Results 1,121-1,140 of 11,255 for speaker:Colm Burke

Seanad: End-of-Life Care and Bereavement: Motion (16 Apr 2014)

Colm Burke: I formally withdraw the amendment. I welcome the Minister of State to the House. I also welcome this debate and thank the Senators for bringing it forward. As set out in the motion, on average 29,000 people die every year and for every person who dies ten people, directly or indirectly, are affected which amounts to 290,000 people. The motion covers a number of different issues. It is...

Seanad: Protection of Children's Health from Tobacco Smoke Bill 2012: Report and Final Stages (17 Apr 2014)

Colm Burke: I fully agree with the amendments the Minister has set out. I welcome making the driver responsible even if someone other than the driver is smoking. In the initial debate I spoke about a driver under the age of 18 who is smoking. The amendments there are very welcome. The amendments deal comprehensively with the defence and ensuring that road safety needs to be taken into account in...

Seanad: Protection of Children's Health from Tobacco Smoke Bill 2012: Report and Final Stages (17 Apr 2014)

Colm Burke: I thank Senators John Crown, Jillian van Turnhout and Mark Daly for their work on the Bill. I also thank the Department and the Minister for their work on it. It is welcome that we are using the process in the House to bring forward new legislation. Senator John Crown said it had taken two years for his Bill to come through, but in October 2009 the Minister and I published the Medical...

Seanad: Order of Business (7 May 2014)

Colm Burke: It is less than in Northern Ireland.

Seanad: Order of Business (7 May 2014)

Colm Burke: First, I join Senator van Turnhout in welcoming the opening of the female genital mutilation, FGM, clinic in Ireland. Interestingly, an Irish person opened the first such clinic in the United Kingdom approximately 21 years ago. The reason it was opened was because a huge number of Somali woman came into United Kingdom and into London in particular and suddenly hospitals there had a new...

Seanad: Services for People with Disabilities: Motion (7 May 2014)

Colm Burke: I thank Labour Party Senators for tabling the motion. This has been a good debate, to which I propose to make a very short contribution. On the issue of people with disabilities returning to work, I recently dealt with a case involving a person who lives in an area of high unemployment - the Minister of State will be familiar with the area - and returned to employment for 20 hours per week....

Seanad: Adjournment Matters: Telecommunications Services Provision (7 May 2014)

Colm Burke: I thank the Minister for taking the time to deal with this matter which relates to an area at Courtbrack, which is less than 15 miles from Cork city and approximately four miles from Blarney. There are over 250 houses there but it has inadequate telephone lines and broadband, as well as insufficient access to mobile phone reception. There is a letter from Eircom, dated 15 April, which...

Seanad: Adjournment Matters: Telecommunications Services Provision (7 May 2014)

Colm Burke: I thank the Minister. I wrote to the Department some time ago and I awaited a response on the roll-out of broadband. I fully accept that the Department and Minister have done much work in the area, which is welcome. This area has seen a number of new estates being built and normally we think about water or sewerage services, although we insert no stipulation regarding the provision of...

Seanad: Adjournment Matters: Telecommunications Services Provision (7 May 2014)

Colm Burke: I thank the Minister very much.

Seanad: Order of Business (8 May 2014)

Colm Burke: I pay tribute to Deputy Shatter for the work he has done since long before he came into the Oireachtas. He was the first person to publish a comprehensive review of family law, as far back as 1976, and gave leadership in progressing family law since then. He went on to prepare the judicial separation legislation and was directly or indirectly involved with a wide variety of reforms. It is...

Seanad: Order of Business (8 May 2014)

Colm Burke: It is the Committee of Public Accounts that is the problem.

Seanad: Order of Business (8 May 2014)

Colm Burke: It is outrageous that we cannot examine the 25% of the budget that is outsourced.

Seanad: Order of Business (Resumed) (13 May 2014)

Colm Burke: I want to open up the debate on health care because it is important to state the position. There are 11 maternity units in the country.

Seanad: Order of Business (Resumed) (13 May 2014)

Colm Burke: I did not interrupt the Senator.

Seanad: Order of Business (Resumed) (13 May 2014)

Colm Burke: There are 11 maternity units throughout the country, each of which employes three medical consultants, including an obstetrician and a gynaecologist. I have spoken to a medical practitioner who attended a conference recently at which it emerged that 20 medical consultants were employed at a unit in Denmark at which 3,000 babies were delivered each year. That is one consultant per 150 babies...

Seanad: Order of Business (Resumed) (13 May 2014)

Colm Burke: In Ireland-----

Seanad: Order of Business (Resumed) (13 May 2014)

Colm Burke: -----there is one medical consultant to every 500 to 750 babies delivered.

Seanad: Order of Business (Resumed) (13 May 2014)

Colm Burke: That is the basic position. If the Senator wants to discuss reports-----

Seanad: Order of Business (Resumed) (13 May 2014)

Colm Burke: -----he should remember that his party's leader, when serving as Minister for Health and Children, commissioned 125 reports. I do not understand, therefore, why he is referring to one report-----

Seanad: Order of Business (Resumed) (13 May 2014)

Colm Burke: -----when his party leader commissioned 125 reports and did nothing about any of them.