Results 4,141-4,160 of 8,482 for speaker:Alice-Mary Higgins

Seanad: Defence (Amendment) Bill 2020: Committee Stage (20 Oct 2021)

Alice-Mary Higgins: That is what I am suggesting.

Seanad: Defence (Amendment) Bill 2020: Committee Stage (20 Oct 2021)

Alice-Mary Higgins: It makes sense because we are militarily non-aligned. We should not be working with a military bloc, a military contigent, and a regional grouping that is aligned, that acts on the basis of interests, and that acts on a completely different mandate to us, except in situations where we share a common mandate in a United Nations activity. That is appropriate-----

Seanad: Defence (Amendment) Bill 2020: Committee Stage (20 Oct 2021)

Alice-Mary Higgins: Yes, I am talking about seconding people in that context. I have taken on board the Minister's point about the difference between seconding individuals and seconding contingents. However, the legislation as it stands allows for the seconding of a contingent - a whole group of Irish military forces - to an international organisation. These international organisations could, as has been...

Seanad: Defence (Amendment) Bill 2020: Committee Stage (20 Oct 2021)

Alice-Mary Higgins: Can the Minister respond so we can put the question?

Seanad: Defence (Amendment) Bill 2020: Committee Stage (20 Oct 2021)

Alice-Mary Higgins: That is not the effect I meant, because it said "any European agency". I did change that.

Seanad: Defence (Amendment) Bill 2020: Committee Stage (20 Oct 2021)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I move amendment No. 4: In page 12, between lines 22 and 23, to insert the following: “Amendment of section 3 of Act of 2006 17. Section 3 of the Act of 2006 is amended— (a) in subsection (1)(a) by the substitution of “an” for “any”, and (b) by the insertion of the following subsection after subsection (2): “(3) In exercising its...

Seanad: Defence (Amendment) Bill 2020: Committee Stage (20 Oct 2021)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I move amendment No. 5: In page 12, between lines 22 and 23, to insert the following: “Amendment of section 3 of Act of 2006 17. Section 3 of the Act of 2006 is amended in subsection (1)(a) by the insertion of “under a United Nations mandate” after “international organisation”.”.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and COP26: Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications (19 Oct 2021)

Alice-Mary Higgins: It is a pity we do not have longer but I am sure the Minister would be willing to come back to the committee after COP26 and we could discuss everything that happened there. That might be useful. With regard to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the Minister mentioned the 1.5°C figure at the end of his contribution but at the beginning he mentioned 2°C. It would be...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and COP26: Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications (19 Oct 2021)

Alice-Mary Higgins: We are getting some good warnings.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and COP26: Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications (19 Oct 2021)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I should flag there is a lot of concern about this being a redirecting of ODA. It is meant to be new and additional funding, rather than a redirection of our ODA, which does extraordinary and important work around the world.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and COP26: Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications (19 Oct 2021)

Alice-Mary Higgins: My time is constrained. Will Ireland sign the declaration?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and COP26: Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications (19 Oct 2021)

Alice-Mary Higgins: Can I get a written note on the accounting issues I mentioned? The accounting rule book in terms of loans versus interest-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and COP26: Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications (19 Oct 2021)

Alice-Mary Higgins: -----and the new and additional definition.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and COP26: Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications (19 Oct 2021)

Alice-Mary Higgins: And on the Declaration on Children, Youth and Climate Action?

Seanad: Finance (European Stability Mechanism and Single Resolution Fund) Bill 2021: Second Stage (14 Oct 2021)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I thank the Minister. It is good to have him in the House. The idea of a common response and common action in respect of financial and fiscal threat is something everybody supports. The idea of the common backstop and a stability mechanism is, of course, important but there is much to discuss in the detail. Significant mistakes have been made in the past and it is not clear how they have...

Seanad: Finance (European Stability Mechanism and Single Resolution Fund) Bill 2021: Second Stage (14 Oct 2021)

Alice-Mary Higgins: If those are the kinds of policies coming through on how we approach banks in this budget, how can we have confidence in how the stability mechanism will engage with banks and hold them to account in the future?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Disability Matters: From Accessibility to Universal Design: Discussion (14 Oct 2021)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I thank our guests. I was interested in some of the questions put by Deputy Hourigan, which were key and went to the core of the issue. We must recognise that not only have we not progressed as we should have in terms of universal design and standards, but there is active pressure to roll back on standards. We need to be clear about that and I hope we, as a committee, can be strong in...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Disability Matters: From Accessibility to Universal Design: Discussion (14 Oct 2021)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I will add one line, as I know others are going to come in. Mr. O'Herlihy has touched on something there. Quality criteria are important in order that we are not just procuring in the context of the lowest cost and meeting the basics and that we are in a position to award tenders that raise standards and, maybe, even offer more in terms of quality and inclusion than might have been...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Disability Matters: From Accessibility to Universal Design: Discussion (14 Oct 2021)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I thank Ms Smith. This is where the danger of the term "adaptable" being too loose arises. It really needs to be the case that it works.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Disability Matters: From Accessibility to Universal Design: Discussion (14 Oct 2021)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I thank Ms Carthy. I do not have any more time now but I want to indicate something we might be looking at later. I refer to finance and mortgages, and the obstacles relating to accessing mortgages. We will not have time to discuss it now, but I ask people to send on their thoughts on this matter in writing. This is an issue that has arisen for people in the context of adaptation grants...