Results 21-40 of 7,444 for speaker:Alice-Mary Higgins

Committee on Scrutiny of Draft EU-related Statutory Instruments: Engagement with Minister of State at the Department of Foreign Affairs (23 May 2024)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I have specific questions but I do not know if this is the context-----

Committee on Scrutiny of Draft EU-related Statutory Instruments: Engagement with Minister of State at the Department of Foreign Affairs (23 May 2024)

Alice-Mary Higgins: Sure. I am just saying that we could signal, for example, the kinds of issues. We do not need an answer now perhaps, but we could signal the issues. For example, there is the equal pay for equal work. That is pending very soon. There is the question of the directive on the adequate minimum wage. Will that be done by primary or secondary legislation? These are a few of the kinds of...

Committee on Scrutiny of Draft EU-related Statutory Instruments: Engagement with Minister of State at the Department of Foreign Affairs (23 May 2024)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I have two very short points. One is that it is important we focus a lot on subsidarity. However, it is not only about subsidiarity. It is also a matter of at all stages, including when we get a communication and when there is transposition, what the best practice and best idea is for Europe. We are transposing at one level but there are also other parts in the process in terms of...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Scrutiny of EU Proposals (22 May 2024)

Alice-Mary Higgins: Professor Maguire might do so via the clerk.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Scrutiny of EU Proposals (22 May 2024)

Alice-Mary Higgins: On the question of exports, and without naming any companies, we know that arms exports from Germany to Israel have increased since last year from €30 million to over €300 million. That is a tenfold increase in the number of arms being exported from Germany. I believe German companies are among those that will potentially benefit from the arms and ammunition schemes. We do not...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Scrutiny of EU Proposals (22 May 2024)

Alice-Mary Higgins: With regard to the transit of weapons, which is a separate issue that we definitely do not have time to discuss today, the Civil Engagement Group is bringing our arms embargo Bill through the Seanad next week. It is explicitly on the question of the transfer of weapons and the need to look at stopping the practice of exemptions for weaponry, which we have at present, and ensure we have...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Scrutiny of EU Proposals (22 May 2024)

Alice-Mary Higgins: On the Act.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Scrutiny of EU Proposals (22 May 2024)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I will put the question directly to the Commission. As I understand it, there was a qualified majority vote. There are two elements. There is Article 42.1 of the treaty potentially being breached by the very point the Act very clearly has military or defence implications. Ammunition manufacture has military and defence implications. Even if it were legal under EU law, which is very...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Scrutiny of EU Proposals (22 May 2024)

Alice-Mary Higgins: And our neutrality, of course.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Scrutiny of EU Proposals (22 May 2024)

Alice-Mary Higgins: A large number of academics, their representative organisations and others made submissions in respect of the Horizon proposals in the context of being explicitly clear that they support the retention of a civil focus.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Scrutiny of EU Proposals (22 May 2024)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I thank everyone for those answers. Cluster munitions are one thing; nuclear non-proliferation is also relevant, as is the general question of arms manufacture. I do not know if Mr. Fairmichael was there at the time, but I think Mr. Murray was. Will Mr. Murray comment on the treaty negotiation and the particular role Ireland was able to play? That gives the context for the cluster...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Scrutiny of EU Proposals (22 May 2024)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I cannot speak for everyone. We will have a private session afterwards, during which we will discuss everything. I can highlight that these hearings come in the context of a communication that came to us. The money had already been allocated. I understand contracts are going to be signed in respect of the €500 million. I have a breakdown showing a figure of €124 million for...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Scrutiny of EU Proposals (22 May 2024)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I think it is really important to pull back a piece that we are not engaging in individual, different conflicts and assessment. We know there are significant diplomatic means that have been exercised. I have supported many of the diplomatic measures to apply pressure on Russia regarding its illegal invasion of Ukraine and there are sanctions and so forth. There are diplomatic measures...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Scrutiny of EU Proposals (22 May 2024)

Alice-Mary Higgins: To follow up on a couple of these pieces, the cluster-munitions Act explicitly states that Ireland bans direct or indirect investment of public moneys in companies which produce "munitions". To clarify, I thought it was just companies which produced "cluster munitions". It is not limited to munitions companies which produce cluster bombs. It is part of Ireland's very proud record in...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Scrutiny of EU Proposals (22 May 2024)

Alice-Mary Higgins: This is one of the issues we signalled and would have expected answers to. It is a concern in itself if decisions relating to spending public money - €12 million may seem a small sum to Mr. Ryan but it is quite significant to a lot of people - in a way that goes against our own national law. In that context, and I am going back to Article 41.1, why was an evaluation not made, for...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Scrutiny of EU Proposals (22 May 2024)

Alice-Mary Higgins: That seems to be something of an oversight when we are looking at the situation. The then Taoiseach was very clear that Ireland would only be providing non-lethal support for military action in Ukraine. It should be pointed out that it seems that this funding is going directly to industry. This is not the same as when individual countries may have chosen to transfer arms and so forth....