Results 3,321-3,340 of 14,706 for speaker:Phil Hogan

Wildlife (Amendment) Bill 2010: Committee and Remaining Stages (29 Jun 2010)

Phil Hogan: What good did that do?

Wildlife (Amendment) Bill 2010: Committee and Remaining Stages (29 Jun 2010)

Phil Hogan: Given that the Minister was very sure-footed with his intentions for this Bill, I am surprised he is proposing an amendment. He is such an expert on these issues. Had the issue not been brought to his attention by the Irish Deer Society and his colleague, the Minister for Justice and Law Reform who had a robust exchange of views with him on firearms licences for people who wish to engage in...

Wildlife (Amendment) Bill 2010: Committee and Remaining Stages (29 Jun 2010)

Phil Hogan: I am only telling the Minister the reality. I am aware he knows everything.

Wildlife (Amendment) Bill 2010: Committee and Remaining Stages (29 Jun 2010)

Phil Hogan: He did not think about the notion that people might use two or more dogs to search for deer in distress on forested lands.

Wildlife (Amendment) Bill 2010: Committee and Remaining Stages (29 Jun 2010)

Phil Hogan: I was speaking about distressed deer.

Wildlife (Amendment) Bill 2010: Committee and Remaining Stages (29 Jun 2010)

Phil Hogan: Yes, I did.

Wildlife (Amendment) Bill 2010: Committee and Remaining Stages (29 Jun 2010)

Phil Hogan: Deputy Sargent described this legislation as very important from the point of view of public safety.

Wildlife (Amendment) Bill 2010: Committee and Remaining Stages (29 Jun 2010)

Phil Hogan: We might as well as put flak jackets on stags so they are identifiable and will not be able to cross roads.

Wildlife (Amendment) Bill 2010: Committee and Remaining Stages (29 Jun 2010)

Phil Hogan: The Minister has done an about turn on the practical implementation of the legislation. Deer are sometimes in distress and stalkers have to find them to deal with their distress. It is not a big issue but it had to be brought to his attention that the legislation can cause practical difficulties. I welcome that he is granting a substantial number of licences but I know only one instance of...

Wildlife (Amendment) Bill 2010: Committee and Remaining Stages (29 Jun 2010)

Phil Hogan: I am aware of only one example of a deer landing on a car and this involved the Minister for Social Protection, Deputy Ó Cuív, and a deer which escaped from forested lands while he was driving through County Kerry.

Wildlife (Amendment) Bill 2010: Committee and Remaining Stages (29 Jun 2010)

Phil Hogan: He was not being chased by dogs. Perhaps he was being chased by constituents in Kerry South who were unhappy about particular matters but they certainly had nothing to do with deer. The Minister needs a sense of proportion. He is trying to solve what he believes to be a problem with a sledge-hammer. We already have restrictions, monitoring and licensing arrangements. The Departments of...

Wildlife (Amendment) Bill 2010: Committee and Remaining Stages (29 Jun 2010)

Phil Hogan: I am glad Deputy Sargent raised the issue of taxpayers' money because we would not prioritise €70,000 to count frogs.

Wildlife (Amendment) Bill 2010: Committee and Remaining Stages (29 Jun 2010)

Phil Hogan: If the Deputy wants to speak about the waste of money, he should ask the Minister why he is not investigating all the money wasted by the Dublin Docklands Development Authority.

Wildlife (Amendment) Bill 2010: Committee and Remaining Stages (29 Jun 2010)

Phil Hogan: He does not want to look into what Fianna Fáil has been up to for years or how the taxpayer's money was wasted because he is afraid of what he might find.

Wildlife (Amendment) Bill 2010: Committee and Remaining Stages (29 Jun 2010)

Phil Hogan: Like you, Deputy Sargent, I took responsibility. I applaud you for that at least. You and I share that.

Wildlife (Amendment) Bill 2010: Committee and Remaining Stages (29 Jun 2010)

Phil Hogan: At the 11th hour, the Minister accepted that he made a mistake in banning the stalking of deer to alleviate their distress. He has a disproportionate belief in the efficacy of this legislation, while ignoring its practical implementation.

Wildlife (Amendment) Bill 2010: Committee and Remaining Stages (29 Jun 2010)

Phil Hogan: Unlike Deputy Gogarty.

Wildlife (Amendment) Bill 2010: Committee and Remaining Stages (29 Jun 2010)

Phil Hogan: Why not ban everything?

Wildlife (Amendment) Bill 2010: Committee and Remaining Stages (29 Jun 2010)

Phil Hogan: We have listened to many contributions in this House. Seven Fianna Fáil Deputies came into the House to speak against the legislation. Now is the time for them to put up or shut up regarding how they vote.

Wildlife (Amendment) Bill 2010: Committee and Remaining Stages (29 Jun 2010)

Phil Hogan: We have heard a lot of blame placed on the Green Party regarding the Animal Welfare Bill. We have heard a lot of criticism of the Green Party and to be fair to its Members, they are doing so because the Fianna Fáil Deputies are allowing them to do so.