Results 2,961-2,980 of 8,212 for speaker:Alice-Mary Higgins

Seanad: National Oil Reserves Agency (Amendment) and Provision of Central Treasury Services Bill 2020: Committee and Remaining Stages (17 Jul 2020)

Alice-Mary Higgins: As the Minister is looking to engage on this next year I will withdraw the amendment for now.

Seanad: Credit Guarantee (Amendment) Bill 2020: Second Stage (23 Jul 2020)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I welcome the Minister of State to the House. This is another piece of legislation in the context of stimulus, which is badly needed for society and the economy in Ireland, across Europe and across the world in the aftermath of the Covid crisis. As we identified many years ago, stimulus is the best response to a period of potential recession, rather than the austerity that was chosen in the...

Seanad: Credit Guarantee (Amendment) Bill 2020: Second Stage (23 Jul 2020)

Alice-Mary Higgins: There is interest.

Seanad: Credit Guarantee (Amendment) Bill 2020: Second Stage (23 Jul 2020)

Alice-Mary Higgins: Will the interest be going back into the SMEs?

Seanad: Credit Guarantee (Amendment) Bill 2020: Committee and Remaining Stages (23 Jul 2020)

Alice-Mary Higgins: Unfortunately, as it has been ruled out of order I cannot really speak on it. My hope was that it would have been a potential saving for the State. Earlier, the Minister of State called for accuracy from others in the House. With regard to being accurate, I know the policy intent is that the SMEs benefit but if there is interest on the loans there is still a profit mechanism built into...

Seanad: Credit Guarantee (Amendment) Bill 2020: Committee and Remaining Stages (23 Jul 2020)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I am not arguing the policy intent as to why there is a guarantee. I have accepted this. The Minister of State called for people to be factual earlier and he needs to be factual. Of course, it would only be called on if there were a loss. This is the legislation whereby the State says if there is loss it will take that hit. What I am pointing out is that there is still a profit even at...

Seanad: Credit Guarantee (Amendment) Bill 2020: Committee and Remaining Stages (23 Jul 2020)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I move amendment No. 2: In page 5, between lines 32 and 33, to insert the following: “Report on Credit Guarantees 7.(1) The Minister shall, within eight months of the commencement of this Act, prepare, in consultation with the Minister for Finance and the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, a report to consider: (a) the role played by the State through credit guarantees...

Seanad: Credit Guarantee (Amendment) Bill 2020: Committee and Remaining Stages (23 Jul 2020)

Alice-Mary Higgins: That is a basic principle. That was the case between 2009 and 2014. Mr. Lenihan's successor as Minister for Finance, Mr. Michael Noonan, changed and widened that scheme so that 100% of all profits made by the banks could be written off. The Comptroller and Auditor General, who sets and measures the financial interests of the State in a way that is beyond and separate from all of us, has...

Seanad: Ministers and Secretaries (Amendment) Bill 2020: Second Stage (23 Jul 2020)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I congratulate the Minister of State and the Minister on their leadership of what will be a new and exciting Department. It is important that each element of this new Department is given its rightful consideration and that some parts of it do not overly determine the approach to others. Science is a part of the new Department but, as has been eloquently said, it should not determine all of...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (24 Jul 2020)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I echo the points made about how we do business. It is a concern that by the end of next week we will probably have had more Bills go through all Stages than went through the entire last Seanad by means of the "all Stages" mechanism.That is a real concern because the job we are all elected to do is legislative scrutiny. The very real and thoughtful concerns that Senator Sherlock expressed...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (24 Jul 2020)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I am.

Seanad: Health (General Practitioner Service and Alteration of Criteria for Eligibility) Bill 2020: Second Stage (24 Jul 2020)

Alice-Mary Higgins: As my colleague said, it is a pity that we cannot debate this Bill in a bit more detail, not because anybody opposes it but because many of us have ideas about medical cards and how they operate and this would have been a great opportunity to address them. Having sat on the Joint Committee on Employment Affairs and Social Protection, I know that people have many concerns and fears around...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (29 Jul 2020)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I support the Senator Fitzpatrick's comments on homelessness and those of Senators Hoey and Ó Donnghailein respect of direct provision. The test of a society is how it treats its most vulnerable. Social solidarity is a principle of a healthy democracy. It is what we rely on. The original common sense is the recognition that we depend on each other. A very strong example of social...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (29 Jul 2020)

Alice-Mary Higgins: The amendment is being pressed.

Seanad: Social Welfare (Covid-19) (Amendment) Bill 2020: Second Stage (29 Jul 2020)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I am sharing time with Senator Ruane. I welcome the Minister. When the pandemic unemployment payment was introduced, it was, as the Minister said, a solidarity payment to protect people's incomes. It was a very positive measure by the outgoing Minister who is now the Leader of the House, Senator Doherty, and was praised internationally. It was recognised as the State seeing how important...

Seanad: Social Welfare (Covid-19) (Amendment) Bill 2020: Second Stage (29 Jul 2020)

Alice-Mary Higgins: We have seen the inaccuracy of the information on the website. The statutory instrument that has been in place since 10 July already allows jobseekers who wish to travel to any of the countries on the green list to do so and receive their payment. It is hard to see what new thing the Minister is doing in the regulations because the statutory instrument did not state that one could not have...

Seanad: Social Welfare (Covid-19) (Amendment) Bill 2020: Committee and Remaining Stages (29 Jul 2020)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I regret that the amendments tabled by Senator McCallion were not allowed. It would have been a constructive and important debate, especially when we think of those employers based here who have employees based in Northern Ireland and some of those who are self-employed and have their centre of operations here but are resident in Northern Ireland. They are effectively excluded. These are...

Seanad: Social Welfare (Covid-19) (Amendment) Bill 2020: Committee and Remaining Stages (29 Jul 2020)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I move amendment No. 5. In page 9, between lines 20 and 21, to insert the following: “(6) The Minister shall, within three months of the passing of this Act, prepare a report to be laid before both Houses of the Oireachtas considering steps which might be taken to— (a) ensure persons in receipt of the Covid-19 pandemic unemployment payment on or before April 2021...

Seanad: Social Welfare (Covid-19) (Amendment) Bill 2020: Committee and Remaining Stages (29 Jul 2020)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I will deal with this point somewhat further when speak to the to this section. On amendment No. 5, I regret the fact that amendment No. 4 which related to persons on maternity leave was ruled out of order and I call for further action on this. I hope that we can discuss and engage with that in the other social welfare Bill that is coming in September or October. This will be a chance to...

Seanad: Social Welfare (Covid-19) (Amendment) Bill 2020: Committee and Remaining Stages (29 Jul 2020)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I have a couple of matters to raise. The problem is not so much whether people are long-term unemployed but rather how we have been treating the long-term unemployed with the JobPath scheme. I am sure as the Minister enters her brief she will look back and see the litany of testimony from the social protection committee around the concerns arising from a narrowing of options associated with...