Results 1,181-1,200 of 18,726 for speaker:Michael McDowell

Seanad Committee on the Withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union: EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement: IBEC and Food Drink Ireland (9 Feb 2021)

Michael McDowell: I confirm I am in Leinster House. I apologise for arriving late to the meeting. I have some very short questions and instead of food they relate to drink. Is there any progress on minimum unit pricing on a North-South agreed basis? Are there difficulties in respect of proposals for health warning labels on alcohol products? Will this affect cross-Border trade?

Seanad Committee on the Withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union: EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement: IBEC and Food Drink Ireland (9 Feb 2021)

Michael McDowell: I understand.

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing) (Amendment) Bill 2020: Committee Stage (8 Feb 2021)

Michael McDowell: I agree with the Senator on the matter. We have the Statute Law (Restatement) Act. It is desirable to have an official version of the legislation to which the ordinary man or woman can have instant access. If we take the money laundering and terrorist financing legislation as a code, it should be available at all times in a readable form without having to do research. I strongly support...

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing) (Amendment) Bill 2020: Committee Stage (8 Feb 2021)

Michael McDowell: When this amendment is made, this Bill will have to go back to the Dáil. I believe that everybody wants the Bill to go through quickly. We do not want to delay it in any way, shape or form.However, in those circumstances, I ask that the amendments and the debate on them here today be fully considered. First, if this amendment is accepted we are not operating on the basis now that the...

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing) (Amendment) Bill 2020: Committee Stage (8 Feb 2021)

Michael McDowell: I wish to comment on Senator Ward's withdrawal of his amendment. There are issues relating to politically exposed persons which I wish to consider. Senator Ward's amendment simply sought to consolidate the law in that regard, but in saying I agree to him withdrawing the amendment, I am not abandoning the issue of the need for reform in this area, which I will return to later.

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing) (Amendment) Bill 2020: Committee Stage (8 Feb 2021)

Michael McDowell: I move amendment No. 7: In page 11, between lines 19 and 20, to insert the following: “11. The Act of 2010 is amended by the insertion of the following section after section 37: “Guidelines For Enhanced Due Diligence – Politically Exposed Persons 37A. (1) The Minister, where he or she considers it necessary or expedient, may, with the consent of the Minister for...

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing) (Amendment) Bill 2020: Committee Stage (8 Feb 2021)

Michael McDowell: I thank the Minister of State and I understand that he could not take the amendment on board. I am not proud of any particular version of it but the idea that there should be some way in reserve of bringing common sense into the administration of this legislation is important. In the amendment, I tried to tiptoe through the minefield of not offending European law in doing it. I will say...

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing) (Amendment) Bill 2020: Committee Stage (8 Feb 2021)

Michael McDowell: I thank the Minister of State for his consideration that the provisions of section 40 seem to prevent any relaxation in respect of transferring the obligation to another institution in regard to politically exposed persons. I do not think that is necessarily mandated by the directive. In the circumstances, with the leave of the House, I am not moving this amendment.

Seanad Committee on the Withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union: Engagement with Committee for the Executive Office, Northern Ireland Assembly on Impact of Brexit (2 Feb 2021)

Michael McDowell: What, in the view of the members of the assembly committee, can be done to counter threats at Larne and all of the rest becoming a bigger issue? What I have in mind is this. Obviously, one can condemn it but we do not want public support growing. It seems to me that there is some room for tweaking practice between Great Britain and Northern Ireland as regards, say, stocking supermarkets....

Seanad Committee on the Withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union: Engagement with Committee for the Executive Office, Northern Ireland Assembly on Impact of Brexit (2 Feb 2021)

Michael McDowell: Yes.

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (1 Feb 2021)

Michael McDowell: I will briefly deal with the matter raised by Senator Fitzpatrick. There is on the Order Paper of this House a Bill to deal with a particular relating to the naming of child victims of crime. I ask the Leader to make provision for that legislation to be dealt with as a matter of urgency if the Minister is content to do so. I raise the question today of what happened in Brussels with the...

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing) (Amendment) Bill 2020: Second Stage (1 Feb 2021)

Michael McDowell: This legislation is somewhat overdue. As Senator Gallagher notes, the delay in introducing it has resulted in a €2 million penalty being imposed on the State. Further enforcement action is in the pipeline, which is unfortunate. On the other hand, as the Bill is before us now, we must deal with it on its merits. I wish to indicate at this stage that I have no major problems with the...

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing) (Amendment) Bill 2020: Second Stage (1 Feb 2021)

Michael McDowell: With regard to the issue I raised and on which others have supported me, can the Minister of State indicate whether the Department is willing to engage in advance on draft amendments? It would be a big help rather than to run up against a stone wall on Committee Stage.

Seanad: Harassment, Harmful Communications and Related Offences Bill 2017: Second Stage (18 Dec 2020)

Michael McDowell: Was it not smoke signals?

Seanad: Harassment, Harmful Communications and Related Offences Bill 2017: Second Stage (18 Dec 2020)

Michael McDowell: I indicate my complete support for the campaign brought to public attention by Jackie Fox on the part of her daughter, Nicole. I commend Deputy Howlin and his colleagues in the Labour Party on introducing legislation to deal with this matter. What Senator Rónán Mullen has just said is true. We should not be in a position that we are pushing this through without adequate time to...

Seanad: Harassment, Harmful Communications and Related Offences Bill 2017: Second Stage (18 Dec 2020)

Michael McDowell: If one publishes an article, there is one standard for people standing over their remarks on the letters to the editor page and a completely different standard for people who make abusive, ridiculous and sometimes moronic comments anonymously. That is part of this failure to adequately balance anonymity and moral responsibility.

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (16 Dec 2020)

Michael McDowell: To follow on on the theme of transport, the BusConnects programme from the National Transport Authority is the subject of a major public consultation process and today is the last day for residents in Dublin to put in their observations on it. I want to make one comment of general, not local, application about that. There is a danger in putting traffic engineers in charge of a process who...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (15 Dec 2020)

Michael McDowell: I welcome the fact that overnight that the four statues at the Shelbourne Hotel reappeared a few months after they were first mentioned in this House. There are two substantial matters I want to raise. The first is the statement in the newspapers today that the question of revised legislation on judicial appointments is to go before the Cabinet and that a new scheme for a judicial...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (15 Dec 2020)

Michael McDowell: Hear, hear.

Seanad: Central Mental Hospital (Relocation) Bill 2020: Second Stage (14 Dec 2020)

Michael McDowell: I welcome the Minister of State to the House. This Bill raises some issues which might be surprising in one respect. The new facility in Portrane is almost finished or will be ready for commissioning very soon. It would be nonsense, therefore, not to provide for the relocation of the Central Mental Hospital to the site. I fully appreciate that point but I will make a couple of points....