Results 101-120 of 228 for speaker:Déirdre de Búrca

Seanad: Civil Law (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2006: Second Stage (9 Apr 2008)

Déirdre de Búrca: I hope the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform and other relevant Departments will consider this matter soon. As stated by other Senators, section 67 waives the contribution payable for legal aid and allows the Legal Aid Board much more discretion. The Green Party's understanding of this is that it will improve conditions for those eligible for legal aid. I am disturbed to hear...

Seanad: Death of Former President: Expressions of Sympathy (15 Apr 2008)

Déirdre de Búrca: On behalf of the Green Party I wish to pay our respects to the family of former President Patrick Hillery, and to pay tribute to Dr. Hillery himself, who was a very fine Irish statesman and a committed public servant. Perhaps the most outstanding tribute one can pay to a former eminent public representative such as Dr. Hillery, who held so many positions of importance, including TD for...

Seanad: Order of Business (22 Apr 2008)

Déirdre de Búrca: I draw the attention of the House to the fact that today, 22 April, is Earth Day, a day that is marked internationally. The purpose of the day is to promote greater awareness of some of the threats that face our earth, the greatest of which is climate change. I congratulate the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government, Deputy John Gormley, on the series of advertisements...

Seanad: Patient Safety: Statements (22 Apr 2008)

Déirdre de Búrca: I welcome the Minister to the House. I thank her for addressing the issue of patient safety. There is little disagreement in the House that patient safety must be the top priority for all our health care systems. The importance of the issue of patient safety was recognised in the current programme for Government in which the Government is committed to initiate a periodic review of...

Seanad: Patient Safety: Statements (22 Apr 2008)

Déirdre de Búrca: It is an independent authority established to drive improvements in the quality, safety and accountability in this country's health and social care services. The authority's priorities include establishing a standards framework for health and social care, implementing a comprehensive programme of monitoring, measurement and, where necessary, enforcement, against the standards, as well as...

Seanad: Pharmacy Services (22 Apr 2008)

Déirdre de Búrca: Will the Minister of State clarify what contingency plans the Health Service Executive has in place should pharmacists withdraw from dispensing as part of the community drug scheme, as they have threatened to do from 1 May? I know this issue was raised with the Minister during the previous debate on patient safety, which was appropriate, and during her response the Minister made several...

Seanad: Pharmacy Services (22 Apr 2008)

Déirdre de Búrca: I thank the Minister of State for her response, although I did not find it very satisfactory. I deliberately avoided getting into the substance of the pharmacists' dispute with the HSE and focused very much on the contingency plans. Only one paragraph in the response dealt with that and it did not provide much information. I suppose it made me aware that the HSE has a national contingency...

Seanad: Order of Business (23 Apr 2008)

Déirdre de Búrca: I welcome the fact that the outgoing Taoiseach, Deputy Bertie Ahern, will address the House tomorrow on the issue of the Lisbon treaty. We frequently have debates here about the relevance of the Seanad and we question how we can get the media to take more seriously the business of the House. I suggest that if the Taoiseach of the day were to address the House on a more regular basis, it...

Seanad: Dublin Transport Authority Bill 2008: Second Stage (23 Apr 2008)

Déirdre de Búrca: I welcome the Minister to the House. While it is standard practice to welcome the opportunity to discuss Bills, this opportunity is particularly welcome because this legislation has been a long time coming. I compliment the Minister on bringing it forward as quickly as he has. I am based in County Wicklow and the Bill will have an immediate and direct effect on the county once it is...

Seanad: Order of Business (24 Apr 2008)

Déirdre de Búrca: I support the call by other Senators for an urgent debate on the report of the alcohol advisory group given the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform has announced his intention to bring legislation on alcohol misuse before the Houses of the Oireachtas and to have it enacted by the summer. We need to acquaint ourselves fully with the wide-ranging recommendations of the alcohol...

