Results 2,241-2,260 of 7,765 for speaker:Maurice Cummins

Seanad: National Asset Management Agency Bill 2009: Committee Stage (Resumed) (11 Nov 2009)

Maurice Cummins: If Senator O'Toole wanted to put the question, I am sure he is quite capable of saying so himself.

Seanad: Order of Business (17 Nov 2009)

Maurice Cummins: The decision of Allied Irish Banks to appoint one of its own as managing director at a purported salary of €633,000 is a direct challenge to the Minister for Finance, Deputy Brian Lenihan, and the Government. This is the second major internal appointment by AIB. The Minister clearly called for external appointees to be appointed. The timing of the decision is an absolute disgrace, coming...

Seanad: Order of Business (17 Nov 2009)

Maurice Cummins: ——at at time when the Garda Commissioner is calling on everyone to be cautious. It was grossly irresponsible of the newspaper to do so. It should send an apology because it is putting people's lives at risk. Several Senators on this side of the House have called for a debate on social partnership and the economy to take place this week. It is not on the agenda and for this reason we...

Seanad: Defence (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2009: Second Stage (18 Nov 2009)

Maurice Cummins: I welcome the Minister. The Defence Forces have undergone major changes in recent years and the manner of this reform has received favourable comments from the Minister and his predecessors. Numbers have fallen significantly and a spate of barracks closures has caused great inconvenience and hardship to families and communities. Some members now have to travel in excess of 80 miles owing...

Seanad: Defence (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2009: Committee and Remaining Stages (18 Nov 2009)

Maurice Cummins: I support the amendments. It is very important Seanad Éireann is consulted on such important matters. We made several comments on safety issues in Chad in debates in the House and we were proved right on several of them. In regard to the aside from Senator Feeney, I assure her Fine Gael will work as usual to ensure Seanad Éireann works in a proper manner as long as it is in being. We...

Seanad: Defence (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2009: Committee and Remaining Stages (18 Nov 2009)

Maurice Cummins: I hope we will not make a bags of these amendments. The Minister mentioned the advice of the Attorney General in regard to going to war. I do not believe we have any intention of going to war. Would the advice in regard to peacekeeping be different from that in regard to going to war? Would a different clause apply in regard to peacekeeping duties, which is what we are speaking about in...

Seanad: Order of Business (19 Nov 2009)

Maurice Cummins: A report in today's Irish Independent indicates that hospital consultants in many hospitals are not treating the required number of public patients, with some consultants operating a case load that consists of up to 80% private patients. Consultants are paid large salaries in respect of which it took a long time for contracts to be agreed. Who is responsible for ensuring they do the job...

Seanad: Order of Business (19 Nov 2009)

Maurice Cummins: They were just words.

Seanad: Order of Business (19 Nov 2009)

Maurice Cummins: Fianna Fáil put us in the position we are in.

Seanad: Planning and Development (Amendment) Bill 2009: Committee Stage (19 Nov 2009)

Maurice Cummins: I fully support the amendments tabled by my colleague and the Labour Party on this. Having one third, or less than one third, of a local authority dictating the planing policy of that local authority is undemocratic. I see no problem with requiring two thirds for a material contravention but surely a simple majority is more than sufficient for drawing up a development plan for a particular...

Seanad: Planning and Development (Amendment) Bill 2009: Committee Stage (19 Nov 2009)

Maurice Cummins: Will we take the entire amendment? Our discussion will take longer than five minutes and could conclude in a vote.

Seanad: Order of Business (25 Nov 2009)

Maurice Cummins: Wishful thinking.

Seanad: Order of Business (25 Nov 2009)

Maurice Cummins: The Government has no proposals.

Seanad: Planning and Development (Amendment) Bill 2009: Committee Stage (Resumed) (25 Nov 2009)

Maurice Cummins: Clarity is sought on regional authorities and on regional plans. Senator Daly is right that we are putting the cart before the horse regarding regional authorities. Who puts in place the regional draft plans for regional authorities? Is it the county managers or the regional manager? It seems county plans are just fed into the regional plan and that this is how the latter is thought out....

Seanad: Planning and Development (Amendment) Bill 2009: Committee Stage (Resumed) (25 Nov 2009)

Maurice Cummins: I agree with my colleague, Senator Coffey, in this regard. The Minister of State is correct that we must have a national spatial strategy. We must have regional guidelines which come from the top but it is the make-up of the regional development plans specifically we are speaking about rather than the guidelines in terms of who organises them, puts them into place and operates them. As has...

Seanad: Planning and Development (Amendment) Bill 2009: Committee Stage (Resumed) (25 Nov 2009)

Maurice Cummins: I agree fully with my colleague, Senator Coffey. The principle of subsidiarity has not been considered in drawing up the Bill. Many people talk about subsidiarity and bringing issues down to a local level for people to decide on them, but this is practically a case of asking the Minister to rubber-stamp everything a local authority or regional authority does. The Minister of State...

Seanad: Flooding: Statements (Resumed) (25 Nov 2009)

Maurice Cummins: The first phase of the Clonmel flood relief scheme, which is in the Minister of State's constituency, will not be finished until next year. There are two other phases which have not even gone to tender. I spoke to Councillors Acheson and Murphy earlier today and they say those two phases have not gone out to tender. Will the Minister of State update the House on the current situation? I...

Seanad: Flooding: Statements (Resumed) (25 Nov 2009)

Maurice Cummins: Have they gone to tender yet?

Seanad: Order of Business (26 Nov 2009)

Maurice Cummins: Last week we discussed the Defence (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill and paid tribute to the work of the Defence Forces on peacekeeping missions abroad. In the past week we have seen the Trojan efforts of the Army to help the victims of the flooding. The numbers in the Defence Forces are below 10,000, the lowest in over four decades. Will the Deputy Leader invite the Minister for Defence to...

Seanad: Order of Business (Resumed) (1 Dec 2009)

Maurice Cummins: The Senator can speak about his own side.