The Taoiseach led the tributes in the Dail yesterday to the former Taoiseach, Mr Jack Lynch, who died yesterday in Dublin. The House observed a minute's silence and agreed to suspend today's sitting as a mark of respect.

Mr Ahern described Mr Lynch "as one of our greatest statesmen and sportsmen", adding that to many people's minds he would forever be the "real Taoiseach".

"Born in the shadow of Shandon Bells, he always exuded a special charisma which great sports people have brought to politics, and he displayed a unique blend of charm, competence and integrity."

Mr Ahern referred to Mr Lynch's long Dail and ministerial career. "Later he served as Taoiseach, leader of the opposition and Taoiseach again. He did an enormous amount of work and was always conscious of his Cork roots. When he was elected Taoiseach in 1966, he returned triumphantly to Glen Rovers in Blackpool, to the people he loved so much."

Recalling "turbulent times of great emotion" at the end of the 1960s and early 1970s, the Taoiseach said Mr Lynch had to take the hardest steps to control and unite the party and deal with many difficulties.

"He did so, however, with the necessary toughness on the basis of bringing coherence and leadership to the country in order to ensure that democratic principles were upheld. He will always be remembered for that.

"During the difficult period to which I refer, he gave the country stability and confidence and successfully protected democracy. He did so because he was a politician of integrity.

"He began his political life at a time when the first generation of our nation's leaders were still at the helm. He modelled his public life on their example and was moulded in their company. For Jack Lynch, public life was a life of service dedicated to principles in which he quietly but passionately believed. His conduct in public life is a model to which succeeding generations should aspire and I hope they do so."

Expressing special sympathy with Mr Lynch's wife, Mairin, he said she had shared, more than most people could, his busy public life and quiet retirement years.

"My party and the Irish nation mourn his passing greatly. We thank him for all he did. I thank him, particularly, for what he did for the development of Fianna Fail. He changed Fianna Fail's policy on Northern Ireland. He initiated the campaign for unity by agreement and we followed that campaign in making the Good Friday agreement."

The Fine Gael leader, Mr John Bruton, said it was fair to say that Mr Lynch epitomised politics as the service of the public. "He was a servant of the people in the truest sense of the word. To those of us who knew him, his most memorable characteristic was the self-effacement he showed in his dealings with other people.

"He never put himself forward as being better than other people and courtesy in his dealings with friends and opponents alike marked his approach to politics. That courtesy came from an inner confidence and the belief in political standards that epitomised his entire life."

The Labour leader, Mr Ruairi Quinn, said that Mr Lynch's courage, together with Mr Sean Lemass, in pursuing entry into the EU would be seen as a major historical step.

"The other part of history that is indelibly marked by his contribution was his extraordinary courage, skill and understanding during a period of enormous turmoil in Ireland after the Troubles erupted in the North in 1969."

Mr Lynch, he added, was one of the few people who steered the State away from an abyss to the level of understanding, co-operation and mutual respect that Dublin and London had for each other now. Everybody in the House knew that was not easy.

The Tanaiste, Ms Harney, said: "Almost 20 years ago, Jack Lynch retired as Taoiseach. More than anybody else, his life in politics proves that a very ordinary person can make an extraordinary contribution."

She did not believe, she added, she would be in politics if it were not for Mr Lynch. "There were not many options 22 years ago for a young woman without a political pedigree, and if I had not been appointed to the Seanad then, I doubt very much whether I would have pursued a career in politics. I owe everything I have achieved to him and I thank him for that."