Results 881-900 of 9,393 for speaker:Alex White

Seanad: Adoption Bill 2009: Committee Stage (4 Mar 2009)

Alex White: On a point of order, it was my mistake and I think the Minister of State is correct.

Seanad: (4 Mar 2009)

Alex White: I suspect that Senator Fitzgerald is probably right in respect of the amendments, both of which I support strongly in what they seek to achieve.

Seanad: (4 Mar 2009)

Alex White: I entirely agree with you, a Chathaoirligh, but the finger inevitably points at the person whose microphone is on. I am just pointing out my innocence on this occasion. It was not my phone. I strongly support what Senators Bacik and Norris are proposing in these amendments. However, Senator Fitzgerald may be right in terms of the sequence of events, given that we are to have civil...

Seanad: Order of Business (5 Mar 2009)

Alex White: Somebody asked me last week whether I believe that politicians are part of the problem or part of the solution. The man in question was not sure of the answer to his own question. He was referring to politicians across the board. In view of the fact that 1,000 people are losing their jobs each day, we must recognise the need to shake ourselves up in the way we do business in this House. I...

Seanad: Investment of the National Pensions Reserve Fund and Miscellaneous Provisions Bill 2009: Second Stage (Resumed) (5 Mar 2009)

Alex White: I am not as concerned, and I do not become as excited, as Senator Butler about the use of the term "bail out" in respect of the banks. I have always understood that term to have originated from the need to remove water from a sinking ship. However, I am not sure whether that is the correct derivation. We are extending a huge indulgence and generosity to the banks and, in the circumstances,...

Seanad: Investment of the National Pensions Reserve Fund and Miscellaneous Provisions Bill 2009: Second Stage (Resumed) (5 Mar 2009)

Alex White: He usually states things reasonably clearly but many of his colleagues do not. There is an attempt to spin this matter even in some of the arguments from my colleagues on the Government benches who say it is good for the National Treasury Management Agency, the Government and so forth. It is not good that we must dip into this pension contingency fund. It is terrible that we have to do it...

Seanad: Order of Business (Resumed). (11 Mar 2009)

Alex White: Ar dtús by mhaith liom aontú leis an Seanadóir Ó Tuathail mar gheal ar an díospóireacht Gaeilge tráthnóna inniu, agus tá súil agam go mbeidh ama ar fáil do Pairtí an Lucht Oibre san díospóireacht sin. I hope all parties get an opportunity to contribute to that debate. The time allocated seems to be somewhat short, however. I agree with colleagues in respect of the events in...

Seanad: Order of Business (Resumed). (11 Mar 2009)

Alex White: Hear, hear.

Seanad: Adoption Bill 2009: Committee Stage (Resumed) (11 Mar 2009)

Alex White: I move amendment No. 6: In page 21, before section 16, to insert the following new section: 16.—(1) A child shall not be placed for adoption, nor may an application be made by the mother or a relative of the child for an adoption order, without the consent of the father or the court where the father is a guardian or is named on the child's birth certificate. (2) Where subsection (1) does...

Seanad: Adoption Bill 2009: Committee Stage (Resumed) (11 Mar 2009)

Alex White: I move amendment No. 12: In page 24, line 12, after "consideration" to insert the following: ", and it shall be presumed unless the contrary is shown that the welfare of the child is best promoted in the society of either or both of the child's natural parents". The test that arises from the Supreme Court decision in N and HSE is material to the amendment and to section 19 in general. The...

Seanad: Adoption Bill 2009: Committee Stage (Resumed) (11 Mar 2009)

Alex White: I am interested to hear what the Minister of State and my colleagues have said in this regard. It is probably fair to say the substance of the proposed amendment more closely approximates to our law than the section as drafted. I understand the Minister of State's point as to its relevance in this section and, for that reason alone, I will not be pressing the amendment at this point....

Seanad: Adoption Bill 2009: Committee Stage (Resumed) (11 Mar 2009)

Alex White:

Seanad: Adoption Bill 2009: Committee Stage (Resumed) (11 Mar 2009)

Alex White:

Seanad: Adoption Bill 2009: Committee Stage (Resumed) (11 Mar 2009)

Alex White: I understand the point being made by the Minister of State about the meaning and the finality of an adoption order and the bundle of legal rights that are associated with it. One could argue that one cannot have a halfway house and that it is either adoption or it is not and there has to be certainty about it. This is what section 58 touches upon and to which my amendment No. 44 relates. I...

Seanad: Adoption Bill 2009: Committee Stage (Resumed) (11 Mar 2009)

Alex White: I, too, question why this section is in the Bill. Its inclusion must be justified, rather than arguing for its removal. Why is it here? Certainly, it seems to jar with the main substances of the legislation. Is it some type of postscript, a genuflection, as it were, in the direction of religion? Without having heard the Minister of State on this, there seems to be no real reason for its...

Seanad: Adoption Bill 2009: Committee Stage (Resumed) (11 Mar 2009)

Alex White: On the final point made by Senator Bacik, I would like the Minister of State to comment on the question of its application in the context of inter-country adoptions. In looking at the Bill again perhaps I am missing something in terms of where the matter appears. Section 32 covers religion. Does it have equal application to inter-country adoptions? How on earth is it suggested it could...

Seanad: Adoption Bill 2009: Committee Stage (Resumed) (11 Mar 2009)

Alex White: I move amendment No. 20: In page 29, subsection (1), between lines 38 and 39, to insert the following: "(b) The applicants are a couple of the same sex over 21 years of age who can demonstrate that they have been living together within the jurisdiction for not less than two years and who have demonstrated to the appropriate authorities under this legislation that they are fit persons to...

Seanad: Adoption Bill 2009: Committee Stage (Resumed) (11 Mar 2009)

Alex White: I will support the amendment, as Senator Norris is not in attendance.

Seanad: Adoption Bill 2009: Committee Stage (Resumed) (11 Mar 2009)

Alex White: I move amendment No. 23: In page 31, line 1, to delete "The" and substitute the following: "Save in the case of an application by a natural parent or relative of the child, the". Section 34 addresses persons suitable for adoption or for the recognition of an intercountry adoption effected outside the State and sets out a number of tests. The amendment is intended to make an exception in...

Seanad: Adoption Bill 2009: Committee Stage (Resumed) (11 Mar 2009)

Alex White: I wish to respond briefly. I understand the points made by the Minister of State in respect of both amendments. With regard to amendment No. 23, he correctly states that he is opposed to any dilution of the basic principles and I have no difficulty with that. When I make that point, I do not suggest that it will be followed by a "but", to the effect that I wish to dilute any of the...