The now humiliated Taoiseach feared to debate the Seanad issue and was even unaware he was putting the cart before the horse.

RTÉ received 41 complaints over a scene in Love/Hate where a cat is shot dead.

The new legislation that requires the taxing/registration of tractors that solely work on the land is another example of the attack by the Government on rural Ireland. It is another mean swipe in order to extort money from people. There are very many tractors on farms that never go on the public road and such tractors should be exempt from this legislation.

It is no surprise to hear that Peter Matthews has left Fine Gael. They always seemed like an odd fit. Mr Matthews brought a fresh perspective to scores of issues, many of them in divergence with party policy.

I was absolutely in favour of the abolition of the Seanad basically because it was being abused by failed general election candidates and would-be Dáil candidates.

In the run-up to the Budget, with the internal deals done between the politicians, one piece of irony remains.

“Fine Gael TDs relieved at Peter Mathews departure,” reports Michael O’Kane (Irish Examiner, Oct 4). They were relieved when George Lee left, as well.

A newspaper quoted a survey that 52% of RTÉ programmes in the first eight months of this year were repeats.

So, now we are to move from the Seanad referendum to Seanad reform, as spoken by Enda Kenny.

The most important ‘referendum’ was the general election, by which we conferred on a select group of individuals the responsibility and honour of administering the affairs of state, the ‘permanent government’, and co-opting experts, while keeping the common good foremost.