DAVID NORRIS’S OUTBURST directed at Deputy Regina Doherty yesterday gave the campaign to abolish the Seanad a boost, the TD at the focus of his ire said.
Yesterday, Senator Norris caused a stir when he hit out at Fine Gael Deputy Regina Doherty, saying she was “speaking out of her fanny” during a discussion on the government’s plans to abolish the Seanad.
Speaking on TV3 programme Tonight With Vincent Browne last night, Doherty said that Norris’ comments “brought the Seanad into disrepute” and also gave the start of the campaign to abolish the Seanad “a very large boost”.
(Hugh O’Connell/YouTube)
Norris told the chamber yesterday: “The idea that someone who has been a member of this house… has to listen to ‘The Regina Monologues’ from somebody who’s not a wet week in this house, talking through her fanny, I object on the strongest possible basis.”
Last night, Deputy Doherty said that his comments “certainly drew attention to the Seanad today to people up and down the country that most likely wouldn’t have known what was going on today, and maybe that was his intention”.
She said that she:
was upset by his comments and even if I wasn’t, they are absolutely not acceptable in a professional workplace, which is what apparently he is pertaining to advocate for in the retention of the Seanad in the upcoming campaign.
Making reference to ‘lapgate’ last week, when a Fine Gael TD pulled a female colleague onto his lap during a Dáil debate, Doherty added that Norris “shone a light” on the “ongoings and proceedings”, which gave the start of the abolition campaign a very large boost.
Fine Gael announced the details of their campaign for the abolition of the Seanad yesterday, leading to much criticism in the chamber yesterday afternoon. One Senator, Fianna Fáil’s Mary White, described the FG press release as “like propaganda from Hitler or something”.
In today’s poll, we’re asking if Norris should apologise to Doherty over the comments.
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
have your say