Results 421-440 of 2,017 for speaker:Paul Bradford

Seanad: Financial Services Regulation. (4 Jul 2006)

Paul Bradford: I am requesting the Minister for Finance to consider his powers through ministerial order to amend section 35 of the Credit Union Act 1997. Representations have been made to me and other Members because the Act restricts the amount of money credit unions can lend to their members on a five-year and ten-year loan basis. Only 20% of the credit union loan book can be lent over a five-year period...

Seanad: Foreign Conflicts: Motion. (5 Jul 2006)

Paul Bradford: I second the motion. Like Senator Ryan, I wish to state my strong assertion that the Israeli soldier currently being held should be released. The Senator concluded with the interesting example of what we said and did in terms of the Northern Ireland peace process and the first substantial ceasefire therein in 1994, from which we can learn. A word at the centre of the Northern peace process...

Seanad: Sugar Beet Industry. (5 Jul 2006)

Paul Bradford: I thank my colleague, Senator Browne, for giving me the opportunity to speak on this issue before the Minister for Agriculture and Food makes a decision on the compensation package, in particular on the package of €144 million. We have debated this issue ad nauseam in the House and elsewhere in recent months. The crucial decision will have to be made by the Minister in the next few days, or...

Seanad: Communications Masts. (6 Jul 2006)

Paul Bradford: I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Noel Ahern. I urge him to give consideration to amending the appropriate Planning and Development Act to ensure that we would have in place clear and understandable guidelines to govern the erection of mobile telephone masts. As a user of a mobile telephone, I would be the first to concede that with all other mobile telephone users I require a good...

Seanad: Communications Masts. (6 Jul 2006)

Paul Bradford: I thank the Minister of State for his reply. He said that the interdepartmental committee hopes to report by the end of this year. We should insist that it does so because it will have been investigating this issue for almost 15 months at that stage. Would the Minister of State not agree that until that report is in and the Government's interdepartmental committee has reported on the joint...

Seanad: Office of Tobacco Control Annual Report 2005: Statements (27 Sep 2006)

Paul Bradford: I welcome the Minister of State to the House and thank him for his contribution. I join him in his tributes to the former chief executive of the Office of Tobacco Control, Mr. Tom Power, and extend our sympathies to his family. Through his work, Mr. Power left an outstanding legacy which we must complete. The Minister of State said there are many challenges to face and the figures to which...

Seanad: White Paper on Irish Aid: Statements (4 Oct 2006)

Paul Bradford: I welcome the Minister of State to the House and thank him for his comments and presentation. It is not the first time the Minister of State has addressed this House on the issues of Ireland's aid budget and international responsibilities. He brings great determination, flair and energy to his portfolio and I congratulate him on his efforts to date. The Minister of State has correctly...

Seanad: Energy Resources: Motion (11 Oct 2006)

Paul Bradford: I wish to make a few comments on the motion and to refer to the possibility of bio-fuel production in the former sugar factory in Mallow. On the broader issue of alternative energy, I welcome the Government's timely Green Paper on energy. From a public policy point of view, there is possibly no greater issue facing the country than that of energy. Virtually every country in the European...

Seanad: Current Situation in the Middle East: Statements (18 Oct 2006)

Paul Bradford: I welcome the Minister of State. I realise time is short for discussing this important issue so I will try to keep my comments as brief as possible. The issues in the Middle East, whether it is the Palestinian conflict or the situations in Iraq or Iran, are all deeply profound and have been debated ad nauseam in this House. It is regrettable that since we last spoke, all these situations...

Seanad: Address by the European Union Ambassador to the United States (8 Nov 2006)

Paul Bradford: That would be telling.

Seanad: Address by the European Union Ambassador to the United States (8 Nov 2006)

Paul Bradford: I welcome Mr. Bruton back to Leinster House and I thank him for his interesting contribution. He spoke of conversations across America which I am sure will be the title of his next diary. Mr. Bruton spoke of the European Union giving us a psychological sense of security. The US has had this sense of security for three generations, largely due to its geographical and political isolation. I...

Seanad: Telecommunications Structures: Motion (8 Nov 2006)

Paul Bradford: I second the motion. I welcome the Minister of State from the Department of Communications, Marine and Natural Resources, Deputy John Browne, to the House to address this serious issue. I look forward to hearing his response and that of the Government. In May or June last I raised this issue and was advised that the Government was studying the report of the all-party Oireachtas Joint...

Seanad: Economic Competitiveness: Motion (22 Nov 2006)

Paul Bradford: I support the motion moved by Senator Quinn and my political colleagues. This discussion is very worthwhile and if we are all available, we should have a number of economic debates in advance of the budget where broad economic issues can be debated in detail. I hope Ministers would listen and even be willing to learn. Inflation, which is the topic before us, is not simply some vague...

Seanad: Domestic Violence: Statements (29 Nov 2006)

Paul Bradford: I apologise but I was unaware that this discussion was taking place and I am not very well briefed. Yesterday I attended a Council of Europe sub-committee meeting on equality between men and women and domestic violence was the subject of discussion. In Madrid on Monday a project was relaunched to address domestic violence, particularly against women. The project, led by the Council of...

Seanad: British-Irish Agreement (Amendment) Bill 2006: Second Stage (29 Nov 2006)

Paul Bradford: I welcome the Bill. While it may be brief and not the most exciting Anglo-Irish legislation, it is vital legislation which I support. The most important development in Northern Ireland in the past decade has been increased prosperity through trade. Once trade is revived and prosperity increases, there comes a growing demand across the spectrum for political progress and the establishment...

Seanad: British-Irish Agreement (Amendment) Bill 2006: Committee and Remaining Stages (29 Nov 2006)

Paul Bradford: I concur with the Leader's remarks. In the course of the debate, we went off at various tangents, but the Bill itself and the broader debate on Northern Ireland are positive and welcome. This Bill is yet another minor part of the bigger jigsaw of political progress in Northern Ireland. I thank the Minister of State for his presentation and replies to the questions raised, and wish the Bill...

Seanad: Tax Code: Motion (29 Nov 2006)

Paul Bradford: I support the motion and concur with the points raised by Senator McHugh regarding the construction industry. Some 20 years ago, the then Taoiseach, Charles Haughey, stated the country was living beyond its means. A few months ago, the present Tánaiste claimed the Government was living beyond its needs and should return the money raised from stamp duty. Next Wednesday, we will learn the...

Seanad: Leas Cross Nursing Home Report: Statements (29 Nov 2006)

Paul Bradford: I am glad to have the opportunity to contribute to this debate. I welcome the fact it is taking place because it helps bring further into the open the dreadful difficulties at Leas Cross. It must cause us to reflect on the possibility that Leas Cross was not alone in the difficulties it faced and it puts a strong moral obligation on the Government not just to investigate individual cases...

Seanad: Private Health Care Insurance. (29 Nov 2006)

Paul Bradford: I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Seán Power. I am interested in his views on competition in the health insurance market and, in particular, on the proposed introduction of risk equalisation. If the latter is implemented as proposed, it may well result in the health insurance market returning to a state of total monopoly by one provider. The Irish health insurance market is unique...

Seanad: Order of Business (7 Dec 2006)

Paul Bradford: Will the Leader arrange a debate for next week with the Minister of State at the Department of Finance on the decentralisation programme? This is the third anniversary of one of the most significant political announcements of the past decade, made in the Budget Statement of December 2003 by the then Minister of Finance, Mr. McCreevy, that 10,000 civil servants would be transferred throughout...