Results 3,061-3,080 of 32,547 for speaker:Paschal Donohoe

Other Questions: Foreign Conflicts (28 May 2014)

Paschal Donohoe: I am extremely concerned regarding recent events in Libya where the situation remains highly precarious. The security environment has further deteriorated in recent days after renegade Army General Haftar sent his paramilitary force, the "Libyan National Army", to attack the parliament building on 18 May. According to reports received, militia members used anti-aircraft weapons,...

Other Questions: Foreign Conflicts (28 May 2014)

Paschal Donohoe: I am not in a position to state the exact number of Irish citizens in Libya, but I assure the Deputy that through our embassy in Rome which is accredited to Libya we are providing advice for anybody who is considering travelling to Libya and that we will monitor and offer support to Irish citizens who are in the country or the region. With regard to the response to the grave difficulty in...

Garda Síochána (Amendment) Bill 2014: Second Stage (Resumed) [Private Members] (28 May 2014)

Paschal Donohoe: I begin by referring to the work Deputies Clare Daly and Wallace have done in this area. I disagree strongly with the Deputies in respect of many issues, particularly with regard to the many challenges and choices facing our country, economy and society. That is because, like them, I have many genuinely held views in respect those challenges and choices. I acknowledge, however, that in...

Seanad: Central Bank Bill 2014: Committee and Remaining Stages (28 May 2014)

Paschal Donohoe: I thank the Senator for tabling this amendment. While we understand the objective of the amendment and appreciate the importance of it and the role it could play, we will not accept it. A debate on the amendment took place in the Dáil between Deputy Pearse Doherty and the Minister, Deputy Michael Noonan, and I would like to emphasise a number of points in regard to that discussion. I...

Topical Issue Debate: Foreign Conflicts (4 Jun 2014)

Paschal Donohoe: I thank the Deputy for raising this issue. The current political and security situation in Libya, as the Deputy has outlined, is both highly complex and precarious and remains a matter of deep concern, both for Ireland and for the international community generally. Since the fall of Colonel Gadaffi in 2011, serious difficulties, including a weak and divided central government, impotent...

Topical Issue Debate: Foreign Conflicts (4 Jun 2014)

Paschal Donohoe: I thank the Deputy again for raising the grave humanitarian difficulty that is occurring in Libya. It is important to consider the events which led to the UN making the intervention it did. At the time, the then ruler of Libya, Colonel Gadaffi, was threatening attack and assault against the people of Benghazi. He was, in effect, threatening genocide against people inside his own borders....

Topical Issue Debate: Foreign Conflicts (4 Jun 2014)

Paschal Donohoe: If the international community had not taken action against Gadaffi at that time, would the Deputy not be standing here accusing it of displaying double standards? I emphasise again that the action that was taken was to prevent the slaughter of people in Libya. The current situation, as the Deputy pointed out, is one of grave difficulty within the borders of that country. The European...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on European Union Affairs: European Commission Country Specific Recommendations for Ireland: Minister of State at Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (12 Jun 2014)

Paschal Donohoe: I thank the Chairman very much for the opportunity to discuss the Commission's proposed CSRs. These all touch on issues that will be at the heart of the Irish policy agenda over the coming months and years. It is, therefore, welcome to have this early opportunity to look at the June European Council and the decisions beyond. Before going into the detail and nature of this process and...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on European Union Affairs: European Commission Country Specific Recommendations for Ireland: Minister of State at Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (12 Jun 2014)

Paschal Donohoe: It is consistent. It refers to the timing of achieving this objective as recommended by the Commission. We will achieve it but we believe it will take a different length of time from that in the CSR. The third CSRs is focused on further strengthening of our active labour market policies. This means building a bridge to the workplace for the unemployed. It also means being responsive to...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on European Union Affairs: European Commission Country Specific Recommendations for Ireland: Minister of State at Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (12 Jun 2014)

