SEANAD:COMPLAINING that some on the No side had made outrageously misleading claims in the debate on the fiscal treaty, acting Seanad leader Ivana Bacik (Lab) said the Government had made clear its commitment to retaining Ireland's 12.5 per cent corporation tax rate.

She said it would remain so even assuming ratification of the treaty. It would be extraordinary for the vast majority of businesses and employers in Ireland to support a Yes vote if they believed there was some sort of link with the treaty that would undermine the tax rate.

“That is one claim that has to be firmly nailed,” she added.

David Norris (Ind) highlighted that yesterday was International Day Against Homophobia and noted what he called a stark contrast between an article in The Irish Times with a column in the Alive newspaper distributed in Roman Catholic churches throughout the State.

It attacked any attempt to protect young gay people, arguing that such attempts would lead to further bullying “and suggesting that those who try to protect vulnerable young people want to increase victimhood for their own purposes”.

This was a disgusting and repulsive action, he said. Decent parish priests should ensure that this “filthy and disgusting publication is removed from their churches because it has no place in a Christian context”.

Mary Moran (Lab) welcomed the decision of Irish and European governing bodies to permit Irish team members to wear black armbands in their forthcoming European championship match against Italy, to commemorate the Loughinisland massacre in Co Down 18 years ago, when six people were shot dead while watching TV coverage of a World Cup match.

Teams from the same two countries would be participating in the match on the exact anniversary of the atrocity, she noted.

Ms Bacik said she agreed that it would be a sensitive and appropriate gesture.

Civil society under successive governments had failed the victims of the Dublin and Monaghan bombings by not pursuing with sufficient determination with “our neighbouring island” the truth of what had happened in terms of the collusion involved in the atrocity, Jim Walsh (FF) said. Yesterday marked the 38th anniversary of the bombings.

Paul Bradford (FG) said the success of the British-Irish parliamentary body in overcoming enmities between the countries could provide a useful lesson as to how the divisions resulting from the Civil War, “probably the greatest tragedy on this island”, could be similarly overcome.