Results 241-260 of 300 for speaker:Ryan O'Meara

Residential Tenancies (Amendment) Bill 2025: Second Stage (18 Jun 2025)

Ryan O'Meara: I say again that housing is the number one issue affecting my generation. It was the biggest issue by far and away for me on the doors, whether I was speaking to people my own age; getting messages from people on social media saying they would love to be able to come home and afford a home; parents who said when I knocked on doors that their adult children were still living at home, as I am...

Committee on Education and Youth: Engagement with Minister for Education and Youth (18 Jun 2025)

Ryan O'Meara: I thank the Minister for attending with her officials. I would like to start with school financing. It is a major issue coming up for me across north Tipperary and north-west Kilkenny, but also nationally and among the representative bodies that are in contact with me. The burden and stress being put on principals in many cases is intolerable for some of those who have contacted me. I...

Committee on Education and Youth: Engagement with Minister for Education and Youth (18 Jun 2025)

Ryan O'Meara: I will start with children with mild general learning difficulties. One class in north Tipperary has, as far as I know, been in existence since the 1970s catering for such children. That school is now getting two extra special classes and that room is being repurposed for the special class, meaning we are losing that space. Parents who I know quite well emailed me today. They have secured...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Regional Development (19 Jun 2025)

Ryan O'Meara: 26. To ask the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment when a new midwest regional enterprise plan will be published; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33047/25]

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Appeals (19 Jun 2025)

Ryan O'Meara: 99. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection if he has any plans to review the appeals process for the domiciliary care allowance; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33038/25]

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Departmental Policies (19 Jun 2025)

Ryan O'Meara: 208. To ask the Minister for Environment, Community and Local Government if there are statutory planning guidelines for the construction of anaerobic digestors; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33275/25]

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Waste Management (19 Jun 2025)

Ryan O'Meara: 355. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if there are mandatory set-back distances from houses for anaerobic digestors; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33276/25]

Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Annual Progress Report 2025: Discussion (24 Jun 2025)

Ryan O'Meara: I welcome the Ministers and their teams and thank them for joining us. I commend the Ministers on their management of public expenditure and the public finances to date, including the delivery of the last budget. The point of this committee, as far as I am concerned, is to look long-term at our budgets and where we are going. I found the annual progress report quite helpful and...

Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Annual Progress Report 2025: Discussion (24 Jun 2025)

Ryan O'Meara: That leads me to my next point. I would like to touch on wastewater infrastructure, in particular what our plans are for funding Uisce Éireann. I had not intended to give an example but I will give an example of what we are facing out there when it comes to the building of housing. Cloughjordan is the prime example that I can give of a reasonably sized village in north Tipperary that...

Committee on Defence and National Security: General Scheme of the Defence (Amendment) Bill 2025 : Discussion (Resumed) (26 Jun 2025)

Ryan O'Meara: I thank the witnesses for their time this morning and for the genuinely informative submissions they have made. I will begin with Professor Tonra and the four points he set out, point No. 2 in particular - the "broadened range of potential deployment scenarios to include counter-narcotics, embassy security, hostage rescue" and so on. If the triple lock were to be retained, would we be able...

Committee on Defence and National Security: General Scheme of the Defence (Amendment) Bill 2025 : Discussion (Resumed) (26 Jun 2025)

Ryan O'Meara: I thank Professor Tonra. I have a question for Mr. Murphy. A couple of times he mentioned the phrase, "to put trust back in this House". I think that was the phrase he used. This is a question I asked a couple of sessions ago of others who were before the committee. For me, the argument for retaining the triple lock at the moment is that we would rather trust the likes of warmongers like...

Committee on Defence and National Security: General Scheme of the Defence (Amendment) Bill 2025 : Discussion (Resumed) (26 Jun 2025)

Ryan O'Meara: Absolutely. It was these Houses that established our neutrality and these Houses that, I believe, still firmly stand by it today. I will turn to Mr. Noonan about the points in his paper about Palestine and, essentially, the EU's failings in regard to that. I have said that in the Chamber myself and history will judge that, regardless of the fact that Ireland has been at the forefront of...

Committee on Defence and National Security: General Scheme of the Defence (Amendment) Bill 2025 : Discussion (Resumed) (26 Jun 2025)

Ryan O'Meara: Some of the recommendations made by both witnesses and by Professor Tonra, in particular, are very welcome in regard to what else could be done. Following from Deputy Brabazon's questions about joining NATO, I guess the triple lock is seen as a safeguard. Is it Mr. Noonan's point about not being able to join NATO because of the constitutional requirements around that not a safeguard in...

Committee on Defence and National Security: General Scheme of the Defence (Amendment) Bill 2025 : Discussion (Resumed) (26 Jun 2025)

Ryan O'Meara: Ireland could not join NATO without a referendum.

Committee on Defence and National Security: General Scheme of the Defence (Amendment) Bill 2025 : Discussion (Resumed) (26 Jun 2025)

Ryan O'Meara: From Senator Craughwell's point about sovereignty, it was mentioned that Ireland perhaps lost some sovereignty or diminished our sovereignty when we joined the European Union but that was through a vote of the people. Is there not an argument that the creation of the triple lock to begin with should have been by a vote of the people also if that was going to diminish our sovereignty?

Committee on Defence and National Security: General Scheme of the Defence (Amendment) Bill 2025 : Discussion (Resumed) (26 Jun 2025)

Ryan O'Meara: However, it was not a direct question in a referendum to the people.

Committee on Defence and National Security: General Scheme of the Defence (Amendment) Bill 2025 : Discussion (Resumed) (26 Jun 2025)

Ryan O'Meara: I would like to come back to Professor Tonra for my next question. He made the point that some countries in recent times have reversed decades, if not centuries, of defence policy or points of neutrality. Finland and Sweden are two prime examples of this that were very dramatic in nature. Were Ireland to remove the triple lock, would our change in policy be any way compared to a move as...

Committee on Defence and National Security: General Scheme of the Defence (Amendment) Bill 2025 : Discussion (Resumed) (26 Jun 2025)

Ryan O'Meara: I would probably have agreed with Professor Tonra before I asked that question, but particularly today with regard to Mr. Noonan's point that it seems we would need a referendum to join NATO, that makes that dramatic change even less severe.

Committee on Defence and National Security: General Scheme of the Defence (Amendment) Bill 2025 : Discussion (Resumed) (26 Jun 2025)

Ryan O'Meara: In his opening statement, Mr. Murphy discussed the changes and amendments that have been made to legislation over the years and the number of times the Act has been amended. We are now looking at another amendment that is getting a lot of attention and controversy from some parts. At any point during discussion of those previous amendments, was there discussion of our neutrality and the...

Committee on Defence and National Security: General Scheme of the Defence (Amendment) Bill 2025 : Discussion (Resumed) (26 Jun 2025)

Ryan O'Meara: Will we be less neutral if we remove the triple lock?