Results 781-800 of 4,414 for speaker:Sean Barrett

Seanad: Order of Business (21 Feb 2013)

Sean Barrett: I thank the Leader and Senator Bacik for alerting us to the social entrepreneurs who will speak later. It is a commendable exercise. Yesterday the House was alerted to the imminent dangers of the practice of medicine by doctors without insurance, with all sides of the House agreeing on the urgency of the matter contained in Senator Burke's Bill. The only element not in agreement was, of...

Seanad: Democratic Republic of Congo: Motion (21 Feb 2013)

Sean Barrett: I second the motion.

Seanad: Order of Business (26 Feb 2013)

Sean Barrett: We know that repairing the national finances requires us to address the two problems of debt and public pay. I commend the Ministers for Finance and Public Expenditure and Reform on showing no lack of effort in that regard. There remains, however, the problem of ensuring efficiency in public expenditure. Last week, the Secretary General of the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform,...

Seanad: Report on Child and Family Income Support: Statements (26 Feb 2013)

Sean Barrett: I welcome the Minister to the House and also welcome the report from Ms Ita Mangan. It is wonderful that we are discussing this today. I disagree with the principal of universalism and draw attention to page 74 of the report where it records people on a gross salary of ¤250,000 receiving ¤3,360 in child benefit. I cannot think of a less worthy use of ¤3,360 than to give it to somebody...

Seanad: Ireland's Presidency of the European Council: Statements (26 Feb 2013)

Sean Barrett: I welcome the Minister of State to the House. As stated by other Senators, the manner in which she presents her speeches in this House, the information therein and her attitude towards this House is most welcome. She will always be of interest to us as she updates us about the Presidency. I agree with other Senators - Senator Zappone has offered to act as an interpreter - that we should use...

Seanad: Ireland's Presidency of the European Council: Statements (26 Feb 2013)

Sean Barrett: We are putting more in than we get back.

Seanad: Ireland's Presidency of the European Council: Statements (26 Feb 2013)

Sean Barrett: We are pretty near the equilibrium. We must ensure that what we get is not dissipated through bureaucracy. There are concerns, including among Government Senators, about projects such as Leader and so on. I share Senator Quinn's concern about the Common Agricultural Policy, CAP. It might have made sense a long time ago. If we have the same climate and environment as New Zealand why do we...

Seanad: Taxi Regulation Bill 2012: Committee Stage (Resumed) (27 Feb 2013)

Sean Barrett: I move amendment No. 26: In page 19, subsection (1), line 41, after ?the? to insert ?quality?.This amendment seeks to allay fears that this is not the reintroduction of quantity licensing by other devices. It is important for it to be seen that this is not the reintroduction of the system which was overturned by the High Court in four decisions; the notable one was in 2000. We already have...

Seanad: Taxi Regulation Bill 2012: Committee Stage (Resumed) (27 Feb 2013)

Sean Barrett: I thank the Minister of State and should have welcomed him to the House as I fumbled through some papers. While I accept what the Minister of State has said, I greatly regret it because the picture every economist in the country can see is an attempt being made by the licenceholders who occupied buildings and closed off the airport. Moreover, the Department has caved in to give them what...

Seanad: Taxi Regulation Bill 2012: Committee Stage (Resumed) (27 Feb 2013)

Sean Barrett: I move amendment No. 27: In page 21, subsection (1)(a)(ii), line 2, to delete ", markings or colour of the vehicle".I am not as inflexible on this amendment as I was on the last. Part timers in this industry perform a valuable function because the business is so heavily skewed between Thursdays and Saturdays. The contrary view is that a taxi should have all sorts of decorations on it in...

Seanad: Taxi Regulation Bill 2012: Committee Stage (Resumed) (27 Feb 2013)

Sean Barrett: I move amendment No. 28: In page 21, subsection (1)(a), to delete lines 37 to 39.This relates to the concern we have expressed in these debates of area licensing being reintroduced. The section states "the areas or locations where the drivers of small public service vehicles may carry on activities of operating small public service vehicles;". Perhaps the Minster of State may come back to...

Seanad: Taxi Regulation Bill 2012: Committee Stage (Resumed) (27 Feb 2013)

Sean Barrett: Again the Minister of State confirms my fears. When the Commission for Taxi Regulation was set up, it was to do the job nationally and remove the local authorities from the picture. We are now reintroducing local licences and once again these will be sold on the market in areas where there is a scarcity. I will not press the amendment but this is another defect in the Bill.

Seanad: Taxi Regulation Bill 2012: Committee Stage (Resumed) (27 Feb 2013)

Sean Barrett: I move amendment No. 32: In page 23, subsection (1)(i), line 8, to delete ?conduct,? and substitute ?conduct and?.The purpose of the amendment is to provide for the flexibility required in the taxi industry. It is unduly restrictive to introduce laws about the deportment and dress of drivers. What action will be taken if it is a warm day and a taxi driver is wearing a t-shirt or football...

Seanad: Taxi Regulation Bill 2012: Committee Stage (Resumed) (27 Feb 2013)

Sean Barrett: I move amendment No. 34: In page 23, lines 31 to 38, to delete subsection (2).The amendment proposes to delete subsection (2), which provides that the National Transport Authority, in making regulations under the section, may set different requirements and conditions in relation to the operation of different categories of small public service vehicles and their drivers, dispatch operators and...

Seanad: Taxi Regulation Bill 2012: Committee Stage (Resumed) (27 Feb 2013)

Sean Barrett: I regret I will not press it because the Bill is going down the wrong road.

Seanad: Taxi Regulation Bill 2012: Committee Stage (Resumed) (27 Feb 2013)

Sean Barrett: I move amendment No. 35: In page 24, lines 36 to 43 and in page 25, lines 1 to 10, to delete subsections (6) to (8).It is proposed to turn what started out as a code of practice into a legal offence in this provision. While codes of practice are useful to try to raise standards, this provision provides for the imposition of penalties for some offences which appear to be trivial, to say the...

Seanad: Taxi Regulation Bill 2012: Committee Stage (Resumed) (27 Feb 2013)

Sean Barrett: I thank the Minister of State.

Seanad: Taxi Regulation Bill 2012: Committee Stage (Resumed) (27 Feb 2013)

Sean Barrett: I move amendment No. 39: In page 27, subsection (3)(a)(i), line 17, to delete "and".This is designed to strengthen consumer representation. I ask that, in addition to the bodies that the Minister must consult - the advisory committee and the Legal Metrology Service - the National Consumer Council have a say. My concern about the Bill in general is that it is definitely pro-producer and...

Seanad: Taxi Regulation Bill 2012: Committee Stage (Resumed) (27 Feb 2013)

Sean Barrett: I support Senator Reilly's amendment. One of the first pieces of work I did in this area was on the colour coding of taxis in west Belfast, Derry and north Belfast, which worked extremely well. It is an excellent service, of high frequency and operational for many hours. There are lessons for us in it being possible to do this in Northern Ireland, in the context as eloquently described by...

Seanad: Taxi Regulation Bill 2012: Committee Stage (Resumed) (27 Feb 2013)

Sean Barrett: I note the Minister of State's comments. The thrust of the Bill is anti-competitive. The thrust of the way in which the NTA was set up was anti-competitive. When the then Senator, Deputy Paschal Donohoe tried to raise a number of issues in this House, the debate was guillotined. The then President, Mary McAleese, was required to sign the legislation at short notice. We allocated every...