Results 3,581-3,600 of 11,469 for speaker:Ivana Bacik

Seanad: Order of Business (8 May 2013)

Ivana Bacik: I remind colleagues that Labour Party Senators have tabled a motion on domestic violence for debate this evening. Senator Moloney will propose the motion and it will be seconded by Senator O'Keeffe. I hope we will have a good debate on the supports that are needed for the victims and survivors of domestic violence. Our motion is intended to enable a general debate while also homing in on...

Seanad: Order of Business (Resumed) (8 May 2013)

Ivana Bacik: Hear, hear.

Seanad: Domestic Violence: Motion (8 May 2013)

Ivana Bacik: I welcome the Minister of State to the House and commend my colleagues, in particular Senators Moloney and O'Keeffe, on proposing and seconding the motion. It is very important that we take time to review the way in which the Government is dealing with the very serious incidence of domestic violence. We have taken time to commend what the Government has been doing. The Minister set out...

Seanad: Order of Business (9 May 2013)

Ivana Bacik: I thank all of the Members who contributed to the Labour Party's Private Members' business last night, the motion on domestic violence. I commend Senators Moloney and O'Keeffe for proposing and seconding the motion. The debate was comprehensive and the Minister of State, Deputy Alex White, responded very well and gave a clear overview of the Government's policy on dealing with domestic...

Seanad: Order of Business (14 May 2013)

Ivana Bacik: I pay tribute to Donal Walsh, the young teenager who tragically died from cancer earlier this week. I extend our sympathy to his parents, sister and family. He was a young man who in a short lifetime achieved a great deal, not only in raising awareness of suicide and doing important work on suicide prevention but also in his immense fund-raising efforts for Crumlin children's hospital....

Seanad: Order of Business (14 May 2013)

Ivana Bacik: It is a Bill.

Seanad: Order of Business (15 May 2013)

Ivana Bacik: It would be good to have a debate on the hospital reconfiguration plan, which has received a broad welcome, although we do not think it should be today. I add my welcome to it. It is an ambitious plan with a clear objective of delivering high quality and safe patient care and maximising good outcomes for patients. The concept of centres of excellence has, by now, been accepted by everyone-----

Seanad: Order of Business (15 May 2013)

Ivana Bacik: ------and that people need to see hospital reconfiguration.

Seanad: Order of Business (15 May 2013)

Ivana Bacik: To be fair, that was-----

Seanad: Order of Business (15 May 2013)

Ivana Bacik: If Senator Byrne will allow me finish, I was trying to be fair, as I always am, by saying it was a concept initiated by the previous Government. It is not a concept that belongs to this Government. It is now established and understood in the health services that it is the best way to deliver good outcomes for patients.

Seanad: Order of Business (15 May 2013)

Ivana Bacik: I also call for a debate on the terms of oil and gas exploration. We should welcome the announcement by the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources, Deputy Rabbitte, to review the fiscal terms on oil and gas production and he is seeking expert advice on the best way to ensure maximum fiscal gain for Ireland. It is in line with the Labour Party manifesto commitment to...

Seanad: Order of Business (15 May 2013)

Ivana Bacik: They are pro-choice.

Seanad: Seanad Bill 2013: Second Stage (15 May 2013)

Ivana Bacik: I welcome the Minister to the House and in the Visitors Gallery former Senator Mary Henry. I am delighted to see her here. As others have done, I commend Senators Katherine Zappone and Senator Feargal Quinn, in particular, and their colleagues on the immense amount of work they have put into drafting this detailed Bill on Seanad reform. I welcome the fact that we are debating it this...

Seanad: Seanad Bill 2013: Second Stage (15 May 2013)

Ivana Bacik: The projected debate with the projected date of the referendum has focused minds on Seanad reform and has cultivated a more meaningful debate than at any time in the recent history of the Seanad. In the general election of 2011, almost all the political parties identified abolition of the Seanad as part of their political reform agendas. The Sinn Féin manifesto proposed abolition of...

Seanad: Seanad Bill 2013: Second Stage (15 May 2013)

Ivana Bacik: The Fianna Fáil manifesto said that if proposals for reform of the electoral system and of Government were enacted, it would support the abolition of the Seanad. It was a somewhat contingent proposal.

Seanad: Seanad Bill 2013: Second Stage (15 May 2013)

Ivana Bacik: Certainly it has concentrated the minds, although this is not a new development. I have spoken previously on the history of the Seanad and the fact that throughout its 90 plus years there have been endless calls for abolition and debates on retention and abolition. In the 1930s there was extensive debate on the merits of bicameral as opposed to unicameral systems and yet the Seanad has...

Seanad: Order of Business (16 May 2013)

Ivana Bacik: I welcome the useful debate we had last night on the Bill introduced by Senators Katherine Zappone and Feargal Quinn setting out proposals for Seanad reform. Their Bill and the legislation brought forward by Senator John Crown have passed Second Stage and been added to the Order Paper. It is a welcome development that these proposals will now inform the debate leading up to the referendum...

Seanad: Address to Seanad Éireann by Mr. Jim Higgins, MEP (16 May 2013)

Ivana Bacik: I apologise for not being present for the speech given by Deputy Higgins, who is very welcome to the House. We have learned during the presentations by various MEPs over the course of Ireland's Presidency that "Deputy" is the correct term. I want to pick up on Senator O'Keeffe's question about the scrutiny of EU legislation. We have discussed this matter in the House on a number of...

Seanad: Address to Seanad Éireann by Mr. Jim Higgins, MEP (16 May 2013)

Ivana Bacik: Hear, hear.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health and Children: Heads of Protection of Life during Pregnancy Bill 2013: Public Hearings (17 May 2013)

Ivana Bacik: I have three very brief questions relating to the need to ensure this legislation provides an accessible and effective procedure under the terms of the A, B and C v. Ireland judgment. Head 4 concerns the specific requirements in respect of the two psychiatrists, namely, that both should be employed at a centre registered by the Mental Health Commission and one should be attached to an...