Results 841-860 of 904 for speaker:Ray Butler

Seanad: Order of Business (17 Apr 2018)

Ray Butler: I wish to address the issue of local authorities privatising traffic warden services in rural towns. This is being done to let private companies come in to be ruthless. The service was privatised in Navan in my county of Meath around eight months ago. A company came in and was absolutely ruthless over the Christmas period with people trying to do their Christmas shopping. I believe that...

Seanad: Order of Business (24 Apr 2018)

Ray Butler: I want to raise a survey carried out in England by Cancer Research UK which suggests that television advertisements for sweets, crisps and fast foods have a real impact on primary school children. Health organisations are looking for tougher advertising curbs in the forthcoming Government child obesity strategy. According to recent government statistics for England, about one fifth of...

Seanad: Councillors' Conditions: Statements (Resumed) (24 Apr 2018)

Ray Butler: At 10.30 a.m. tomorrow morning.

Seanad: Order of Business (3 May 2018)

Ray Butler: There is a shortage of dementia beds in County Meath, relating to issues in St. Joseph's public nursing home in Trim. In 2012 and 2013, HIQA published a report showing that St. Joseph's was not up to HIQA standards. Senator James Reilly when he was Minister for Health came on board and allocated €1.2 million to St. Joseph's which ended up being a new 50-patient nursing home and...

Seanad: Order of Business (22 May 2018)

Ray Butler: I also add my sympathies to the families of Jastine Valdez and Ana Kriegel. It is very sad to see a young girl going about her everyday business and to end up dying in such a brutal way. I wish to speak today about vacant properties in town centres in rural areas. I would like to see tax reliefs such as we had during the Celtic tiger in order that people can do up their premises within a...

Seanad: Order of Business (23 May 2018)

Ray Butler: Hear, hear.

Seanad: Order of Business (20 Jun 2018)

Ray Butler: I will also outline my sentiments regarding the actions of the USA in respect of the American-Mexican border. To hear the recording of small children crying and looking for their parents was horrific. I would like the House to write to the American Embassy and say this is not good enough and that we will not accept it. It was horrendous to hear the recording on ITV last night of little...

Seanad: Order of Business (3 Jul 2018)

Ray Butler: I wish to raise the issue of convicted sex offenders travelling from Britain to start new lives in Ireland. In my area, two sex offenders were caught in Trim and Athboy, County Meath. Last week, a man was discovered to be waiting for two 14-year old girls that he had groomed online to arrive by bus from Dublin. Thankfully, it was a sting operation and he was caught.

Seanad: Order of Business (3 Jul 2018)

Ray Butler: The man was caught by a group of citizens.

Seanad: Order of Business (3 Jul 2018)

Ray Butler: Yes.

Seanad: Order of Business (3 Jul 2018)

Ray Butler: One can listen online to a recording of what he had posted online. His postings were sick beyond belief. Why does the State not prevent such convicted monsters from entering this country and starting new lives here? They should be deported back to where they came from. We need to introduce an Australian style policy to deal with convicted sex offenders. I have seen the devastation...

Seanad: Judicial Appointments Commission Bill 2017: Committee Stage (Resumed) (9 Jul 2018)

Ray Butler: Senator Norris got it from a friend.

Seanad: Order of Business (10 Jul 2018)

Ray Butler: I would like to offer my sympathies to the families of Jack Kenneally and Shay Moloney, who were drowned in a disused quarry on the outskirts of Ennis. I spoke about this issue many months ago given many quarry owners went bust during the recession and just walked away. In my constituency, there are several quarries like this and there are others all over the country. The bonds that...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Social Protection: Pre-Budget Discussion: Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection (25 Sep 2018)

Ray Butler: I thank the Minister for coming before the committee today. I welcome the news that the Christmas bonus will be paid this year. It is a huge boost for local businesses and very good news for people living in rural Ireland. Naturally, I will start the ball rolling by raising the issue of the discrimination of self-employed people in terms of social protection over the years. Four hundred...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Social Protection: Pre-Budget Discussion: Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection (25 Sep 2018)

Ray Butler: I thank the Minister.

Seanad: Budget 2019: Statements (9 Oct 2018)

Ray Butler: I welcome the Minister of State. We will end discussion on budget 2019 on a happy note. Seven and a half years ago I came into this building as a self-employed person. I had seen what the crash had done in 2010 and 2011. While out canvassing, I had met many self-employed whose businesses had gone during the crash. I remember one particular time in Kildalkey in County Meath. I was...

Seanad: Greyhound Racing Bill 2018: Second Stage (17 Oct 2018)

Ray Butler: I welcome the Minister of State and I welcome this long-overdue Bill. I have been involved in the breeding of greyhounds and the greyhound industry all of my life. It is the best breeding industry we have in this country, and Irish greyhounds are raced all over the world. Between full-time and part-time trainers in the greyhound industry, approximately 10,000 to 10,500 people are involved...

Seanad: Greyhound Racing Bill 2018: Second Stage (17 Oct 2018)

Ray Butler: I welcome the Bill. I have much more to say but I will finish by saying that breeding rates are down all over the country and we need a new scheme for breeding. We had a scheme in the 1990s that worked well, where if one kept a brood bitch and raced her for ten races, one received IR£150, while if one kept her for another ten races, one received IR£300. If that bitch produced a...

Seanad: Order of Business (23 Oct 2018)

Ray Butler: They might come in and join us-----

Seanad: Order of Business (23 Oct 2018)

Ray Butler: I want to talk about the Department of Education and Skills and thank the new Minister for his quick response in providing measures to deal with the school buildings that have structural failures. I refer to the issue of leaving schools vacant when the school moves to another location. There are former school sites in four areas in my constituency, namely, Trim, Athboy, Kildalkey and Kells....