Results 381-400 of 26,396 for speaker:David Cullinane

Seanad: Order of Business (8 Nov 2011)

David Cullinane: We in Sinn Féin find humorous the rancour and heat of the earlier exchanges between the representatives of the Government and Fianna Fáil. We see this as a phoney war. All we can see from this side of the House is the Government implementing the same policies of the previous Government. There is no real difference. The Government then blames the previous Government but does not take any...

Seanad: Order of Business (8 Nov 2011)

David Cullinane: That has to change. My question is on a different issue and I will get to it. I support the call by Senator Mullen to invite the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade to the House to discuss the closure of the embassies, but also the disgraceful treatment of 14 Irish citizens on board the MV Saoirse. These people were essentially abducted by the State of Israel and brought to a port in...

Seanad: Order of Business (8 Nov 2011)

David Cullinane: Do not forget about the Green Party.

Seanad: Order of Business (9 Nov 2011)

David Cullinane: I join with Senator Ó Murchú in again raising the issue of the 14 Irish citizens who are being detained in Israel. I received the e-mail and I have also been in contact with the families of some of those people who are being held by Israel. Two Sinn Féin councillors, Councillor John Hearne and Councillor Pat Fitzgerald, were on the boat and are now being held captive by Israel. Others...

Seanad: Community and Voluntary Sector: Statements, Questions and Answers (9 Nov 2011)

David Cullinane: I welcome the Minister to the House for the discussion on this important issue. I recently met representatives of the Waterford City Community Forum, which advocates on behalf of many community and voluntary organisations in Waterford. They have been seeking to meet Members of the Oireachtas to discuss the cuts in the funding of the forum itself and the funding of community and voluntary...

Seanad: Community and Voluntary Sector: Statements, Questions and Answers (9 Nov 2011)

David Cullinane: The Minister can advocate it.

Seanad: Community and Voluntary Sector: Statements, Questions and Answers (9 Nov 2011)

David Cullinane: I am asking the Government to do it. I do not think the Minister is Superman.

Seanad: Community and Voluntary Sector: Statements, Questions and Answers (9 Nov 2011)

David Cullinane: I accept that.

Seanad: Waterford Institute of Technology (9 Nov 2011)

David Cullinane: I welcome the Minister of State to the House. In a previous Adjournment matter I tabled on foot of the job losses in TalkTalk, I raised the issue of the need for a university for the south east and for Waterford Institute of Technology to be designated as a university. At the time the Minister gave a commitment that he would visit WIT and he has done so. He will have seen the outstanding...

Seanad: Waterford Institute of Technology (9 Nov 2011)

David Cullinane: I acknowledge that the Minister, Deputy Ruairí Quinn, has done more on this issue in the months he has been in office than his various predecessors did over many years. That is most welcome. The Minister of State, Deputy Sherlock, stated in his reply: The first step is to provide clarity on those performance criteria, which will enable institutes of technology to consider their future...

Seanad: Order of Business (10 Nov 2011)

David Cullinane: The Senator needs to talk to some of her colleagues. I do not know whether she listened to some of their comments yesterday.

Seanad: Order of Business (10 Nov 2011)

David Cullinane: I raise the issue of the 14 citizens held captive by Israel. I propose an amendment to the Order of Business to the effect that the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade, Deputy Eamon Gilmore, should come to the House to discuss the situation. Yesterday, several Senators from the Labour Party and Fine Gael asked what was the big deal. The big deal is that 14 Irish citizens were on a...

Seanad: Order of Business (10 Nov 2011)

David Cullinane: They were refused at gunpoint by a rogue state, which is how I describe Israel. Those involved have prevented Irish citizens from coming back to this country. There is a need for the Tánaiste to get involved at this stage. I commend the work of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade and the Irish consular services. They have provided outstanding support to these 14 citizens but it...

Seanad: Order of Business (10 Nov 2011)

David Cullinane: I propose an amendment to the Order of Business to the effect that the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade should attend the house today to discuss the deplorable and disgraceful way in which Irish citizens are being treated by Israel.

Seanad: Order of Business (10 Nov 2011)

David Cullinane: Yes.

Seanad: Order of Business (15 Nov 2011)

David Cullinane: I wish to raise two issues with the Leader. First, there is a need for a debate on accountability in Government and I ask that the Leader would provide space to have that discussion in the course of the coming weeks. People are rightly outraged at news of the outrageous pension payments which have been made to senior civil servants and politicians in recent years.

Seanad: Order of Business (15 Nov 2011)

David Cullinane: This includes retired Ministers and all those who lost their seats, and not only politicians but also senior civil servants. A county manager in Waterford retired and received a lump sum payment of €200,000 tax free, and he got that on the basis of eight years of work which he did not do to bring him up to the 40 years of service. These kinds of payments are causing outrage-----

Seanad: Order of Business (15 Nov 2011)

David Cullinane: It is a matter of public record. There is nothing to defend. This is wrong, it is outrageous and it should not be happening.

Seanad: Order of Business (15 Nov 2011)

David Cullinane: I call for a debate on the general issue of those kinds of pensions being paid to senior civil servants and politicians, and also in regard to appointments to State boards and judicial positions because of political patronage. We were told this was something from the past but it most certainly is not.

Seanad: Order of Business (15 Nov 2011)

David Cullinane: There is also need for a proper pre-budget debate in the House. We are all being lobbied by many organisations that are hosting pre-budget submissions, all of which are doing good work. Political parties will launch their pre-budget submissions; we launched ours earlier. I ask that a half day be set aside in the House for us to discuss the upcoming budget. There is no point in the...