Results 1,161-1,180 of 2,017 for speaker:Paul Bradford

Seanad: Local Government (Household Charge) Bill 2011: Committee Stage (7 Dec 2011)

Paul Bradford: I will have to seek the protection of the Chair from the Sinn Féin onslaught.

Seanad: Local Government (Household Charge) Bill 2011: Committee Stage (7 Dec 2011)

Paul Bradford: The amendment is a piece of political gamesmanship, and Opposition parties will always do that. When the debate was about water and service charges no party was stronger in its opposition to such charges than the Senator's, yet his party colleagues are introducing all of these charges. It is important that we can expand the tax base. If we are to try to keep income taxes low and taxes and...

Seanad: Local Government (Household Charge) Bill 2011: Committee Stage (7 Dec 2011)

Paul Bradford: I look forward to the Minister's response in the first place. We must be realistic. The country is in the current position because politicians played politics and were not realistic for the past ten years. If we are to have any hope of turning the country around, getting rid of poverty, getting people back to work and growing the economy again, we must have real politics. Real politics is...

Seanad: Local Government (Household Charge) Bill 2011: Committee Stage (7 Dec 2011)

Paul Bradford: The legislation is realistic. Never in my years here have I seen perfect legislation brought forward. There are always difficulties and, unfortunately, there are always people on the margins who fall outside the scope of a scheme or idea but it is a reasonable attempt at expanding our tax base in a reasonably fair fashion and at a modest level. That is the reason this amendment is not...

Seanad: Local Government (Household Charge) Bill 2011: Committee Stage (7 Dec 2011)

Paul Bradford: If they are, as proof of their sincerity they should try to get their Northern colleagues who are in Government to introduce similar legislation.

Seanad: Local Government (Household Charge) Bill 2011: Committee Stage (7 Dec 2011)

Paul Bradford: A €75,000 income limit.

Seanad: Local Government (Household Charge) Bill 2011: Committee Stage (7 Dec 2011)

Paul Bradford: I referred to the €75,000 threshold.

Seanad: Local Government (Household Charge) Bill 2011: Committee Stage (7 Dec 2011)

Paul Bradford: Or €75,000.

Seanad: Local Government (Household Charge) Bill 2011: Committee Stage (7 Dec 2011)

Paul Bradford: The contributions are very interesting. If this index was applied to car tax a huge number of people in gainful employment in the country who are driving to work every day would not pay it. I suspect and fear that hundreds of thousands of people in this country are not in a position to invite friends for a meal once a month. I suspect tens of thousands of people in this country are not in...

Seanad: Local Government (Household Charge) Bill 2011: Committee Stage (7 Dec 2011)

Paul Bradford: We have to debate the amendment before us. I take on board what Senator Norris said. The list will have to be refined before it receives further consideration. It will also have to exclude the €75,000 figure. As has been said, all of us are on reasonably good salaries but significantly less than €75,000. This is an interesting philosophical debate. Everybody aspires to ending...

Seanad: Local Government (Household Charge) Bill 2011: Committee Stage (7 Dec 2011)

Paul Bradford: The Senator referred to Sinn Féin's pre-budget submission, which I read with interest as I did last year. I was taken by what I thought was a reasonable view of the wealth tax situation. We are all aware of people who have assets worth hundreds of thousands of euro who would also fail this test. People might live in fantastic old houses but cannot light a fire or go out for any...

Seanad: Local Government (Household Charge) Bill 2011: Committee Stage (7 Dec 2011)

Paul Bradford: I take the Senator's correction.

Seanad: Order of Business (8 Dec 2011)

Paul Bradford: I will attempt to restrain myself on the issue of Seanad reform. I welcome Senator Mullen's contribution and it would be appropriate to have a lengthy and comprehensive debate in the House on political reform. I wish it were as simple as abolishing the Seanad but we all know political reform is about the Dáil, the electoral system, local authorities, our system of government, Dáil...

Seanad: Health Insurance (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2011: Second Stage (8 Dec 2011)

Paul Bradford: Once again we are back on the subject of health insurance. This is a matter that is close to my heart politically because I was involved in the original debates in the other House at the time of the decision by the then Minister for Health, Deputy Michael Noonan, to allow competition into the health insurance business, which we all thought was a major step forward. In latter years I was one...

Seanad: Health Insurance (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2011: Second Stage (8 Dec 2011)

Paul Bradford: The Minister is introducing a system of universal care which everybody supports, including the previous speaker. The phrase the Minister used and that we used, mantra-like, at election time was: "The money follows the patient." At the moment, the money follows the doctors, the consultants and all the people who are literally making themselves millionaires out of the provision of health...

Seanad: Health Insurance (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2011: Second Stage (8 Dec 2011)

Paul Bradford: We have dealt with monopolies in other services, and sometimes, in our desire to solve problems, we can go too far. There was a time when there were not enough solicitors, barristers or accountants in this country. The word "professional" and the phrase "I am a professional" were allowed to be uttered only by a small, privileged minority. We have allowed the medical profession to remain a...

Seanad: Criminal Law (Defence and the Dwelling) Bill 2010: Second Stage (8 Dec 2011)

Paul Bradford: I will have fewer focail than the last speaker. Unlike the Minister and Senator O'Donovan I do not have a legal background and expertise. Those who have can approach Bills with a great degree of certainty and understand their definitions and limits. My comments in support of the Bill will be from a common sense perspective. I welcome the Bill and the fact it follows a promise our party...

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2011: Second Stage (13 Dec 2011)

Paul Bradford: As my time is limited to five minutes, I will not be able to do justice to a Bill as complex as this one. I thank the Minister for her presentation and, not being patronising, I commiserate with her with regard to the difficulties she faced last week. It was a Government budget, not the budget of the Minister, Deputy Burton. I understand that the economic management committee of the...

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2011: Second Stage (13 Dec 2011)

Paul Bradford: Lifestyle choice. I thank my Sinn Féin colleague for being so helpful in bringing the phrase to my lips. While Sinn Féin is on the sidelines criticising, the Minister is in the Department trying to make a difference. We all know there is a minority of people for whom work is something their families never experienced. It is almost a generational thing. We must ask how we use our budgets...

Seanad: Order of Business (16 Dec 2011)

Paul Bradford: I join in the words of congratulations, thanks and best wishes to all of my colleagues, the Cathaoirleach, the Leader, all of the party leaders and all of the staff who contribute so much to the running of our House of the Oireachtas. Senator O'Donovan mentioned the Titanic and 2012 will see our House more like an aircraft carrier with nuclear capacity, and those who might have certain plans...