Results 4,721-4,740 of 5,683 for speaker:Thomas Gould

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Land Development Agency Bill 2021: Committee Stage (25 May 2021)

Thomas Gould: On the Minister's point about delaying, I will use the example of the LDA's site at St. Kevin's Hospital in Cork. I, my Sinn Féin colleagues and other people in the Opposition proposed the development of this site back in 2013. The site is being developed now by the LDA but we still do not have a breakdown of how much is going to be affordable, affordable cost-rental or purchase,...

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Land Development Agency Bill 2021: Committee Stage (25 May 2021)

Thomas Gould: As Deputies Ó Broin and Boyd Barrett have stated, the reason for these amendments is our concern that public land is being siphoned off to the private sector. We want to deliver truly affordable homes for people. I am dealing with a large amount of people every week who do not qualify for the social housing list and who cannot get a mortgage. These people are trapped in the middle...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Milk Supply (20 May 2021)

Thomas Gould: 26. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine his views on the recent introduction of dairy caps by a company (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26931/21]

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Animal Slaughtering (20 May 2021)

Thomas Gould: 29. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the reason cattle are routinely transported across long distances for slaughter. [26932/21]

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Higher Education Institutions (20 May 2021)

Thomas Gould: 145. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if he has met with UCC or MTU to discuss the possibility of locating a campus on the northside of Cork city. [26935/21]

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Electoral Reform Bil 2020: Discussion (Resumed) (20 May 2021)

Thomas Gould: I want to raise a number of issues in regard to the electoral reform Bill on which I would welcome the opinion of Ms McMahon and Ms Sparks. In my parts of my constituency, voter turnout is very low. In terms of the electoral register, in some cases, only 25% of those registered are voting. A lack of knowledge around how to vote appears to be an issue. In that regard, in previous...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Electoral Reform Bil 2020: Discussion (Resumed) (20 May 2021)

Thomas Gould: In my contribution, I asked Ms McMahon and Ms Sparks to give their opinion on how we can get more people to vote. They commented on the issue earlier, in particular Ms McMahon in her opening statement.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Electoral Reform Bil 2020: Discussion (Resumed) (20 May 2021)

Thomas Gould: Perhaps Mr. Carroll or Mr. McShea can answer my question. A constituent brought it up with me that when their son turned 18 years, he was taken off the child benefit. The children’s allowance was stopped. What they could not understand was why he did not automatically go on to the electoral register so that he could vote. When the election came last year, he was not able to vote....

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Electoral Reform Bil 2020: Discussion (Resumed) (20 May 2021)

Thomas Gould: I thank the Chair. We are here today discussing pre-legislative scrutiny on the electoral reform Bill 2020. Unfortunately, Senator Cummins seems to think that it is a witch hunt. This is disappointing because we are trying to get more people to engage with the electoral process and to get a more accurate and independent register. I think the majority of people want to achieve that. I...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Electoral Reform Bil 2020: Discussion (Resumed) (20 May 2021)

Thomas Gould: That is not the question I asked. Fine Gael does not hold registers nationally, is that what Mr. Carroll is saying?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Electoral Reform Bil 2020: Discussion (Resumed) (20 May 2021)

Thomas Gould: Can Mr. Carroll tell me who has access to all the registers both locally and nationally? How many people?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Electoral Reform Bil 2020: Discussion (Resumed) (20 May 2021)

Thomas Gould: Mr. Carroll said "approximately". He is saying that between all the Senators, councillors and Deputies, only six people have access to the registers.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Electoral Reform Bil 2020: Discussion (Resumed) (20 May 2021)

Thomas Gould: From a national point of view, how many people would have access to registers in 26 counties?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Electoral Reform Bil 2020: Discussion (Resumed) (20 May 2021)

Thomas Gould: I am conscious of the time. How many people?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Electoral Reform Bil 2020: Discussion (Resumed) (20 May 2021)

Thomas Gould: Will Mr. Carroll clarify that Fine Gael does know how many people have access to its registers? We have a Fine Gael Senator here demanding definitive answers from Sinn Féin, when his own party cannot even answer the same questions.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Electoral Reform Bil 2020: Discussion (Resumed) (20 May 2021)

Thomas Gould: Could I finish? I do not know where Senator Cummins is coming from, but surely he should have the same standards in his party that he expects from other political parties.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Electoral Reform Bil 2020: Discussion (Resumed) (20 May 2021)

Thomas Gould: In relation to the last point, I have often seen Fine Gael candidates out and about with lists of registers. Who has access to those registers on a local basis? Can Fine Gael provide the names of everyone in every constituency? Will it forward that information to us this afternoon?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Electoral Reform Bil 2020: Discussion (Resumed) (20 May 2021)

Thomas Gould: Do the directors of elections, the directors of canvassers or canvassers have access to that information locally?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Electoral Reform Bil 2020: Discussion (Resumed) (20 May 2021)

Thomas Gould: I thank Mr. Carroll. He has told me that Fine Gael has the same system as Sinn Féin. The only difference is we control it nationally because it is very complex. I move on to Mr. McShea.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Electoral Reform Bil 2020: Discussion (Resumed) (20 May 2021)

Thomas Gould: Mr. McShea said some of the data would be stored outside the EU. Are Mr. McShea and Mr. Sheehan confident they are not breaching EU guidelines? There was a ruling on contracts. Is Fianna Fáil confident that holding registers outside the EU is not in breach?