Results 321-340 of 1,677 for speaker:Ned O'Sullivan

Seanad: Road Transport Bill 2011: Second Stage (29 Nov 2011)

Ned O'Sullivan: The Government side seems to think that Fianna Fáil is still in government, but we are not. We have been out of government for some time now. The Government Members will have to start taking responsibility.

Seanad: Road Transport Bill 2011: Second Stage (29 Nov 2011)

Ned O'Sullivan: Clearly, this measure should have been before us long before now, yet it only reached the Dáil last week. If we do not pass this legislation we will end up in a virtual limbo in terms of transport regulation. We will not allow that to happen of course, so I assure the Minister that my party will facilitate the passage of the Bill. I wish to record our unhappiness, however, that it has...

Seanad: Road Transport Bill 2011: Second Stage (29 Nov 2011)

Ned O'Sullivan: It is an improvement.

Seanad: National Tourism Development Authority (Amendment) Bill 2011: Second Stage (30 Nov 2011)

Ned O'Sullivan: I welcome the Minister of State to the House. I have observed him to be a man of great energy and to have a very positive outlook. Those are qualities which are eminently suitable for a person representing Ireland in the world of international tourism. We in Fianna Fáil will support the Bill. It is quite sensible. The current cap is close to being exceeded and will be in the very near...

Seanad: National Tourism Development Authority (Amendment) Bill 2011: Second Stage (30 Nov 2011)

Ned O'Sullivan: That is right. I will not repeat the Minister's figures, but the overseas spend is €3.4 billion, while the domestic spend is €1.3 billion. Unlike other industries which tend to be Dublin centred, tourism is spread throughout the regions. Remote areas such as those from which the Minister of State and I come can hold their own. The overall comparison between the regions and Dublin...

Seanad: National Tourism Development Authority (Amendment) Bill 2011: Second Stage (30 Nov 2011)

Ned O'Sullivan: The Senator is a legend.

Seanad: National Tourism Development Authority (Amendment) Bill 2011: Second Stage (Resumed) (30 Nov 2011)

Ned O'Sullivan: According to Standing Orders, the Minister of State has five minutes but we might push it forward again.

Seanad: National Tourism Development Authority (Amendment) Bill 2011: Second Stage (Resumed) (30 Nov 2011)

Ned O'Sullivan: As we have gone beyond the time, I ask the Minister of State to conclude.

Seanad: Road Transport Bill 2011: Committee and Remaining Stages (30 Nov 2011)

Ned O'Sullivan: My party supported this amendment in the Dáil and will support it here for the reasons I will outline. That said, I read the report of the Dáil debate and found its tone and content most regrettable. I would caution people to tone down the rhetoric on this issue. We all have ownership of the Good Friday Agreement, which was negotiated by a former leader of my party and others who had the...

Seanad: Road Transport Bill 2011: Committee and Remaining Stages (30 Nov 2011)

Ned O'Sullivan: The carriage of milk is exempt. We established that yesterday.

Seanad: National Tourism Development Authority (Amendment) Bill 2011: Committee and Remaining Stages (1 Dec 2011)

Ned O'Sullivan: The Leas-Chathaoirleach is being very lenient this morning and afternoon as I have never heard as many Second Stage speeches on a recommendation in my life. We had a full Second Stage debate yesterday and the Minister of State was very good to listen and respond to it. I will speak to the recommendation, with which I do not agree. We are not spending money but affording the Minister a...

Seanad: Order of Business (7 Dec 2011)

Ned O'Sullivan: We should bring back Deputy Buttimer.

Seanad: Order of Business (26 Jan 2012)

Ned O'Sullivan: The threat to small rural schools is very real and the Government will have to revisit the issue. Some concern has been expressed in the House, in particular by those on the Government side, which I welcome. These schools are a very important infrastructure in what is left of rural Ireland, especially in our Gaeltacht areas where, as Members will know, the pupil-teacher ratio has received a...

Seanad: Order of Business (8 Feb 2012)

Ned O'Sullivan: I join with my fellow Kerryman, Senator Coghlan, in acknowledging the achievement of the Kerry tourism industry and the great work done by the Senator himself for Muckross House and Killarney House. I have an 11th-hour appeal to the Leader. The Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government, Deputy Hogan, is to address the conference of town councils in Cavan on Friday and I...

Seanad: Energy (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2011: Second Stage (8 Feb 2012)

Ned O'Sullivan: I will not delay the House unduly because most of what I wanted to say has been said already. Nonetheless, I welcome the Minister to the House and support what he is trying to achieve with this Bill. The legislation is both logical and sensible, as everyone here would agree. I wish to raise one or two points, however. Senator Quinn spoke of opening up a debate on nuclear power and that...

Seanad: Energy (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2011: Second Stage (8 Feb 2012)

Ned O'Sullivan: Senator Quinn is quite right to say it is time to have the courage to re-examine this matter. People have serious concerns about nuclear power on a number of fronts, but when one considers that the whole west coast of Great Britain is nuclear, and is a lot closer to Dublin than the west coast of Ireland, that does not hold water. Like Senator Quinn, I am not on either side of the fence, but...

Seanad: Energy (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2011: Second Stage (8 Feb 2012)

Ned O'Sullivan: I welcome the Minister's response.

Seanad: Order of Business (14 Feb 2012)

Ned O'Sullivan: Last week it was flagged by me that the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government was to attend in Cavan the annual conference of town councillors. I attended the conference at which I took part in a panel discussion with Senator Denis Landy. There were more than 400 delegates in attendance. If they had attended in the hope the Government's position on the system of...

Seanad: Order of Business (14 Feb 2012)

Ned O'Sullivan: -----but I am confident the Leader will be in a position to relay the concerns of councillors of all parties, the majority of whom are supporters of the Government. The Minister is supposed to bring an action plan to the Cabinet in six to eight weeks. He made it clear, however, that he was not bringing forward a White Paper or a consultation document, all of which bodes ill. There is,...

Seanad: Order of Business (14 Feb 2012)

Ned O'Sullivan: He has won a good few races.