Results 1,041-1,060 of 3,356 for speaker:Feargal Quinn

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Job Creation and Sustainability: Discussion with Chambers Ireland (13 Nov 2012)

Feargal Quinn: I would like to see the delegates putting pressure on everyone, including the committee, regarding another issue. We have dropped from tenth to 15th place in the list of the world's best places to do business. Singapore is No. 1 and our tenth placing was not bad, but we have slipped to 15th in the past year. We should make an effort in this regard. The other measure lies in trying to set...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Lending to Small Business: Discussion (13 Nov 2012)

Feargal Quinn: The witnesses are welcome. Mr. Trethowan said that to date the Credit Review Office has received 281 applications for formal appeals on which 175 opinions have been issued and the process completed, and of those 55% have been upheld. What happened between the time somebody was refused credit, his or her going to the Credit Review Office, it going back to the bank, and the bank changing its...

Seanad: Order of Business (7 Nov 2012)

Feargal Quinn: I support Senator Mullen and all the others Senators, including Senator Bradford, with regard to their call for the Minister to come to the House, but I am unsure whether it is the Minister for Health we want. I believe it should be the Minister for Justice and Equality. If an activity is illegal, either we make it legal or we obey it. It seems that on this occasion if a State-sponsored...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Workplace Relations Service: Discussion with Employment Appeals Tribunal (6 Nov 2012)

Feargal Quinn: I thank the witnesses for their contributions. I have learned a good deal from their expertise and experience in this area and it has been an eye opener. When I first became a Member of the Seanad in 1993 the unfair dismissals legislation was going through the Houses, it having been circulated to the trade unions and others six months prior to that. I did not know quite what I would do in...

Seanad: Ireland's Presidency of the Council of the European Union: Statements (25 Oct 2012)

Feargal Quinn: I welcome the Minister of State and I am delighted to have her here. I am particularly pleased to have somebody here who was close to all of the action that took place in recent weeks. I also have a spy in the area. As Members will know, my daughter lives in Paris and she met the Taoiseach during the week. She told him about the high regard that he is held in. It was evidenced by...

Seanad: Mortgage Credit (Loans and Bonds) Bill 2012: Second Stage (17 Oct 2012)

Feargal Quinn: I welcome the Minister to the House. Since Senator Barrett came into this House, I have been educated so often-----

Seanad: Mortgage Credit (Loans and Bonds) Bill 2012: Second Stage (17 Oct 2012)

Feargal Quinn: Yes; we have all been educated so often and no more so than today. I first learned about Denmark in the 1950s in the context of their folk schools. Their system of education and of involving people in traditional folk schools is wonderful. My father became involved in that and I found it very interesting, way back then. In the 1970s I went to Denmark because it was the first country with...

Seanad: Common Agricultural Policy: Motion (4 Oct 2012)

Feargal Quinn: The Minister is very welcome. I am pleased to see him. I am glad he will take charge of this matter in the next few months. I have every confidence in him. He did a great job during the fisheries negotiations. I am confident that he will do the same during the negotiations on CAP reform. We need to frame agriculture in terms of our overall economic recovery. I have looked at one or two...

Seanad: Order of Business (4 Oct 2012)

Feargal Quinn: I am delighted the Minister for Education and Skills is coming to the House shortly. What Senator Eamonn Coghlan and others have spoken about today is important, namely, continuous assessment. There has been a problem in the past with continuous assessment. It has not been welcomed by teachers themselves. They have difficulty with assessing their own pupils. It would be a shame not to...

Seanad: Radical Seanad Reform Through Legislative Change: Statements (3 Oct 2012)

Feargal Quinn: I thank the Leader for enabling me to initiate the debate. I hope the debate will stimulate not just a debate today but in the months to come because it is an important area. I came into this House almost 20 years ago. I remember coming into the House and realising that I did not know anything about legislation and I wondered how I would go about doing it. As I was a grocer all my life, I...

Seanad: Order of Business (3 Oct 2012)

Feargal Quinn: I express my appreciation to the Leader for making time today for the debate on the consultation paper, Open It, Don't Close It. It will be a very useful debate and I hope it receives good attention. Will the Leader consider finding time for a debate on the timber industry? The Government intends to sell off 85% of our timber in the coming 50 years, according to the figure I was given. I...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Employment and Youth Unemployment Issues and Pre-Budget Submissions: Discussion with IBEC and SFA (2 Oct 2012)

Feargal Quinn: I thank both witnesses for opening our eyes to the many problems they face. I have travelled around Ireland for a television show, mainly to visit small businesses, and the difference between some very enthusiastic small businesses and others who have almost given up hope until they are sparked off again is amazing. Something that surprises me is the number of people who are looking for...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Forthcoming Competitiveness Council Meeting: Discussion with Minister of State (2 Oct 2012)

Feargal Quinn: It has been a joy to hear the extent of the work the Minister of State, Deputy Sherlock, is undertaking. He obviously will not have much time on his hands during the six months of our Presidency. I invited the Taoiseach to meet the board of EuroCommerce who were here last Friday. They represent the 6 million shops in Europe, the wholesalers and the international trade. They came...

Seanad: Smarter Travel: Statements (27 Sep 2012)

Feargal Quinn: I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy McGinley, to the House. I was delighted to hear all the Minister of State, Deputy Kelly, told us and the amount of work that is taking place. I did not realise how much was going on. I was asked last year by RTE to present a programme called "Tracks and Trails" dealing with where I live in Howth. I think I was only the second choice - Gay Byrne was...

Seanad: Order of Business (27 Sep 2012)

Feargal Quinn: Will the Leader find time to debate the report of the Injuries Board.ie published yesterday? This House played a very large part in the creation of the personal injuries legislation ten years ago. The figures published yesterday were very interesting and showed that since 2004, there has been a savings of ¤500 million for the citizens. We should be very proud of the role we played in this...

Seanad: Order of Business (27 Sep 2012)

Feargal Quinn: Will the Leader find time to debate the report on Injuries Board.ie published yesterday? This House played a very large part in the creation of the personal injuries legislation ten years ago. The figures published yesterday were very interesting and showed that since 2004, there has been a savings of ¤500 million for citizens. We should be very proud of the role we played in this...

Seanad: Ombudsman (Amendment) Bill 2008: Second Stage (26 Sep 2012)

Feargal Quinn: I thank Senator Barrett for sharing his time. The Minister and this Bill are welcome, as it will bring more oversight. There are nonetheless a number of areas where we can go much further in order to improve democracy. For example, our democracy should look to countries like Sweden, which was mentioned today, which have very powerful freedom of information laws throughout levels of...

Seanad: Order of Business (26 Sep 2012)

Feargal Quinn: I thank the Leader.

Seanad: Order of Business (26 Sep 2012)

Feargal Quinn: Will the Leader consider a debate on the document issued yesterday by Senator Zappone, me and some former Senators, including Joe O'Toole, when people have had the chance to discuss it? It is a discussion document and, I hope, is non-controversial. I would like to think we could have a debate which would be non-controversial. When people have had the chance to read the document, I urge the...

Seanad: Order of Business (25 Sep 2012)

Feargal Quinn: A consultation paper on the future of the Seanad is due to be published later. I urge every Member to read, study and consider it. Even those in favour of the abolition of the House should read the document. At some point in the future, I will ask the Leader if time can be found to debate it. I wish to raise another point on which quite an amount of concern has been expressed, namely,...