leas-Chathaoirleach and I have spoken on this, is the shortage of teachers in our country. Panels are not being filled. Special needs teachers - and this is a real bugbear of mine - are being taken out of their special needs roles and are being put in to teach mainstream classes. This goes back to my time in further education. What is happening is the special needs child is being left aside. Senator Clonan spoke on this issue last week. Families have to go to the courts to get an education for their children. That is all fine and dandy for the families who can afford that, but it is not good enough for those who cannot. We should cherish our children an awful lot more.

It is a great source of pride for me to have the kids here from Gurteen Central National School. This is a great day for them, because they know that this House is their House, and not our House. They have as much access to anybody in this House as any other citizen of the State. I am grateful the Leas-Chathaoirleach and all of my colleagues gave them that welcome.

The pupils of the national school might decide to do a project on the Seanad. It could feature the teachers' very famous relation, Senator Craughwell, who is a distinguished Member of the House. They could do a special chapter on him.

I am surprised Senator Craughwell did not say "No homework until Monday." I propose as a motion in the House that there be no homework until Christmas. Our guests in the Gallery are very welcome.

Saturday is the European Day of Persons with Disabilities. It is a day when Europe reflects on the value and contributions people with disabilities make to European society, as well as the challenges and difficulties that are there. This week in Brussels, there was a high-level conference on the issue of employment of people with disabilities. This country does not perform well when it comes to employing people with disabilities. Among blind and visually impaired people, 85% are unemployed, meaning only 15% are in meaningful, gainful employment. There is no excuse for that. They have the same intelligence levels as everybody else but the problem is that the structures, supports, facilities and services are not in place. Digital accessibility is at a low level in this country and the necessary supports and equipment are not really available or provided.

At some stage in the new year, we should have a debate on the employment of people with disabilities. Many good things are happening in this country and many organisations do good things but, overall, we are not performing at the level we should be. I will be proposing that.

I hope all persons with disabilities have a reflective and enjoyable European Day for Persons with Disabilities. It is an opportunity to mark our successes. We have the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. Much of it is ratified here but it is not fully ratified. That is work that needs to be done by the Government. It is important that we acknowledge the phenomenal contribution that persons with disabilities make to our society and country.

I thank the Senator for that important intervention.