Results 3,981-4,000 of 4,465 for speaker:Jim Walsh

Seanad: Order of Business (5 Mar 2015)

Jim Walsh: My understanding is that we do not name people who are not here to defend themselves.

Seanad: Report of British-Irish Parliamentary Assembly on Cross-Border Police Co-operation and Illicit Trade: Statements (10 Mar 2015)

Jim Walsh: Cuirim fáilte roimh an Aire Stáit go dtí an Teach. As a member of Committee A, I can attest to the considerable amount of time that went into compiling this report. It was in the first instance conducted by way of hearing evidence from the various people involved in this area, including customs officials, police from the North and the South, the Minister for Justice and...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade: Update on EU Foreign Affairs Council: Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade (11 Mar 2015)

Jim Walsh: I thank the Minister for his report. The integrity of borders, particularly the Ukrainian border, is something Irish people strongly support, given our own sad history. Our own borders were breached and they still are breached. I was recently at a dinner in Dushanbe with a member of the Duma whom I know. He provided an interesting perspective on Ukraine. We talked about it and he agreed...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade: Update on EU Foreign Affairs Council: Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade (11 Mar 2015)

Jim Walsh: I have spoken to the Minister about this subject. I compliment him on his contribution to reaching agreement on the outstanding Haass issues. Why is clarity not being brought to the detail to avoid these issues coming back to haunt us? Would the Minister like to comment on the BIPA report which highlighted diesel laundering and tobacco smuggling in the Border area.

Seanad: Children and Family Relationships Bill 2015: Second Stage (24 Mar 2015)

Jim Walsh: This Bill, like the curate's egg, is good in parts. I welcome, in particular, the efforts to recognise the right of children to their identity, even though more needs to be done in the area. I welcome the improved guardianship for fathers but there is still a need for further action in this area. I also welcome the access for grandparents. There is an unseemly haste in how the Bill is...

Seanad: An Bille um an gCeathrú Leasú is Tríocha ar an mBunreacht (Comhionannas Pósta) 2015: An Dara Céim - Thirty-fourth Amendment of the Constitution (Marriage Equality) Bill 2015: Second Stage (25 Mar 2015)

Jim Walsh: That is not a point of order.

Seanad: An Bille um an gCeathrú Leasú is Tríocha ar an mBunreacht (Comhionannas Pósta) 2015: An Dara Céim - Thirty-fourth Amendment of the Constitution (Marriage Equality) Bill 2015: Second Stage (25 Mar 2015)

Jim Walsh: In view of the Minister's comments yesterday I will quote comments I made previously, particularly on Senator Norris's Bill which we debated on 16 February 2005: I have reservations about the Bill and I have spoken privately with the Senator in this regard. It raises issues which will need to be teased out over a period of time, and will need to be done in a sensitive way in the interest of...

Seanad: An Bille um an gCeathrú Leasú is Tríocha ar an mBunreacht (Comhionannas Pósta) 2015: An Dara Céim - Thirty-fourth Amendment of the Constitution (Marriage Equality) Bill 2015: Second Stage (25 Mar 2015)

Jim Walsh: Could the Acting Chair give me a little more time?

Seanad: An Bille um an gCeathrú Leasú is Tríocha ar an mBunreacht (Comhionannas Pósta) 2015: An Dara Céim - Thirty-fourth Amendment of the Constitution (Marriage Equality) Bill 2015: Second Stage (25 Mar 2015)

Jim Walsh: I want to refer to the printer's case in Drogheda and Brendan Eich, Mozilla's new CEO, who had to resign because he made a contribution of $1,000 to Proposition 8 in California. These are examples of intolerance towards people who have a conscientious position on this issue. I am seriously concerned about gender ideology in schools. This proposal to redefine marriage has implications for...

Seanad: An Bille um an gCeathrú Leasú is Tríocha ar an mBunreacht (Comhionannas Pósta) 2015: An Dara Céim - Thirty-fourth Amendment of the Constitution (Marriage Equality) Bill 2015: Second Stage (25 Mar 2015)

Jim Walsh: I will finish on this, if the Acting Chair does not mind.

Seanad: An Bille um an gCeathrú Leasú is Tríocha ar an mBunreacht (Comhionannas Pósta) 2015: An Dara Céim - Thirty-fourth Amendment of the Constitution (Marriage Equality) Bill 2015: Second Stage (25 Mar 2015)

Jim Walsh: Can I just finish on this point, namely, my concern about gay people, which has not come up yet? I am conscious of the fact that gay people have suffered the stigma and challenges of living in a society that is largely heteronormative. However, my concern is that gay people in same-sex couples are being encouraged to believe that complete sameness is achievable. It is not. There is a...

Seanad: Children and Family Relationships Bill 2015: Committee Stage (26 Mar 2015)

Jim Walsh: Senator O'Donnell does not have to.

Seanad: Children and Family Relationships Bill 2015: Committee Stage (26 Mar 2015)

Jim Walsh: On a point of order, the topic we are discussing is important. The House should not be unruly. There is difference of opinion in this regard but there should be absolute respect. All we are doing is conveying the bullying that will go on subsequent to the implementation of the measures in the Bill to which people will be subject. Members should-----

Seanad: Children and Family Relationships Bill 2015: Committee Stage (26 Mar 2015)

Jim Walsh: This is connected to the Bill we will take tomorrow and we should separate them.

Seanad: Children and Family Relationships Bill 2015: Committee Stage (26 Mar 2015)

Jim Walsh: I will wait on the Minister.

Seanad: Children and Family Relationships Bill 2015: Committee Stage (26 Mar 2015)

Jim Walsh: I thank the Minister for her response. At the outset, I acknowledge that it is a very complex area. I drafted a Bill relating to it about three years ago and tried to tease it out as best I could. Ultimately, I was not satisfied. I met with Dr. Joanna Rose, who the Minister probably knows. I suggested to the Chairman of the Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality that she...

Seanad: Children and Family Relationships Bill 2015: Committee Stage (26 Mar 2015)

Jim Walsh: The use of donor eggs is forbidden in Germany. I could go on and say that Austria is similar and only permits it for stable heterosexual couples living together. Sperm donation for single women or lesbian couples is forbidden. Egg donation and the use of donor eggs are forbidden.I understand that, even in France, that is the situation, and Switzerland and Italy are quite interesting as...

Seanad: Children and Family Relationships Bill 2015: Committee Stage (26 Mar 2015)

Jim Walsh: I do not accept what the Minister said. It is not about establishing a hierarch of family types. Rather, what is involved here is an attempt to establish a hierarchy for children. As Minister for Justice and Equality and as a former Minister for Children and Youth Affairs, that is what Deputy Fitzgerald should be seeking to do. Earlier, I provided some information in respect of different...

Seanad: Children and Family Relationships Bill 2015: Committee Stage (26 Mar 2015)

Jim Walsh: I wish to respond to a couple of points, as I am entitled to do on Committee Stage. There is a mistaken presumption running through the Bill that everyone is entitled to a child through assisted human reproduction. There is also a presumption that because some of us oppose sections 4 to 42 we are opposed to the principle of the legislation. That is not the case. My problem with the entire...

Seanad: Children and Family Relationships Bill 2015: Committee Stage (26 Mar 2015)

Jim Walsh: I find myself in agreement with all of what Senators Power and Mullen have said. I am not sure of best practice on how one accesses the information, but I have come across anecdotally instances where persons did not learn they were adopted until they were well into the teenage years and they felt a little betrayed. When it comes to Santa Claus, we all experience a touch of that where we...