Results 201-220 of 221 for going forward speaker:Colm Burke

Seanad: Medical Practitioners (Amendment) Bill 2012: Second Stage (20 Feb 2013)

Colm Burke: ...D. Barrett referred to the periodic payments scheme. The Quirke report on the scheme was very comprehensive and is something at which we need to look in the context of the award of compensation. Going back to what Senator John Crown said, we need to look at the issue of litigation, which is costing the State and medical practitioners a considerable amount of money, to see if we can do...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health and Children: Independent Study into Ward Staffing Levels: Discussion with INMO (24 Jan 2013)

Colm Burke: ...sector, salaries have decreased by as much as 40%. If one takes the legal profession, for example, on average, young solicitors have experienced a drop in salary of up to 40%. In terms of the way forward in the health sector, we are not going to be in a position to increase the budget, certainly in the next three to four years. In fact, we will be very lucky to hold the budget at its...

Seanad: Health Insurance (Amendment) Bill 2012: Second Stage (13 Dec 2012)

Colm Burke: I welcome the Minister to the House and thank him for bringing forward this legislation, which I welcome. We have been dealing with this issue through statutory regulations since 1994. There have been a number of regulations and pieces of legislation dealing with this issue. This is about formalising what now needs to put in place to deal with the matter into the future. It is important...

Seanad: Order of Business (20 Nov 2012)

Colm Burke: ...for everyone, including the family concerned, all the medical staff in Galway, the consultants and nursing staff, that there is an inquiry which is seen to be fair and accurate and which brings forward a report outlining how this matter should have been managed and how similar situations should be managed in future. It is something we cannot allow to go on ad infinitum. The composition...

Seanad: National Children's Hospital: Statements (13 Nov 2012)

Colm Burke: ...with the issue of visual impact, will be important considerations for the Board in determining any future application. An Bord Pleanála made it quite clear, no matter what new application came forward about the Mater Hospital, that there was still going to be difficulties even with a reduction in height. The site at St. James's Hospital is good. It will be a trilocation and will...

Seanad: National Dementia Strategy: Motion (24 Oct 2012)

Colm Burke: ...occurred to me that approximately one third of all debates in the House are directly related to health care. This emphasises the importance of the issue and I thank the Labour Party for bringing forward this extremely important motion. It is an area on which we need to focus and bring about the necessary changes to assist families who must deal with a member of their family who has...

Seanad: National Dementia Strategy: Motion (24 Oct 2012)

Colm Burke: ...occurred to me that approximately one third of all debates in the House are directly related to health care. This emphasises the importance of the issue and I thank the Labour Party for bringing forward this extremely important motion. It is an area on which we need to focus and bring about the necessary changes to assist families who must deal with a member of their family who has...

Seanad: Alcohol Consumption: Statements (17 Oct 2012)

Colm Burke: ...in 20 years time. I am not criticising anyone in particular but I was in Washington Street in Cork on Arthur's day at 10.30 p.m. and it was frightening. I do not understand why people cannot go out for a night without this behaviour. As I walked along one of the streets several people were getting physically sick in front of me. They were on the street and leaning up against office...

Seanad: Radical Seanad Reform Through Legislative Change: Statements (Resumed) (9 Oct 2012)

Colm Burke: I congratulate the people who drafted the document, who came forward with some very positive proposals. I have already made my views known on the issue and the need for us in the Seanad to be proactive in monitoring what is coming through from Europe. I previously proposed that two days a month should be set aside to deal with European regulations and directives. It is great that we have...

Seanad: Thirty-First Amendment of the Constitution (Children) Bill 2012: Second Stage (2 Oct 2012)

Colm Burke: I thank the Minister, Deputy Frances Fitzgerald, for bringing forward this proposal for a constitutional amendment on children's rights. The timeline of the debate on this issue goes back as far as the taskforce on child care services which reported in 1980. Senator Jillian van Turnhout referred to the many calls for constitutional change going back over years. The Minister referred to the...

