Results 10,461-10,480 of 18,851 for speaker:Fergus O'Dowd

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Accessibility of Public Transport for People with Disabilities: Discussion (Resumed) (7 Feb 2018)

Fergus O'Dowd: I thank Mr. Moran for his contribution and the clarity of the points he made. It should not have been the case that Mr. Moran asked to meet the CEO of Irish Rail but the CEO refused to meet with him. If it is in order, the committee will write to the CEO and ask him to meet with Mr. Moran as a matter of urgency to listen to the points Mr. Moran wishes to make to him. It is disrespectful of...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Accessibility of Public Transport for People with Disabilities: Discussion (Resumed) (7 Feb 2018)

Fergus O'Dowd: I will call Senator O'Mahony next but on the Irish Rail issue, we asked all the transport providers' chief executives to come before this committee and all of them attended, with the exception of the gentleman Mr. Moran mentioned. He did not turn up that day, and I raised the point that he should have been here with the company's representative. I repeat that he has to meet the witnesses...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Accessibility of Public Transport for People with Disabilities: Discussion (Resumed) (7 Feb 2018)

Fergus O'Dowd: Would Deputy O'Keeffe like to ask questions also and Mr. Moran might answer both?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Accessibility of Public Transport for People with Disabilities: Discussion (Resumed) (7 Feb 2018)

Fergus O'Dowd: I refer to Mr. Moran's point on Irish Rail not providing a service when it has been requested. If there was a requirement on the transport provider to publish those figures on such incidents monthly or bimonthly, at least it would be obliged to account for them. I refer not just to the primary issue of not having the service. If transport providers were obliged to put figures into the...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Accessibility of Public Transport for People with Disabilities: Discussion (Resumed) (7 Feb 2018)

Fergus O'Dowd: I call Deputy Brady and then, after Mr. Moran is finished, we will go to Deputies Barry and Catherine Murphy.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Accessibility of Public Transport for People with Disabilities: Discussion (Resumed) (7 Feb 2018)

Fergus O'Dowd: As Deputy Barry is under time pressure, with the permission of the committee I propose to call Deputies Barry and Catherine Murphy before I invite the witnesses to reply. Our members are coming and going because of the business in the House.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Accessibility of Public Transport for People with Disabilities: Discussion (Resumed) (7 Feb 2018)

Fergus O'Dowd: Mr. Moran has the floor. Deputy Barry is very interested in Mr. Moran's replies to his questions.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Accessibility of Public Transport for People with Disabilities: Discussion (Resumed) (7 Feb 2018)

Fergus O'Dowd: Yes, we can ask the Minister to respond to that. I have one question about the point Mr. Moran made that because he found employment, he automatically lost his entitlement to an allowance or travel subsidy or free travel. Some social welfare entitlements, notwithstanding the fact that someone goes back to work, continue for a period of time thereafter. In other words, as part of the...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Accessibility of Public Transport for People with Disabilities: Discussion (Resumed) (7 Feb 2018)

Fergus O'Dowd: Sometimes when people who may have an entitlement to, for example, a medical card return to work, notwithstanding the fact that they are then in excess of the means test, they can continue to hold it for a period. With something like that, Mr. Moran would not be placed in the invidious position of being afraid to use transport because these people are waiting to grab him. It is entirely...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Accessibility of Public Transport for People with Disabilities: Discussion (Resumed) (7 Feb 2018)

Fergus O'Dowd: We should put it to her if the committee agrees. We should ask her to examine this as a matter of importance and urgency because it is entirely wrong that this would happen to Mr. Moran and that those people would be waiting for him. I thank our witnesses for appearing before the committee and for their most informative presentations. I hope they are staying for the second part of the...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Accessibility of Public Transport for People with Disabilities: Discussion (Resumed) (7 Feb 2018)

Fergus O'Dowd: The purpose of this part of the meeting is to continue our discussion on accessibility of public transport for people with disabilities. This is the fifth in a series of hearings. We have previously heard from transport users and, more recently, transport operators. We will now hear from the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport, Deputy Shane Ross. He and his officials are very...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Accessibility of Public Transport for People with Disabilities: Discussion (Resumed) (7 Feb 2018)

Fergus O'Dowd: I was not aware of that. I thank the Minister for informing the committee. The members and I absolutely share the Minister's expressions of concern.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Accessibility of Public Transport for People with Disabilities: Discussion (Resumed) (7 Feb 2018)

Fergus O'Dowd: I thank the Minister for his address and for the clear commitments he has made in his Department to provide additional funding and so on. Before I call the members in the rotation which we normally agree, one important issue was raised today by Padraic Moran, who met the Minister last week. A key point he made was that he has requested on at least three separate occasions to meet the chief...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Accessibility of Public Transport for People with Disabilities: Discussion (Resumed) (7 Feb 2018)

Fergus O'Dowd: Of course.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Accessibility of Public Transport for People with Disabilities: Discussion (Resumed) (7 Feb 2018)

Fergus O'Dowd: I agree with the Minister. Will he support the request to write to the chief executive of Irish Rail to meet Mr. Moran as a matter of urgency?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Accessibility of Public Transport for People with Disabilities: Discussion (Resumed) (7 Feb 2018)

Fergus O'Dowd: We asked all the chief executives of the transport companies to come here and they did, except for the chief executive of Irish Rail, who did not turn up. I raised this with the company's representative and said it was not acceptable. If the company's representatives are to have any credibility, they must be personally accountable. The role of this committee is to hold such people accountable.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Accessibility of Public Transport for People with Disabilities: Discussion (Resumed) (7 Feb 2018)

Fergus O'Dowd: I do not wish to interrupt the Senator but the clerk contacted the Department on that issue yesterday. The Department agreed to release information in this respect. I appreciate it is a very important question but I ask that we deal with it later and we deal with it separately from disability matters. That is not to take from the Senator's question at all. Perhaps the Minister will...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Accessibility of Public Transport for People with Disabilities: Discussion (Resumed) (7 Feb 2018)

Fergus O'Dowd: I will call Deputy O'Keeffe and then the Minister can answer the questions from those four Members.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Accessibility of Public Transport for People with Disabilities: Discussion (Resumed) (7 Feb 2018)

Fergus O'Dowd: I will ask the Minister to respond to those points and then we will go to our Independent Deputies. Do they want to come in now?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Accessibility of Public Transport for People with Disabilities: Discussion (Resumed) (7 Feb 2018)

Fergus O'Dowd: Sorry, whichever member wishes to go first.