Results 401-420 of 4,645 for speaker:Victor Boyhan

Seanad: Naval Service Deployment: Statements (13 Jul 2017)

Victor Boyhan: I am not a messenger boy for anybody.

Seanad: Financial Services and Pensions Ombudsman Bill 2017: Second Stage (18 Jul 2017)

Victor Boyhan: I also hope to be brief. I warmly welcome the Minister of State, Deputy D'Arcy, to the House. This Bill makes absolute sense. It is important when something makes sense and has been teased out and argued, and its merits put forward, we should move on with it. There is much criticism of new politics, but it can only be new politics if those from all parties and none make it work. That is...

Seanad: Mediation Bill 2017: Second Stage (18 Jul 2017)

Victor Boyhan: I welcome the Minister to the House. I thank the Minister for his comprehensive overview of the Mediation Bill 2017, which I welcome. The Minister summed up the purpose of the Bill in the final points of his speech. Anything that speeds up the resolution of disputes, reduces legal costs associated with disputes, reduces long waiting times and avoids adversarial court proceedings has to be...

Seanad: Planning and Development (Amendment) (No. 2) Bill 2017: Second Stage (18 Jul 2017)

Victor Boyhan: I welcome the Minister of State and his officials to the House. There is a housing crisis in this country. We know there is a shortage of supply in social and affordable housing and housing generally on the market. The Government published Rebuilding Ireland - Action Plan for Housing and Homelessness, and that is the policy. Therefore, it has to be pursued, not blindly by us but...

Seanad: Planning and Development (Amendment) (No. 2) Bill 2017: Committee and Remaining Stages (18 Jul 2017)

Victor Boyhan: I take on board what Senator Ó Clochartaigh has said. They are valid concerns. I do not have a problem with that. I started by saying that this Bill will enable us to deliver more houses but clearly, we do not want houses on sites that are not appropriate, nor do we want buildings that are built without proper planning controls, etc. The reality is, however, that these are sites that...

Seanad: Intoxicating Liquor (Amendment) Bill 2017: Committee and Remaining Stages (19 Jul 2017)

Victor Boyhan: I thank Senator Lawless for the Bill. I was very happy to co-sign it. He put an enormous amount of work into it from beginning to end. It has not had an easy passage. Many people had to be convinced and many changed their minds along the way. It must be acknowledged that it was not a walkover. Senator Lawless had to consult and convince people. He had to argue and set out the rationale...

Seanad: Order of Business (20 Jul 2017)

Victor Boyhan: There have been many recurring themes over the past year, including health, housing and education. I will not spend any time on them today, but they are all linked and are very important. That they keep recurring as Commencement matters and items raised on the Order of Business means we clearly need to focus more on them in the next term. I wish to keep my comments to Article 28A of the...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Housing Report: Dr. Mary Murphy and Dr. Rory Hearne, NUI Maynooth (20 Sep 2017)

Victor Boyhan: I thank Dr. Murphy and Dr. Hearne for their presentations this morning but more importantly, for their report. It is a serious piece of research and it raises many issues. There are the five key issues the witnesses discussed, namely, prevention, stocks and flows, emergency housing, HAP - which was discussed in great detail and about which I share many of their concerns - security of tenure...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Department of Housing, Planning and Local Government and Dublin Regional Homless Executive (20 Sep 2017)

Victor Boyhan: I am quite conscious of the time. By the way, it was very helpful that many of the witnesses were here at the first session because these two issues totally overlap. The witnesses might comment on the sunset clause set out by Dr. Hearne and Dr. Murphy with regard to the ending of hubs in December 2019 and the practicalities of that. Would they share that ambition? On hotels, we had...

Seanad: Order of Business (26 Sep 2017)

Victor Boyhan: I join previous speakers in congratulating all those involved in the restoration. I thank the Leader for organising a debate on housing which is well overdue. I am particularly delighted that the Minister is coming into the Chamber to speak about the issue. It is important that he tell us what his plans and changes are in terms of a reconfiguration of Rebuilding Ireland within 12 months....

Seanad: National Disability Inclusion Strategy 2017-2021: Statements (26 Sep 2017)

Victor Boyhan: I welcome the Minister of State. I do not doubt for one moment his commitment, but the reality, on which I want to be clear, is that there were great expectations for him on entering the Department. He had had an enormously long track record in the disability sector, but there was great disappointment. He says he is frustrated. I spent the past two weeks visiting a number of people who...

Seanad: Order of Business (27 Sep 2017)

Victor Boyhan: I do not have a specific request for the Leader, but I wish to refer to a very important news item. Ireland has been named as the country with the most secure food in the world. This was announced yesterday at the launch of the sixth annual global food security index and is a remarkable achievement. The news was published in the newspapers yesterday and again today. The index measures...

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Victims of Crime) Bill 2016: Committee Stage (27 Sep 2017)

Victor Boyhan: I move amendment No. 2:In page 6, after line 37, to insert the following:“ “investigating authority” shall include any body which has the responsibility and/or the statutory power to investigate and/or prosecute a criminal offence;”. I wish to be brief so I will not go on at any great length on the Bill noting its current state. I will take Members through the...

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Victims of Crime) Bill 2016: Committee Stage (27 Sep 2017)

Victor Boyhan: I endorse what Senators Bacik and Norris have said. It is disappointing. The Government has a number of amendments here. It did not seek amendments in this regard. I do not think it was anyone's intention to exclude the Health and Safety Authority, the Health Information and Quality Authority, HIQA, Tusla, the HSE, ComReg or any others. I take on board what Deputy Stanton said about the...

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Victims of Crime) Bill 2016: Committee Stage (27 Sep 2017)

Victor Boyhan: No.

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Victims of Crime) Bill 2016: Committee Stage (27 Sep 2017)

Victor Boyhan: I also appeal to the Minister of State to take this amendment on board. I acknowledge the work that the Victims Rights Alliance has done on this. It has been engaging with parliamentarians in both Houses on these important and serious matters. We are talking about victims of crime, which is a very serious issue. Most of the work that has been done on these amendments has come from...

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Victims of Crime) Bill 2016: Committee Stage (27 Sep 2017)

Victor Boyhan: I move amendment No. 15:In page 30, between lines 20 and 21, to insert the following:"(ii) by the insertion of the following words after "the relevant offence": "or was under 18 years of age at the time that he or she made a formal statement to a member of An Garda Síochána in respect of a relevant offence,". The rationale behind this amendment is the fact that this Bill does not...

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Victims of Crime) Bill 2016: Committee Stage (27 Sep 2017)

Victor Boyhan: Go on Minister.

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Victims of Crime) Bill 2016: Committee Stage (27 Sep 2017)

Victor Boyhan: I have heard what the Minister of State has said. He has been here for approximately an hour and according to him everything has merit. He came here with 40 amendments and he was aware of all of our amendments. One has to ask what are we doing in Seanad Éireann. I have been here for a year and a half. Are we wasting our time? The Minister of State has had the advantage of the...

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Victims of Crime) Bill 2016: Committee Stage (27 Sep 2017)

Victor Boyhan: I accept what the outcome of the vote will be, but it should come to a vote. Let us not be afraid of votes in this House-----