Results 41-60 of 969 for speaker:John McGahon

Seanad: Residential Tenancies Bill 2020: Second Stage (23 Oct 2020)

John McGahon: I apologise again to Senators Moynihan and Warfield for mixing up the sequence. I am sure I will not be let back into the Chair after that mistake.

Seanad: Residential Tenancies Bill 2020: Second Stage (23 Oct 2020)

John McGahon: You have 15 minutes. I apologise, the Minister has six minutes. I will not be picked as an Acting Chairman again. I will hand over to a more experienced Senator.

Seanad: Health (Amendment) Bill 2020: Second Stage (23 Oct 2020)

John McGahon: The point I will make has nothing to do with the Minister of State, Deputy Feighan, who is the Government representative in the House today. I have spent the past two days listening to Senators from all sides talk about rushing through legislation. Senator Ward spoke eloquently on this just now. It becomes a little like the boy who cried wolf when we continuously argue that Bills are...

Seanad: Health (Amendment) Bill 2020: Second Stage (23 Oct 2020)

John McGahon: My apologies. The Senator argued that the regulations may affect the solidarity of people. I do not believe it will. I believe it will actually enhance people's solidarity as I will explain. People have often said to me that they and their family are abiding by the rules and breaking their backs to do the right thing, yet they constantly see people on Facebook and other social media going...

Seanad: Health (Amendment) Bill 2020: Second Stage (23 Oct 2020)

John McGahon: That is why this legislation is needed. Senators McDowell and Ward and others have pointed out various flaws. That is a problem that arises when Bills are rushed through the House in a day but I still fully support the Bill. One of the things I find most galling about the anti-mask protests, which I saw on the day I was caught up in one, is the use of our national flag, the tricolour....

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Urban Regeneration and Development Fund (11 Nov 2020)

John McGahon: Thank you for your condolences, a Leas-Chathaoirligh. My cousin Niall McGahon famously won an FAI Cup medal in 1958 with Dundalk FC at the age of 18 years, so I appreciate that. I submitted this Commencement matter today on urban regeneration funding because it is such an important issue for the north end of Dundalk town. The Bridge Street and Linenhall Street area has essentially been a...

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Urban Regeneration and Development Fund (11 Nov 2020)

John McGahon: I thank the Minister of State for all his support for this application in recent weeks. While Dundalk is the largest town in Ireland, the Minister of State's home town of Mullingar has similar issues. He knows the issues at stake here, therefore. He is right to state that this is transformative funding. It has the potential to unlock previously unimagined ideas. Much urban regeneration...

Seanad: Recognition of Irish Military Service at Jadotville in 1961: Statements (11 Nov 2020)

John McGahon: I thank Senator O'Reilly, the Fine Gael spokesperson on defence, for allowing me to lead in this debate on behalf of our party. Before I get into the merits of this debate and why I believe we should have these medals awarded, I pay tribute to individuals, like Senator Craughwell and former Senator Gabrielle McFadden, who were lone voices in the wilderness for so long. They are now being...

Seanad: Disability Day Services: Statements (11 Nov 2020)

John McGahon: Five minutes is more than enough. I would just like to make a couple of points, my remarks will be brief. I spoke to some parents yesterday in preparation for and anticipation of this debate, to get a fuller sense of some of the issues they are facing. I will talk about some of the issues today. The common theme I got from a number of parents yesterday is, essentially, that every single...

Seanad: Political Donations: Motion (11 Nov 2020)

John McGahon: Tonight's Private Members' motion is linked to a €4 million donation provided to Sinn Féin which, according to the estate of William Hampton, is "for the political party in the Republic of Ireland known at this time as Sinn Féin". I really believe Sinn Féin has some real questions to ask itself and a chance to look at its moral compass, if one even exists, and decide...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement: Shared Island Unit: Department of the Taoiseach (12 Nov 2020)

John McGahon: Deputy O'Dowd and I would be delighted to welcome everybody to the Narrow Water bridge project in north Louth. It would be very remiss of me not to mention the former councillor, Mr. Tommy Elmore, now long dead, who put the concept of the bridge on the map. It was his brainchild and he was pushing it in the 1980s and 1990s, long before any of us came along. It would be remiss of me not to...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement: Cross-Border Further and Higher Education Sectors: Discussion (19 Nov 2020)

John McGahon: It is hard not to get jealous, given I come from Dundalk, when we look at how well Letterkenny and Derry are doing with this type of co-operation. Perhaps DKIT and Dundalk, which is the largest Border town, missed out on a real opportunity to try to get some sort of collaboration, such as is being done here. From a personal perspective, I look at it like that. The witnesses mentioned a...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (24 Nov 2020)

John McGahon: I seek a discussion on the concept of the vaccine strategy and the roll-out behind it.There has been wonderful news every Monday for the last three weeks about the strength of the vaccines. Yesterday, the Taoiseach said that he wants to present the roll-out strategy to the Government on 11 December. Perhaps we should consider inviting the Minister to the House before Christmas for...

Seanad: Credit Union Restructuring Board (Dissolution) Bill 2019: Second Stage (24 Nov 2020)

John McGahon: As there is no one from the Independent group, I call Senator Casey.

Seanad: Credit Union Restructuring Board (Dissolution) Bill 2019: Second Stage (24 Nov 2020)

John McGahon: When is it proposed to take Committee Stage?

Seanad: Credit Union Restructuring Board (Dissolution) Bill 2019: Second Stage (24 Nov 2020)

John McGahon: Is that agreed? Agreed.

Seanad: Reopening Ireland (Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment): Statements (26 Nov 2020)

John McGahon: I find it astonishing that we have a serious debate on the reopening of our country's retail but the best Opposition that was ever going to be provided in the history of the State has not even bothered to turn up.

Seanad: Reopening Ireland (Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment): Statements (26 Nov 2020)

John McGahon: Was there anything wrong with what I said?

Seanad: Reopening Ireland (Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment): Statements (26 Nov 2020)

John McGahon: I will be mindful of it. While I will take the Acting Chairman's advice, with all due respect, they should be here. I am not sure if there are many committees sitting at this time on a Thursday. Perhaps the fact that there are no votes for the rest of the day means people skedaddled earlier. I can only assume and cannot make any real guesses about it.

Seanad: Reopening Ireland (Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment): Statements (26 Nov 2020)

John McGahon: Please, Acting Chairman. I have a limited amount of time.