Seanad: Health (Pricing and Supply of Medical Goods) Bill 2012: Second Stage (19 Jul 2012)

Colm Burke: ...in this regard. There is also an issue with the cost per item. An item that used to cost €11.50 in Ireland cost €3.50 in Brussels. Last week I spoke to someone who now buys their drugs when going to Spain. The cost here is €120 and the cost in Spain is €40 for the same drug. In 1997 the average cost per item under the GMS was €11.20 and is now €23.27, which is a substantial...

Seanad: European Arrest Warrant (Application to Third Countries and Amendment) and Extradition (Amendment) Bill 2011: Second Stage (10 Jul 2012)

Colm Burke: ...in these cases. The Court of Criminal Appeal deals with criminal appeals but the Supreme Court currently deals with appeals in civil, commercial and family law cases. The volume of appeals going to the Supreme Court is already enormous. Under the legislation before us, the Supreme Court is the ultimate court of appeal in these matters. This issue must be dealt with. Recently, a...

Seanad: Competition (Amendment) Bill 2011: Second Stage (8 Mar 2012)

Colm Burke: ...to be apprentice to the solicitor who took one of the first anti-competitive cases to the European Court in 1974. The case involved the Irish Sugar Company, which had decided it was no longer going to sell sugar to wholesale distributors but would sell it directly to retailer, which the European Court held was anti-competitive. I welcome the provisions set out in sections 3 and 4 of the...

Seanad: Rare Diseases: Motion (7 Mar 2012)

Colm Burke: ...as I am not sure if somebody has been identified in the HSE to deal with it. That is very important from the point of view of dealing with issues like this. The task force must ensure that we move forward and not leave the situation in abeyance. It is important that there is a clear timeframe to set up the structures to deal with the issue. I tabled a motion which states clearly what...

Seanad: Order of Business (14 Feb 2012)

Colm Burke: ...local authorities in order that people can immediately access information on a website as to who is dealing with a particular area in a local authority instead of having to telephone reception and go around the house to find the responsible person. The removal of red tape is one of the aims in the jobs plan and one of the ways to do so is to have a means of identifying the people in...

Seanad: Health (Provision of General Practitioner Services) Bill 2011: Second Stage (8 Feb 2012)

Colm Burke: ...Bill allows the whole area to open up and I welcome it. There is another issue which I have raised previously. Although we are allowing new people to come onto the system there is a need to move forward in regard to computerisation. I raised the issue of the system in Denmark where a person has a patient medication card just as each one of us has a Visa card. This can access one's bank...

Seanad: Health Insurance (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2011: Second Stage (8 Dec 2011)

Colm Burke: I thank the Minister for giving a comprehensive presentation on the reason for the Bill. It is important that we have in place regulations and legislation which are for the common good. It is also important there is no price increase in health insurance as people get older and may be unfortunate to have an illness. That is one of the things the Bill provides for as was also provided for in...

Seanad: Reporting of Lobbying in Criminal Legal Cases Bill 2011: Second Stage (21 Sep 2011)

Colm Burke: ...initiative in drafting this Bill. It was not drafted overnight and much effort was put into it. I thank him for doing that. I pay tribute to any Member of the House who makes the effort to bring forward a draft Bill. Unfortunately, however, I cannot agree with the proposal for a number of reasons. One reason is that section 6 of the Prosecution of Offences Act 1974 clearly makes it...

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Community Service) (Amendment) (No. 2) Bill 2011: Second Stage (26 Jul 2011)

Colm Burke: I welcome the Minister to the House and thank him for bringing forward this legislation. Many of the issues I wanted to raise have been mentioned but I will refer to one or two issues, one of which concerns my experience of dealing with young people. Many years ago I had the privilege of being invited onto a committee on the north side of Cork city which was deciding what to do about the...

Seanad: Whistleblower Legislation: Motion (29 Jun 2011)

Colm Burke: ...the motion. It is important we debate the issue and that legislation be introduced. Many people employed in the public and private sectors are aware of illegal activities but are afraid to come forward. In the present economic circumstances, people are afraid for their jobs, afraid of damaging promotion prospects and even afraid for the jobs of members of their family. I wish to give an...