Results 921-940 of 4,608 for speaker:Joe O'Toole
- Seanad: Order of Business. (2 Mar 2004)
Joe O'Toole: On a number of recent occasions, the House has debated the importance of a press council. Over the weekend and last week we saw extraordinary levels of coverage of the terrible killing of a young man outside Club Anabel. We saw how many lives were ruined by it and people will be paying the price for a long time. Views were expressed that there would have been less press coverage if those...
- Seanad: Order of Business. (2 Mar 2004)
Joe O'Toole: She will never recover from that and her reputation will be sullied. It will be thrown at her and she will be made responsible in many ways. We can understand the other levels of media coverage, but to use and abuse someone who inadvertently happened to be a witness and had no hand, act or part in the act, in this manner is completely and utterly wrong. We should have a view on the matter and...
- Seanad: Order of Business. (2 Mar 2004)
Joe O'Toole: Quite right.
- Seanad: Order of Business. (2 Mar 2004)
Joe O'Toole: Pure chemistry.
- Seanad: Order of Business. (2 Mar 2004)
Joe O'Toole: Now the Leader tells us.
- Seanad: Industrial Relations (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2003: Committee and Remaining Stages. (2 Mar 2004)
Joe O'Toole: I welcome this legislation. I pay tribute to the Minister of State's contribution to the Bill and the flexibility and openness with which he dealt with it. We have had many rows over the years on many issues but this Bill has been improved substantially since it was first drafted and aspects of it which were of concern to the trade union side have been resolved. I agree with Senator McDowell...
- Seanad: Order of Business. (3 Mar 2004)
Joe O'Toole: I support the point Senator Brian Hayes made on the commission on electronic voting. This is a very divisive political issue on which parties have taken positions. It is wrong to place people of unimpeachable integrity, such as the Clerks of both Houses, in the position of having to mediate, adjudicate and pronounce on a highly charged political issue. It was not contemplated when their roles...
- Seanad: Order of Business. (3 Mar 2004)
Joe O'Toole: The Malaysian crusader.
- Seanad: Address by Mr. John Hume, MEP. (3 Mar 2004)
Joe O'Toole: On behalf of the Independent benches, it gives me great pleasure to welcome Mr. Hume to the House. It has always been a continuing difficulty which I have discussed with Mr. Hume on many occasions that because he has had so many titles, we never knew whether to call him the Right Honourable, or my honourable friend, or Excellency. I have always tended to irritate people by referring to him as...
- Seanad: Aer Lingus Bill 2003: Second Stage. (3 Mar 2004)
Joe O'Toole: I wish to share my time with Senator Ross, by agreement.
- Seanad: Aer Lingus Bill 2003: Second Stage. (3 Mar 2004)
Joe O'Toole: I welcome the Bill. I remember the dark days of the last quarter of 2001. I know what went on at the airport and in Government. It looked as if Aer Lingus would go down, although that was not for want of support. It is important to remember that the Government was prepared to put money into Aer Lingus but that was not allowed because of European competition legislation. While President Bush...
- Seanad: Aer Lingus Bill 2003: Second Stage. (3 Mar 2004)
Joe O'Toole: The Senator does not like workers owning the company.
- Seanad: Aer Lingus Bill 2003: Second Stage. (3 Mar 2004)
Joe O'Toole: He feels he has gone far enough to the left today. The House should not worry about him.
- Seanad: Aer Lingus Bill 2003: Second Stage. (3 Mar 2004)
Joe O'Toole: If we only had the newspapers on our side, we would be fine.
- Seanad: Order of Business. (4 Mar 2004)
Joe O'Toole: I agree fully with the points made by Senator Brian Hayes, and I want to raise a related issue. IBEC, with which I do not normally agree, produced an excellent report recently about the lack of investment in industry in the west and mid-west. I ask the Leader to make time available to discuss that report. I have raised in this House many times before the importance of the rail link between...
- Seanad: Order of Business. (4 Mar 2004)
Joe O'Toole: Unlike the All-Ireland finals.
- Seanad: Garda Síochána Bill 2004: Second Stage (Resumed). (4 Mar 2004)
Joe O'Toole: I welcome the Minister and compliment him on introducing a Bill that is creative and goes into new areas. I hope it works. The Minister was present throughout the Second Stage debate to hear the very interesting points made in Members' contributions and I look forward to his reply. However, let me apologise at this stage because I will not be present for it, but I will look very closely at...
- Seanad: Garda Síochána Bill 2004: Second Stage (Resumed). (4 Mar 2004)
Joe O'Toole: I am sorry to upset a Member on the far side and on my own side as well. I would be reassured to know that gardaà were not members. I know that there is a connection between police forces in Europe and the masons, which has bothered many people and has been stopped in some countries. Will the Minister confirm that it would be inappropriate for a garda, having taken this oath, to be a member...
- Seanad: Garda Síochána Bill 2004: Second Stage (Resumed). (4 Mar 2004)
Joe O'Toole: Let us think about it. The Bill provides for the appointment by the Government of persons to the ranks of deputy commissioner and assistant commissioner and chief superintendent and superintendent. It is valid that the Government may do this and I do not have a difficulty with it. If one reads the Civil Service legislation, one will see that until recently, a civil servant at the lowest level...
- Seanad: Garda Síochána Bill 2004: Second Stage (Resumed). (4 Mar 2004)
Joe O'Toole: I have no problem with the GRA and my comments are not meant critically. The GRA is a member of the ICPSA which is a nominating body for the Seanad's labour panel. While I see nothing wrong with the active role the GRA has always played in the ICPSA, I cannot see how it is amenable to the legislation.