Paschal Donohoe: I thank all the members for their questions. I will go through each of them in turn and will commence with Deputy Kyne's questions. He asked about the legal basis for the country-specific recommendations. They come from two different articles, 121 and 148, of the consolidated treaties of the European Union. With regard to the Deputy's key question on the sanction nature of these...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on European Union Affairs: European Commission Country Specific Recommendations for Ireland: Minister of State at Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (12 Jun 2014)

Paschal Donohoe: It is too early in the year, as the Minister for Finance has said, to determine the exact figure that will help us to get there. The final point, about housing, is a matter for other Ministers but I agree that a housing assistance payment is an important step forward and I look forward to seeing it being implemented in ways that will help the lives of many people.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on European Union Affairs: European Commission Country Specific Recommendations for Ireland: Minister of State at Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (12 Jun 2014)

Paschal Donohoe: I think we have covered a broad spectrum of nearly every policy in 90 minutes. I wish members travelling to Albania and COSAC a productive visit. I visited Albania in January and I am certain they will have a productive visit. They will emerge more enlightened about Albania and with a richer view of what is going on in Europe after hearing the perspective of the Albanians during the visit...

Pre-European Council Meeting: Statements (25 Jun 2014)

Paschal Donohoe: I thank all the Deputies for their contributions. The Taoiseach has asked me to update the House on a number of areas. I will also respond to some of the points made in the time available to me. Deputy Martin raised the issue of Ukraine and noted the seriousness of it. Further progress with regard to our relationship with Georgia and Moldova is a very important development that will take...

Pre-European Council Meeting: Statements (25 Jun 2014)

Paschal Donohoe: I am absolutely confident that this tradition will be maintained and that whoever is selected will be somebody who will do a superb job. What is very clear, as has been identified in particular by Deputy Creighton, is that the work the European Commission must do in the next five years is absolutely vital. It is in our national interest to ensure we have strong Commissioners who are able to...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Human Rights Issues (2 Jul 2014)

Paschal Donohoe: The Tánaiste is concerned about the case of Vadim Kuramshin, a human rights lawyer and civil society activist in Kazakhstan, who was sentenced to 12 years in prison in December 2012 following his arrest for alleged extortion of an employee in the legal profession. Mr. Kuramshin’s trial was reported as not conforming to international standards. It will be recalled that the case...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Human Rights Issues (2 Jul 2014)

Paschal Donohoe: The Deputy is correct to raise concerns in respect of the wider human rights environment within Kazakhstan. He has touched on one particular issue but it is clear there are wider concerns regarding other fundamental freedoms. I refer, for example, to the right of assembly and peaceful protest, the right to choose one's own religion or to not do so and the right to follow one's conscience....

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Human Rights Issues (2 Jul 2014)

Paschal Donohoe: On the Deputy's last point, we will make sure, given his personal interest in this matter, that he is informed of representations and progress that is made. As I said in my earlier reply, I am very much aware of the significant difficulties and problems in regard to human rights in that country. I acknowledge the progress that has been made in some areas but I am also aware of the fact that...

Other Questions: Foreign Conflicts (2 Jul 2014)

Paschal Donohoe: The dramatically deteriorating situation in Iraq is a matter of very serious concern, both for the Iraqi people and for the international community as a whole. The al-Qaeda linked Islamist militia known as ISIS, with allied Sunni groupings, has captured large parts of northern and western Iraq, including the major city of Mosul. It is also targeting key installations such as the...

Other Questions: Foreign Conflicts (2 Jul 2014)

Paschal Donohoe: I assure the Deputy that is the case. The Tánaiste, the Minister of State, Deputy Costello, and I raise the situation in the Middle East at every opportunity. As the Deputy suggested, this is not just a crisis in Iraq; it has far wider consequences for the region. It touches directly on and in some cases originates from what is happening in Syria. The long-term consequences of the...

European Council: Statements (2 Jul 2014)

Paschal Donohoe: I will respond first to Deputy Martin's questions on an area of agreement between us, namely, developments in Ukraine. I make the same point every time the House discusses Ukraine and developments in central and eastern Europe. There is no equivalence between the actions that were taken by the Russian Federation and European Union in the run-up to the crisis in Ukraine and since. The key...