Results 181-200 of 289 for speaker:Patricia Stephenson

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade: General Scheme of Israeli Settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (Prohibition of Importation of Goods) Bill 2025: Discussion (Resumed) (2 Jul 2025)

Patricia Stephenson: Tracking services have been spoken about. I know we are not going to talk about specific companies, but what would be the mechanism for tracking services? Is there something like that that exists, like a database? There seems to be a feeling of ambiguity as to what companies - again, we cannot use names - do or do not trade. Is there a way to monitor that in order that if this were to be...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade: General Scheme of Israeli Settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (Prohibition of Importation of Goods) Bill 2025: Discussion (Resumed) (2 Jul 2025)

Patricia Stephenson: Has there been precedent then, as regards that UN database, for tracking services for the purposes of banning them?

Committee on Infrastructure and National Development Plan Delivery: Role, Responsibilities and Processes of An Coimisiún Pleanála and Office of the Planning Regulator: Discussion (2 Jul 2025)

Patricia Stephenson: To draw on what Deputy Tóibín was saying, Mr. Mullan is happy with the staffing levels for this year but he is saying that if infrastructure were to be scaled up and there were to be further planning applications, then the current staffing levels would not meet that demand.

Committee on Infrastructure and National Development Plan Delivery: Role, Responsibilities and Processes of An Coimisiún Pleanála and Office of the Planning Regulator: Discussion (2 Jul 2025)

Patricia Stephenson: Is that still the case if we were to scale up?

Committee on Infrastructure and National Development Plan Delivery: Role, Responsibilities and Processes of An Coimisiún Pleanála and Office of the Planning Regulator: Discussion (2 Jul 2025)

Patricia Stephenson: That is fine, I just wanted to clarify-----

Committee on Infrastructure and National Development Plan Delivery: Role, Responsibilities and Processes of An Coimisiún Pleanála and Office of the Planning Regulator: Discussion (2 Jul 2025)

Patricia Stephenson: We are just trying to get to the bottom of whether, if other workstreams were to come up, staffing of inspectors is a blockage.

Committee on Infrastructure and National Development Plan Delivery: Role, Responsibilities and Processes of An Coimisiún Pleanála and Office of the Planning Regulator: Discussion (2 Jul 2025)

Patricia Stephenson: Okay. That was the question. Perfect. I thank Mr. Mullan. In the previous iteration of An Bord Pleanála there were differing opinions on the board maybe having different opinions from those of the inspectors and then changing those decisions. How will an coimisiún ensure this is not an issue going forward where inspectors' recommendations differ from board decisions?

Committee on Infrastructure and National Development Plan Delivery: Role, Responsibilities and Processes of An Coimisiún Pleanála and Office of the Planning Regulator: Discussion (2 Jul 2025)

Patricia Stephenson: It might be an issue around transparency, I suppose.

Committee on Infrastructure and National Development Plan Delivery: Role, Responsibilities and Processes of An Coimisiún Pleanála and Office of the Planning Regulator: Discussion (2 Jul 2025)

Patricia Stephenson: Are there guidelines though?

Committee on Infrastructure and National Development Plan Delivery: Role, Responsibilities and Processes of An Coimisiún Pleanála and Office of the Planning Regulator: Discussion (2 Jul 2025)

Patricia Stephenson: Are there guidelines or criteria on how much an inspector's weighting might be considered against the-----

Committee on Infrastructure and National Development Plan Delivery: Role, Responsibilities and Processes of An Coimisiún Pleanála and Office of the Planning Regulator: Discussion (2 Jul 2025)

Patricia Stephenson: My understanding is that planning priorities are done on a first-come-first-served basis, meaning that if the planning for a one-off house comes first, that will be the first consideration versus the planning for a larger scale development. Are they done on a first-come-first-served basis or how are planning priorities allocated?

Seanad: National Drugs Strategy: Statements (8 Jul 2025)

Patricia Stephenson: I thank the Minister of State. I think it is the first time I have had the chance to have a discussion with her in the Chamber. It is good to see her here. We are obviously having this debate in the context of the new national strategy on drugs, and it is within that framework that the Government's approach to the drugs policy is at a bit of a crossroads. I do not believe we can...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (9 Jul 2025)

Patricia Stephenson: In 2024, the Government made a commitment to bring 30 seriously ill children from Gaza to Ireland for lifesaving treatment. This was a scheme many of us welcomed. However, so far only 12 of those children have arrived here. What is happening to the other children? We have heard there is an issue with their visas. There seems to be some sort of spat between the Department of Health and...

Seanad: Defamation (Amendment) Bill 2024: Second Stage (9 Jul 2025)

Patricia Stephenson: Yes. I welcome the opportunity to speak on the Defamation (Amendment) Bill. The Bill is both necessary and overdue and I welcome steps being taken to modernise our defamation laws and rebalance the rights of freedom of expression and the right to a good name and to respond to the rapidly evolving digital environment. However, while I welcome elements of the Bill, it is a missed opportunity...

Committee on Defence and National Security: General Scheme of the Defence (Amendment) Bill 2025: Discussion (Resumed) (3 Jul 2025)

Patricia Stephenson: Yes, I understand that.

Seanad: Pregnancy Loss (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2025: Second Stage (9 Jul 2025)

Patricia Stephenson: I thank the Sinn Féin Senators and particularly Senator Ryan for introducing this legislation. I speak in full support of it. It is important to note the bravery Senator Ryan has consistently shown when she has tabled amendments and legislation, and particularly today in sharing her story, because it is not easy and I know it will not be easy for any other Senator here who may be doing...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (10 Jul 2025)

Patricia Stephenson: I also pay my respects to the victims of Srebrenica and their families. It is particularly difficult to stand for a minute's silence when we know there is also a genocide happening in Gaza. While standing I was asking myself what day we will be standing to commemorate all the Palestinians who have been slaughtered. This week, the Journal Investigates team published figures after analysing...

Seanad: Transport Policy: Statements (10 Jul 2025)

Patricia Stephenson: That is a hard act to follow. We know public transport outside our major urban centres is, to one degree or another, poor or practically non-existent. I want to raise serious concerns about the issue of rural transport, particularly in Carlow and Kilkenny, where families are being let down time and again by a system that is underfunded, pretty complicated and failing in many cases to...

Seanad: Planning and Development (Amendment) Bill 2025: Second Stage (10 Jul 2025)

Patricia Stephenson: I am really concerned about the latest amendments to the Planning and Development Act, which further entrench a developer and investor-first approach to our already incredibly shambolic and failed planning system. The 2024 Act has still not been fundamentally implemented and yet here we are pushing through amendments to that Act without any pre-legislative scrutiny. I find that really...