Results 161-180 of 7,444 for speaker:Alice-Mary Higgins

Seanad: Research and Innovation Bill 2024: Committee Stage (Resumed) (8 May 2024)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I move amendment No. 66: In page 15, between lines 27 and 28, to insert the following: “(4 One member to be appointed to the Board under subsection (2) shall be a worker representative of researchers and shall be nominated for appointment by a researchers’representative group.”.

Seanad: Research and Innovation Bill 2024: Committee Stage (Resumed) (8 May 2024)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I move amendment No. 67: In page 15, between lines 27 and 28, to insert the following: “(4) One member to be appointed to the Board under subsection (2) shall have experience and expertise in workers’ rights in the sector and shall be nominated for appointment by the Irish Federation of University Teachers.”.

Seanad: Research and Innovation Bill 2024: Committee Stage (Resumed) (8 May 2024)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I move amendment No. 68: In page 15, between lines 30 and 31, to insert the following: “(5) The Minister shall nominate a suitably qualified person for appointment as chairperson and such a nomination shall require approval by resolution of both Houses of the Oireachtas.”.

Seanad: Research and Innovation Bill 2024: Committee Stage (Resumed) (8 May 2024)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I move amendment No. 69: In page 16, line 15, after “Board” to insert “, excluding the chairperson,”.

Seanad: Research and Innovation Bill 2024: Committee Stage (Resumed) (8 May 2024)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I move amendment No. 70: In page 21, between lines 9 and 10, to insert the following: "(iii) the Irish Congress of Trade Unions,". In the Bill, there is an anomaly in the corporate plan of the agency. The Bill sets out that the corporate plan shall include the objectives, outputs and other strategies, and that, in preparing it, the agency consults with a number of key actors. On the...

Seanad: Research and Innovation Bill 2024: Committee Stage (Resumed) (8 May 2024)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I will come back on the question of who the agency consults and the corporate plan. I will probably bring further amendments to that section on Report Stage. I urge that the Department consider or review this because the logic does not stand up. In emphasising the word "innovation", it is as if it is against innovation to mention there are other things besides the corporate or private...

Seanad: Research and Innovation Bill 2024: Committee Stage (Resumed) (8 May 2024)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I have indicated my intention to discuss this further on Report Stage. I note the difference between "shall" and "may". It is "shall" in respect of Enterprise Ireland and the IDA. I have not sought to remove those, though that is an option that could be considered. I am not objecting to consultation with those agencies but if there was consultation with them and not others, then we have...

Seanad: Research and Innovation Bill 2024: Committee Stage (Resumed) (8 May 2024)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I move amendment No. 71: In page 21, between lines 10 and 10, to insert the following: “(iii) the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Education, Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science,”.

Seanad: Research and Innovation Bill 2024: Committee Stage (Resumed) (8 May 2024)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I move amendment No. 72: In page 22, between lines 14 and 15, to insert the following: “(4) In preparing the annual plan, the Agency shall consult with the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Education, Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science.”.

Seanad: Research and Innovation Bill 2024: Committee Stage (Resumed) (8 May 2024)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I move amendment No. 73: In page 22, between lines 21 and 22, to insert the following: “(8) A direction given under subsection (5) shall be laid before the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Education, Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science and shall require the approval of that Joint Oireachtas Committee.”.

Seanad: Research and Innovation Bill 2024: Committee Stage (Resumed) (8 May 2024)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I may bring an amendment on transparency in respect of gifts. This is the section whereby gifts may be given to the agency, and that is fine. The agency has to get the Minister's consent to accept a gift but I may also look for transparency and a public record of any such gifts.

Seanad: Research and Innovation Bill 2024: Committee Stage (Resumed) (8 May 2024)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I move amendment No. 74: In page 24, between lines 10 and 11, to insert the following: “(4) A person designated as the first Chief Executive Officer under subsection (3) shall hold office for a period not exceeding 30 months.”. This amendment seeks to amend section 28 by requiring that the person designated as the first chief executive officer under subsection (3) should...

Seanad: Research and Innovation Bill 2024: Committee Stage (Resumed) (8 May 2024)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I move amendment No. 75: In page 26, to delete lines 39 to 42.

Seanad: Research and Innovation Bill 2024: Committee Stage (Resumed) (8 May 2024)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I move amendment No. 76: In page 26, after line 42, to insert the following: “(10) Nothing in this section shall be construed as limiting the compellability powers of an Oireachtas Committee, save for where the Committee on Parliamentary Privileges and Oversight of Dáil Éireann and the Committee on Parliamentary Privileges and Oversight of Seanad Éireann have...

Seanad: Research and Innovation Bill 2024: Committee Stage (Resumed) (8 May 2024)

Alice-Mary Higgins: Section 31(2) refers to "any matter that is or has been or may be the subject of proceedings". The Minister of State mentioned "ongoing" legal proceedings. Which is it? Is it something that "has been"? Is it the case that if a matter "has been" dealt with and that proceedings are now finished and not ongoing that the subject matter is eligible? What I understand is standard is "ongoing",...

Seanad: Research and Innovation Bill 2024: Committee Stage (Resumed) (8 May 2024)

Alice-Mary Higgins: This matter needs clarity. Maybe a "'without prejudice to" clause could be added. I totally agree in respect of live, imminent or ongoing legal proceedings even where they are in a gap, for example, between a case and an appeal. However, historic matters, for example, should not end up being closed off. Later I will discuss amendments that deal with ethical issues that may arise...

Seanad: Research and Innovation Bill 2024: Committee Stage (Resumed) (8 May 2024)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I may table amendments on confidential information where there is an issue in respect of representation. There may be caveats in situations where information is obtained by a member of a board. To make it clear, it is notwithstanding areas where there is a public good that may be required in respect of a disclosure. I will come to that on Report Stage.

Seanad: Research and Innovation Bill 2024: Committee Stage (Resumed) (8 May 2024)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I move amendment No. 78: In page 31, line 19, after “appropriate” to insert “and in a manner which is accessible”. The amendment is relatively simple and requires that the agency when it promotes and disseminates "information concerning funding schemes" would do so "in a manner which is accessible". It has been emphasised that the Bill does not deal...

Seanad: Research and Innovation Bill 2024: Committee Stage (Resumed) (8 May 2024)

Alice-Mary Higgins: Amendment No. 83 would impose an additional duty on the CEO when considering how decisions made by the agencies in respect of their assessment of applications would receive the appropriate balance in terms of disbursement of funding. The amendment provides that the CEO, in making a consideration, would have due regard to the need to uphold and advance the principle of parity of esteem...

Seanad: Research and Innovation Bill 2024: Committee Stage (Resumed) (8 May 2024)

Alice-Mary Higgins: To be clear, we have heard it multiple times that parity of esteem is woven throughout and underpins the Bill but it is not anywhere in the Bill because it is very vague and I do not believe it is clear enough. There is a significant contradiction. We are constantly told that parity of esteem is here but it is nowhere to be seen. Not only is the phrase "parity of esteem" not found anywhere...