Seanad: Twenty-eighth Amendment of the Constitution Bill 2008: Second Stage (30 Apr 2008)

Déirdre de Búrca: I welcome the Minister to the House and the opportunity to debate this Bill which is necessary to enable the State and Irish people to ratify the Lisbon treaty. As we are aware, we are the only country in the European Union that is to have a referendum on the treaty, which places a particular responsibility on us. As we know, the treaty is a legal document which represents a compromise...

Seanad: Twenty-eighth Amendment of the Constitution Bill 2008: Second Stage (30 Apr 2008)

Déirdre de Búrca: Socially, this country has benefited enormously from our EU membership and I am sure Senator Norris would be very aware that most of the progressive employment and equality legislation we enjoy in this country is a direct result of our EU membership. It is easy to forget all that, and it seems the EU is now bad, has evil intentions and just wants to create an army and dominate the rest of...

Seanad: Twenty-eighth Amendment of the Constitution Bill 2008: Second Stage (30 Apr 2008)

Déirdre de Búrca: On the environmental side, as far as the Green Party is concerned, the European Union is the best thing to happen to Ireland where protection of the environment is concerned. Most of the positive environmental legislation which we have taken our time in implementing has come directly from the European Union. Senator Norris is also very aware that the European Union has united what was...

Seanad: Twenty-eighth Amendment of the Constitution Bill 2008: Second Stage (30 Apr 2008)

Déirdre de Búrca: We must also consider the new emerging world order where there are leading countries such as India, China and Russia with human rights records that do not bear comparison with the European Union. It is important to think of a strong European Union operating on the global stage, promoting values such as democracy, the rule of law, equality, sustainable development, the rights of minorities...

Seanad: Order of Business (Resumed) (7 May 2008)

Déirdre de Búrca: As with other speakers, I record my concern about the humanitarian crisis in Burma. I agree with Senator David Norris who mentioned climate change and the fact that cyclones which have killed more than 22,000 people to date are clearly linked to the phenomenon of global warming. It is likely we will see such humanitarian crises recurring across the globe in the coming decades. The Lisbon...

Seanad: Twenty-eighth Amendment of the Constitution Bill 2008: Report and Final Stages. (7 May 2008)

Déirdre de Búrca: I acknowledge the work the Minister of State has done to date in promoting the Lisbon treaty. This needs to be a priority for all of us. The new Cabinet will be announced today and we should all focus on putting all the very positive aspects of the Lisbon treaty to the public because there has been much misinformation about, and misinterpretation of, some of the provisions of the treaty....

Seanad: Order of Business (8 May 2008)

Déirdre de Búrca: I wish to raise the issue of data protection, specifically the advanced leaking of the report of the Data Protection Commissioner. I have raised previously in the House the issue of data protection. It was only some weeks ago when we heard that personal and confidential details of bank customers went missing. The laptops on which this information was stored were stolen and it was only...

Seanad: Order of Business (13 May 2008)

Déirdre de Búrca: Will the Leader invite the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources, Deputy Eamon Ryan, to the House to discuss the substantial hikes in energy costs the country is likely to face next year? From front-page newspaper reports, rising oil and gas prices will mean the ESB and Bord Gáis will attempt to increase their prices next year. Oil has risen to an unprecedented level of...

Seanad: Order of Business (14 May 2008)

Déirdre de Búrca: Ba mhaith liom fáilte a chur roimh Des Bishop freisin. Is dóigh liom gur iontach an rud a rinne sé nuair a chuaigh sé go dtí an Ghaeltacht. Tugann sé sampla dúinn go léir. Tá sé ar intinn agam dul go dtí an Ghaeltacht i rith an tsamhraidh chun iarracht a dhéanamh feabhas a chur ar mo chuid Gaeilge, chun go mbeidh a dhóthain muiníne agam í a úsáid anseo. I admire Des Bishop...

Seanad: Order of Business (14 May 2008)

Déirdre de Búrca: I must say this because the allegation is false. Ireland does not have a veto on agricultural negotiations at present.