Results 22,521-22,540 of 26,795 for speaker:David Cullinane

Seanad: One-Parent Family Payment: Motion (15 Jul 2015)

David Cullinane: It is a bit much that a party would propose a Private Members' motion and not be here to debate it. They should be present for the debate on their own Private Members' motion.

Seanad: One-Parent Family Payment: Motion (15 Jul 2015)

David Cullinane: Hear, hear.

Seanad: One-Parent Family Payment: Motion (15 Jul 2015)

David Cullinane: Why not?

Seanad: One-Parent Family Payment: Motion (15 Jul 2015)

David Cullinane: The Senator has made a big impact so far.

Seanad: One-Parent Family Payment: Motion (15 Jul 2015)

David Cullinane: Hear, hear.

Seanad: One-Parent Family Payment: Motion (15 Jul 2015)

David Cullinane: I welcome the Minister of State to the House. I commend the authors of the motion before us. I hope it is passed and there is a good chance it will. That should not necessarily mean that nothing happens because we are one House of the Oireachtas and that should mean something to the Government. If one House states it will not support cuts, surely that should be a wake-up call for the...

Seanad: One-Parent Family Payment: Motion (15 Jul 2015)

David Cullinane: Senator Mulcahy had his say, and it is my opportunity to have my say.

Seanad: One-Parent Family Payment: Motion (15 Jul 2015)

David Cullinane: He can call it what he likes, but I am dealing with-----

Seanad: One-Parent Family Payment: Motion (15 Jul 2015)

David Cullinane: I am dealing with reality.

Seanad: One-Parent Family Payment: Motion (15 Jul 2015)

David Cullinane: I am dealing with reality, which is the large number of people who contacted me and the meetings I attended with lone parents who are losing, rather than gaining, money. For any Senator on the Government side to say five out of the six people who contacted him will gain money is incorrect. The majority of women in receipt of lone parent's allowance will lose money because of the measures...

Seanad: One-Parent Family Payment: Motion (15 Jul 2015)

David Cullinane: Hear, hear.

Seanad: Order of Business (14 Jul 2015)

David Cullinane: I support the call by Senator Darragh O'Brien for a debate on Greece. We need to have a discussion on the role of the Government in this, which is essentially what he called for.

Seanad: Order of Business (14 Jul 2015)

David Cullinane: I will come to that, Senator, with respect.

Seanad: Order of Business (14 Jul 2015)

David Cullinane: Absolutely. I would have no difficulty with any such debate if people would allow me to make my contribution.

Seanad: Order of Business (14 Jul 2015)

David Cullinane: Go raibh maith agat, a Chathaoirligh. We are served up a number of gems on the Order of Business and we have had two classic examples today. The first was from Senator Michael Mullins, who is in the Chamber, who said that the Greek Government had raised unrealistic expectations. In fact, what the Greek Government wanted to do was exactly what Senator Jim D'Arcy said, which was to clean up...

Seanad: Order of Business (14 Jul 2015)

David Cullinane: It was the two previous bailout programmes, supported by the troika and parties associated with Fine Gael and the Labour Party, which created the deep problems in Greece. At least the Syriza Government wants to see taxes collected from the wealthy, the oligarchs and the well-off in Greece, who have not been paying their taxes, as well as others. At least they are committed to doing-----

Seanad: Order of Business (14 Jul 2015)

David Cullinane: At least they are committed to doing that, unlike the Senator's sister parties, which failed in Greece. What the Greek people need is not Brian Cowen or anybody else being sent to Greece to heap more misery on them, but debt restructuring and debt reprofiling. That has to be a centrepiece of this deal, which many people would call a diktat because the Greek Government and the Greek people...

Seanad: Order of Business (14 Jul 2015)

David Cullinane: The reality is that the banks were closed when the referendum took place. That appears to have escaped the minds of the two Ministers who made their comments today.

Seanad: Order of Business (14 Jul 2015)

David Cullinane: What we need is a debate in order that we can have a discussion on this issue. I do not believe that what was agreed will bring about the type of sustainable economic recovery that is needed in Greece. What we are trying to prevent is our being back here again in six months' time or a year-----

Seanad: Order of Business (14 Jul 2015)

David Cullinane: -----when matters are worse because we did not have a comprehensive agreement that would sort out the problems in Greece.