Results 2,881-2,900 of 3,356 for speaker:Feargal Quinn

Seanad: Order of Business (9 Jul 2014)

Feargal Quinn: Yesterday, Members celebrated Senator Darragh O'Brien's birthday, which was a big birthday with a zero in the number.

Seanad: Order of Business (9 Jul 2014)

Feargal Quinn: Next week, they hopefully also will have the opportunity to celebrate Senator Norris's big birthday with a zero in the number. His birthday falls next week and just in case he is not present, Members should remember it by mentioning it today and should celebrate it because as the Father of the House, he is the longest-serving Member here. I would love to have a debate on the introduction of...

Seanad: Employment Permits (Amendment) Bill 2014: Second Stage (9 Jul 2014)

Feargal Quinn: I welcome the Minister. He is getting fond of this House and seems to be coming in quite a lot in recent days. The Bill covers a range of issues related to employment permits. I welcome the fact that it addresses the loophole related to the dreadful treatment of Mr. Mohammed Younis who was exploited for years. This is what I tried to achieve through a Bill I introduced about 18 months...

Seanad: Health (General Practitioner Service) Bill 2014: Committee Stage (9 Jul 2014)

Feargal Quinn: I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Alex White. I have different views on the Bill. While I am supportive of almost everything Senator John Crown has said. However, I am not sure I support amendment No. 3 which states: "The agreement, referred to in subsection (1) shall not require any general practitioner to perform annual, or otherwise periodic assessments of patients who are...

Seanad: Radiological Protection (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2014: Second Stage (9 Jul 2014)

Feargal Quinn: I welcome the Minister of State. I am glad he is present. In recent times, we have seen him frequently with the hat he has been wearing. I hope we will see more of him in times to come when he is wearing another hat. He has an interest in science, as we are all aware. I have a real concern that almost every time anybody mentions anything new in science here, somebody says we must not...

Seanad: Environmental Protection Agency: Motion (9 Jul 2014)

Feargal Quinn: With the permission of the Chair, I wish to share my time with Senator Barrett.

Seanad: Environmental Protection Agency: Motion (9 Jul 2014)

Feargal Quinn: I am pleased the Minister is in the Chamber. I know this is not his swan-song because he is probably going on to greater things, but he can look back at the past three and a half years of great success. The Minister was present to hear the contributions by Senators Whelan and Landy. Senator Whelan spoke with such vigour, courage and concern about the experiences he has had. Senator Landy...

Seanad: Order of Business (10 Jul 2014)

Feargal Quinn: Yesterday, Senator Mary Ann O'Brien made a strong case for re-examining the plans for the new national children's hospital. The day before, her husband, Mr. Jonathan Irwin, enclosed a letter to all of us from a mother who made a strong case also. I hate the thought that we will delay this matter for any longer, but we saw what happened when it was going to be located on the Mater site. Now...

Seanad: Competition and Consumer Protection Bill 2014: Committee Stage (10 Jul 2014)

Feargal Quinn: I welcome the Minister here again. He is very fond of us. I support Senator Barrett's amendment. He has made his case very well. Clearly Ireland is much more expensive than other countries in certain areas and, therefore, it seems sensible that attention is drawn to the areas. Like him, I am opposed to more Government interference but I do not regard his amendment as such. All we ask is...

Seanad: Competition and Consumer Protection Bill 2014: Committee Stage (10 Jul 2014)

Feargal Quinn: I support Senator Barrett's amendment. I have had the experience of being involved in various public bodies. I was chairman of one hospital, I was chairman of An Post and I am involved in the Seanad. Referring to our customers in An Post, I was reasonably successful in being able to begin the process of calling the public "the customers" and it began to work quite well. I had less success...

Seanad: Competition and Consumer Protection Bill 2014: Committee Stage (10 Jul 2014)

Feargal Quinn: When I first came here 21 years ago I found that every piece of legislation lacked a provision to make sure each body reported within a short period. When I sought reports from a number of bodies, of which RTE was one, I found that they would not have been published until a year later, whatever about reported. That is why I stipulated reports had to be published before 30 June of the...

Seanad: Competition and Consumer Protection Bill 2014: Committee Stage (10 Jul 2014)

Feargal Quinn: I would love to think it might be possible to move almost every report earlier than the last deadline. The Minister said he was sure bodies would submit their reports earlier than 30 June but I am not so sure. It is a fact that almost a year can elapse before publication. My suggestion is worthy and would push all bodies to publish. There is a competition among limited liability companies...

Seanad: Competition and Consumer Protection Bill 2014: Committee Stage (10 Jul 2014)

Feargal Quinn: I agree entirely with the Minister. To single out a particular group of companies to publish figures does nothing for consumer protection. The grocery business is as competitive a business as any and this is evident in the number of companies that have come and gone over the years.

Seanad: Competition and Consumer Protection Bill 2014: Committee Stage (10 Jul 2014)

Feargal Quinn: In my years in the business I have seen companies fail and succeed and this will continue to be the case as long as there is competition. This amendment will do nothing but disclose information relating to each individual company. I do not think Senator Darragh O'Brien is correct as we do not know the sales figures for Dunnes Stores nor its profit margin in the Republic of Ireland. In any...

Seanad: Competition and Consumer Protection Bill 2014: Committee Stage (10 Jul 2014)

Feargal Quinn: Retention of title is something some companies seek and to which some companies agree and I do not believe legislation for this is required, as it is normal negotiation. If a retailer is buying from a supplier who wishes to retain the title while it is still there and if the retailer does not wish to so do, the deal then does not go ahead. It is normal business practice to do this but...

Seanad: Competition and Consumer Protection Bill 2014: Committee Stage (10 Jul 2014)

Feargal Quinn: I will not repeat what has been said. I heard the Minister talk about resale price maintenance. There have been so many efforts to control the grocery business over the years, but the ideal control is competition, and Senator Barrett is absolutely right. In my years, a huge number of companies did not succeed and went out of business. However, they went out of business to companies that...

Seanad: Order of Business (15 Jul 2014)

Feargal Quinn: May I add my voice to that of Senators O'Donnell and van Turnhout regarding the vote last week and the gagging of doctors. It is a clear example of the benefit of having a second Chamber. I do not understand the confusion caused and why the Government is so upset. A second Chamber and Independent Members will examine a matter and rather than having a Whip they will voice their opinions....

Seanad: Criminal Law (Protection of Older People) (Sentencing) (Amendment) Bill 2014: First Stage (15 Jul 2014)

Feargal Quinn: I second the motion.

Seanad: Competition and Consumer Protection Bill 2014: Report and Final Stages (15 Jul 2014)

Feargal Quinn: I will not take two minutes. I welcome the Minister back in again and he is wearing the same hat he has worn before. We are very happy with the work he has put into this matter and congratulations. We are debating the Competition and Consumer Protection Bill but I did not hear enough from most of the speakers about consumer protection which means competition and competition, as the...

Seanad: Strategic Banking Corporation of Ireland Bill 2014: Second Stage (15 Jul 2014)

Feargal Quinn: I welcome the Minister and the Bill. I thank the Minister for facilitating a briefing session with his officials this morning. I found the session extremely useful in that we had the opportunity to put some of the queries we had about the legislation to the officials. One of the queries I have about the Bill relates to whether it targets start-ups. I accept that it is targeting successful...