Results 81-100 of 1,759 for speaker:Lynn Boylan

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Fuel Poverty (8 Dec 2020)

Lynn Boylan: I thank the Minister of State and I welcome his comments. The Minister of State referred to the combat energy poverty strategy, which was from 2016 to 2019. A parliamentary response from the Minister, however, said that a review of the implementation of that strategy will be completed in 2021. This is a whole two years after it has run out. We are aware that the St. Vincent de Paul is...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (9 Dec 2020)

Lynn Boylan: Yesterday, Oxfam released another report that showed lower and middle-income people have cut their emissions while the richest 10% have grown theirs. These are EU figures but there is no reason to suspect that they do not hold true for Ireland. The words "just transition" are regularly thrown about but these figures suggest that the transition is anything but just. The rich go on flying...

Seanad: Annual Transition Statement on Climate Action and Low Carbon Development Act 2015: Statements (9 Dec 2020)

Lynn Boylan: I welcome the Minister. As others have noted, his contribution set out the passion he, like me, has for this area. I am sure he will also agree, however, that accountability is an important part of climate legislation and that Governments can make all the promises it wants, but without reducing emissions and delivering a just transition, and if the Government is not held to account, the...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (15 Dec 2020)

Lynn Boylan: The Government came within a whisker of ratifying the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement, CETA. If it were not for the 100 civil society organisations, trade unions and Opposition parties rallying on Friday evening, CETA could have been passed today with just 55 minutes of debate and a simple vote in the Dáil without this House having any say in the matter at all. People power...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (15 Dec 2020)

Lynn Boylan: Anyone who has social justice and human rights values at their core cannot support corporate courts. The former UN expert on human rights, Alfred-Maurice de Zayas, referred to corporate courts as an attack on the very essence of sovereignty and self-determination. Ireland has a thriving open economy. It has trading relationships all over the world. We have never had, nor have we ever...

Seanad: Access to Contraception: Motion (15 Dec 2020)

Lynn Boylan: I am here to speak on behalf of Sinn Féin's Seanad team to say that we welcome this motion and are happy to support it. As has been said by many others, this State has a long history of denying women the right to make decisions about their bodies. The referendum to repeal the eighth amendment was an important step in redressing that but the country still has a way to go. Previous...

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Data Centres (17 Dec 2020)

Lynn Boylan: Go raibh maith agat, a Chathaoirligh, and I welcome the Minister of State. I am here to raise the deeply concerning proliferation of data centres in the country. It seems they are now a new frontier for extraction where our cool climate and windy hillsides are ripe for the taking. We know that data centres are popping up all over the country and with them comes windfarms and fossil fuel...

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Data Centres (17 Dec 2020)

Lynn Boylan: I thank the Minister of State. I note he states that data centres have a flat demand but this means they are more likely to rely on electricity generated by fossil fuels. I wonder if there has been a cost-benefit analysis of the gas generators used as backup for the data centres or the long-term impact of fossil lock-in. Is there any possibility that the Minister will review how the...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (18 Dec 2020)

Lynn Boylan: I also wish everybody a happy Christmas. I thank you, a Chathaoirligh, the ushers, Martin Groves, Bridget Doody and everyone else in Leinster House. I try not to name them because I am afraid I will leave somebody out. I am sure everybody in the House will agree that the perfect Christmas present would be Sam staying in Dublin this weekend-----

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (18 Dec 2020)

Lynn Boylan: -----and will join me in that call.

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (18 Dec 2020)

Lynn Boylan: I know you do not mean that, a Chathaoirligh. On a positive note, Senator Currie spoke about the importance of the parties in the North working together. Last night, proof of that co-operation was evident in the announcement that in the North, schools will be supplied with period products free of charge from next year. I again call on the programme for Government commitment to provide free...

Seanad: Harassment, Harmful Communications and Related Offences Bill 2017: Second Stage (18 Dec 2020)

Lynn Boylan: I welcome the Minister of State. I also commend Deputy Howlin for instigating this important Bill which he first introduced in 2017. I am pleased that the Government has worked constructively to bring it to fruition. It is regrettable that it did not take the same approach to Deputy Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire’s Bill on establishing an online safety commissioner. Maybe as a new...

Seanad: Harassment, Harmful Communications and Related Offences Bill 2017: Second Stage (18 Dec 2020)

Lynn Boylan: How petty. I disagree.

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (19 Jan 2021)

Lynn Boylan: I wish everybody a happy new year. I raise the decision by the Government to sanction a pay rise of €90,000 per year for the post of Secretary General of the Department of Health. I ask the Leader of the House to ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, Deputy Michael McGrath, for his rationale for that decision. I would like him to outline the pension liabilities that...

Seanad: Report of the Mother and Baby Homes Commission of Investigation: Statements (19 Jan 2021)

Lynn Boylan: I thank the Leas-Chathaoirleach and welcome the Minister. I will start, as many others have, by paying tribute and commending all of the women and children who came forward and shared their stories. They should never have had to do it but when they took that step to disclose the most personal and harrowing stories, the least they could have expected was to be believed. This week has been...

Seanad: Response to Covid-19 (Social Protection): Statements (1 Feb 2021)

Lynn Boylan: I congratulate the Minister on becoming a grandmother and on the same arrival of baby Arthur. I hope the mother is thriving. Like other Senators, I commend the staff of the Department of Social Protection and its associated agencies because the pandemic posed a significant challenge and they certainly rose to it. I thank them for all their hard work in such challenging circumstances. I...

Seanad: Free Provision of Period Products Bill 2021: Second Stage (8 Feb 2021)

Lynn Boylan: What a shame it is that Ms Claire Hunt from Homeless Period Ireland cannot be here today because she has, from her kitchen table, provided menstrual dignity to thousands. She has sought no plaudits or awards. In fact, all she wants is for Homeless Period Ireland not to exist. When the cross-party motion was passed in the Dáil and Seanad, it was seen as a really positive step towards...

Seanad: Free Provision of Period Products Bill 2021: Second Stage (8 Feb 2021)

Lynn Boylan: I will move on to the other purpose of this Bill, which relates to the need for access to be universal because, as Senator Moynihan said, universality is an important part of addressing the stigma and shame around menstruation. We help to break that down through the visibility and accessibility of products. Universal access brings an end to the days of shoving the tampon up a sleeve or...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Engagement with Chairperson Designate of the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (9 Feb 2021)

Lynn Boylan: I congratulate Mr. Byrne on his appointment. I am conscious of time so I will get straight into my questions. Mr. Byrne mentioned he worked with African communities through Vita. I would be interested in hearing an outline of the plans of the Sustainable Energy Authority Ireland around resourcing and training the community energy sector. For example, the Scottish model provides an...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Engagement with Chairperson Designate of the ESB (9 Feb 2021)

Lynn Boylan: I congratulate Mr. O'Rourke on his appointment. I advise the Chairman I am in the Leinster House premises. My hand is frozen so the Chairman can take down my link after I ask my question. What is Mr. O'Rourke's view of the ESB's readiness to handle the community and microgeneration element of energy transition? We know Ireland is way behind in microgeneration compared to other EU member...