Results 2,261-2,280 of 2,631 for speaker:Christopher O'Sullivan

Joint Committee on the Irish Language, the Gaeltacht and the Irish Speaking Community: Éileamh don Ghaelscolaíocht: Plé (24 Apr 2024)

Christopher O'Sullivan: Yes.

Joint Committee on the Irish Language, the Gaeltacht and the Irish Speaking Community: Éileamh don Ghaelscolaíocht: Plé (24 Apr 2024)

Christopher O'Sullivan: With the demographics and the increase in enrolments in the Gaelscoil, that problem is only going to get worse, but the possible introduction of an Irish-medium secondary school removes that headache. Unfortunately, after listening to Cormac McCashin, and obviously this is not a committee I attend regularly, it seems the starting point is at a very low base and Department policy so far means...

Joint Committee on Tourism, Culture, Arts, Sport And Media: Culture and Governance Issues at RTÉ: Discussion (24 Apr 2024)

Christopher O'Sullivan: I thank the staff and their representatives and trade unions for attending. It is almost a year since the payments to Mr. Tubridy came into the limelight and we had our first sessions on those payments and the situation that followed. It is not good enough that it has taken us almost a full year to get staff and their representatives into committee to hear from them. I am sorry it has...

Joint Committee on Tourism, Culture, Arts, Sport And Media: Culture and Governance Issues at RTÉ: Discussion (24 Apr 2024)

Christopher O'Sullivan: Ms O'Kelly has made that point loud and clear and we have to take that on board.

Joint Committee on Tourism, Culture, Arts, Sport And Media: Culture and Governance Issues at RTÉ: Discussion (24 Apr 2024)

Christopher O'Sullivan: I appreciate that, and the message is heard loud and clear. Were any of the RTÉ staff here ever on these bogus self-employment contracts?

Joint Committee on Tourism, Culture, Arts, Sport And Media: Culture and Governance Issues at RTÉ: Discussion (24 Apr 2024)

Christopher O'Sullivan: That leads to my next question, which we will probably not have an opportunity to address. I would love to hear from Ms O'Kelly, to the best of her ability, about how it felt to be on those bogus self-employment contracts and not to be entitled to sick leave, maternity leave, paternity leave and annual leave. What was the general sense working alongside people doing the same job who are...

Joint Committee on Tourism, Culture, Arts, Sport And Media: Culture and Governance Issues at RTÉ: Discussion (24 Apr 2024)

Christopher O'Sullivan: I will move on. I appreciate that and it sounds horrible. It is conducive to a horrible working environment with a lot of conflict and tension within that working environment. Are there still bogus self-employment contracts within RTÉ?

Joint Committee on Tourism, Culture, Arts, Sport And Media: Culture and Governance Issues at RTÉ: Discussion (24 Apr 2024)

Christopher O'Sullivan: I am under time pressure. Does Mr. Dooley have confidence that the current board - the transitional or executive board or however it is described now - will eliminate this practice? Does he have confidence that a HR team pretty much made up of the same personnel will eliminate this practice? It is not just this practice, but the practice of exit packages that caused all of this hurt and...

Joint Committee on Tourism, Culture, Arts, Sport And Media: Culture and Governance Issues at RTÉ: Discussion (24 Apr 2024)

Christopher O'Sullivan: I know they have to be careful, but would anyone else like to comment on that final question about the current team? We must remember that there are members of this new executive board that presided over payments to Mr. Tubridy and exit packages.

Joint Committee on Tourism, Culture, Arts, Sport And Media: Culture and Governance Issues at RTÉ: Discussion (24 Apr 2024)

Christopher O'Sullivan: That is understood and I again thank the witnesses for coming. It is tough. They are describing an atmosphere within an organisation I am sure they are mad about and passionate about. It is not easy for them to come here and make those really strong statements about what it was like.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Circular Economy: Discussion (30 Apr 2024)

Christopher O'Sullivan: I thank the Minister of State for his update on the circular economy. I welcome his statement on the banning of disposable vapes. They are a scourge on our environment and far too easy to buy. There is the added issue of HHC vapes, which are causing problems for people with mental health issues. That is a matter for the Department of Health, though. I welcome the deposit return scheme....

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Circular Economy: Discussion (30 Apr 2024)

Christopher O'Sullivan: I apologise, but I am afraid I will run out of time.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Circular Economy: Discussion (30 Apr 2024)

Christopher O'Sullivan: No, I am happy to hear that the volume going through the machines is increasing exponentially. It is a teething issue. I urge people to have patience. It has been brought to my attention that people still need domestic recycling services for paper and other waste. A big volume of what went into the recycling bins was made up of plastic bottles. People will not now be filling their...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Circular Economy: Discussion (30 Apr 2024)

Christopher O'Sullivan: Some still have a fixed fee, and this is probably where the issue arises. I heard an interesting debate on the radio yesterday about paper bags. My mind flipped a couple of times thinking about the process. An individual was complaining that a certain shop had charged them for a paper bag. As the debate went on, I realised that a habit we should all get into is to bring our own bags in...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Circular Economy: Discussion (30 Apr 2024)

Christopher O'Sullivan: There is the energy that goes into making them.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Circular Economy: Discussion (30 Apr 2024)

Christopher O'Sullivan: Let us take the temperature first.

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate: Hospital Waiting Lists (30 Apr 2024)

Christopher O'Sullivan: This matter relates to children with scoliosis, specifically in the context of the length of time they have to wait for surgery. I want to raise the issue of Anna Russell, who is 13 years old and is from Glengarriff in west Cork. She is truly a great kid. If the Minister of State ever has the pleasure of meeting her, he will see her charm. She is absolutely charming and I am sure the...

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate: Hospital Waiting Lists (30 Apr 2024)

Christopher O'Sullivan: I acknowledge the increased expenditure of €19 million, the 200 additional healthcare professionals and the reductions in waiting lists of 5% and 13%, but there is a statistic that is concerning, namely that although there were 509 procedures in 2022, there were fewer in 2023. Therefore, something has gone awry. I appreciate that the Minister is not here and that the Minister of...

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (1 May 2024)

Christopher O'Sullivan: I will start by saying we need non-EU workers. We need non-EU workers with permits. The economy needs that. That often gets lost in the immigration debate. However an issue has arisen in terms of how permitted workers are paid. At the moment, in a food processing plant, for example, there will be non-EU permitted workers working alongside EU workers and Irish workers. They are currently...

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate: Agriculture Industry (15 May 2024)

Christopher O'Sullivan: This week I visited Bandon mart and Skibbereen mart in my constituency. Meeting farmers, it is blatantly clear that they are fed up. They are mainly fed up of overregulation and they are fed up of red tape. They are tired of endless paperwork; new regulations being brought in on a weekly basis; the hoops they have to jump through to qualify for the different schemes; and the endless hours...