Results 1,341-1,360 of 3,241 for speaker:Brian Ó Domhnaill

Seanad: Order of Business (17 Jul 2012)

Brian Ó Domhnaill: Tá siad ar buile. Seafóid atá ann. I have a question for the Leader. I propose an amendment to the Order of Business requesting the Minister of State at the Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht to come to the House today. The Leader may accede to the request given the seriousness of the matter and the attack on freedom of speech. If one were in China, one might be able to...

Seanad: Order of Business (17 Jul 2012)

Brian Ó Domhnaill: I propose an amendment to the Order of Business, namely, that the Minister of State at the Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht come to the House to give a crystal-clear explanation as to who instructed the official who wrote the letter and why the letter and the gentleman's name were written in English rather than Irish.

Seanad: Order of Business (17 Jul 2012)

Brian Ó Domhnaill: Hear, hear.

Seanad: Order of Business (17 Jul 2012)

Brian Ó Domhnaill: Yes.

Seanad: Patient Transport Services (17 Jul 2012)

Brian Ó Domhnaill: I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Brian Hayes. This matter relates to the withdrawal of an essential service connecting Donegal and hospitals in Dublin. The service has been subsidised by the HSE, formerly the health boards, for some 38 years. The service entails the transportation to Dublin of patients with hospital appointments in the city when they are unable to receive their...

Seanad: Patient Transport Services (17 Jul 2012)

Brian Ó Domhnaill: I appreciate that the Minister of State was reading a response from the Department of Health. Expenditure on the patient taxi service within the HSE in 2010 amounted to €26,025,000. Last year, which, according to a recent response to a parliamentary question, is the last year for which we have up-to-date figures, expenditure in this area rose by €1.6 million. The HSE's contention that...

Seanad: Patient Transport Services (17 Jul 2012)

Brian Ó Domhnaill: The Minister, Deputy Reilly, made promises he did not fulfil this year.

Seanad: Animal Health and Welfare Bill 2012: Report and Final Stages (18 Jul 2012)

Brian Ó Domhnaill: I move amendment No. 1: In page 11, lines 10 and 11, to delete "necessary" and substitute "reasonable". We are proposing to delete the word "necessary" and substitute the word "reasonable". We had a lengthy discussion on this issue on Committee Stage and I do not intend to go further into it today. What is the Minister's view?

Seanad: Animal Health and Welfare Bill 2012: Report and Final Stages (18 Jul 2012)

Brian Ó Domhnaill: I move amendment No. 2: In page 11, line 19, after "kept" to insert the following: "having regard to the potential of wind borne spread of disease or of protected or other species of wildlife spreading disease". Diseases can be spread by wind-borne infections over fences onto land. This amendment was discussed on Committee Stage. I ask for the Minister's view.

Seanad: Animal Health and Welfare Bill 2012: Report and Final Stages (18 Jul 2012)

Brian Ó Domhnaill: We are waiting for someone to attend the Chamber. We were trying to protect the farmer so that he or she would not be held liable in the event that the disease on the land may have come from a wind-borne source. I appreciate that the Minister cannot accept the amendment.

Seanad: Animal Health and Welfare Bill 2012: Report and Final Stages (18 Jul 2012)

Brian Ó Domhnaill: I move amendment No. 3: In page 12, lines 20 and 21, to delete "he or she considers appropriate" and substitute "set out by the Minister". This amendment deals with the authorised officer who may for the purposes of subsection (3) issue a permit and may attach such terms and conditions to it as he or she considers appropriate. Our amendment proposes to delete the words, "he or she considers...

Seanad: Animal Health and Welfare Bill 2012: Report and Final Stages (18 Jul 2012)

Brian Ó Domhnaill: I move amendment No. 5: In page 13, lines 23 and 24, to delete all words from and including "that" in line 23 down to and including "suffering" in line 24 and substitute "appropriate to the animal species". Yes. The amendment deals with the suffering of animals. The reasoning is to have regard to the animal's nature, type, species, breed, development and the environment.

Seanad: Animal Health and Welfare Bill 2012: Report and Final Stages (18 Jul 2012)

Brian Ó Domhnaill: The current wording is what we were looking for in this amendment in that there is a recognition of the species.

Seanad: Animal Health and Welfare Bill 2012: Report and Final Stages (18 Jul 2012)

Brian Ó Domhnaill: I am willing to accept that.

Seanad: Animal Health and Welfare Bill 2012: Report and Final Stages (18 Jul 2012)

Brian Ó Domhnaill: I move amendment No. 6: In page 13, line 35, before "do," where it firstly occurs to insert "intentionally". This amendment was discussed on Committee Stage. The prohibition on animal cruelty is referred to in the legislation which states that a person shall not do or fail to do anything or cause to permit anything to be done to an animal that causes injury. I ask the Minister to consider...

Seanad: Animal Health and Welfare Bill 2012: Report and Final Stages (18 Jul 2012)

Brian Ó Domhnaill: I move amendment No. 7: In page 14, line 7, after "terrified" to insert the following: "unless accepted as a normal farming activity/method". Amendments Nos. 7, 11 and 14 to 16, inclusive, relate to normal farming practices. They provide for a distinction in the legislation between the owner of a budgerigar, fish tank, pet dog or cat and what would be described as normal farming practices...

Seanad: Animal Health and Welfare Bill 2012: Report and Final Stages (18 Jul 2012)

Brian Ó Domhnaill: I thank the Minister and acknowledge the thinking he has put into this. The example I gave on Committee Stage was trying to put a bull into a trailer, with the bull being tied or harnessed and getting excited and the farmer trying to keep the bull under control while protecting their own safety. The same situation would occur in a show ring where there are many people around. What the...

Seanad: Animal Health and Welfare Bill 2012: Report and Final Stages (18 Jul 2012)

Brian Ó Domhnaill: I move amendment No. 8: In page 14, line 21, to delete "or a code of practice". This refers to the codes of practice relating to productive farming, which I mentioned a few minutes ago. The codes are in place at present on a voluntary basis. The difficulty is that when one speaks to a farmer about codes of practice they will say they have been doing this for years, they were reared on a...

Seanad: Animal Health and Welfare Bill 2012: Report and Final Stages (18 Jul 2012)

Brian Ó Domhnaill: I move amendment No. 9: In page 14, line 30, to delete "reasonable grounds" and substitute "evidence". These amendments seek to substitute "evidence" for "reasonable grounds". I have tabled this amendment again although I accepted what the Minister said on Committee Stage, that the authorised officers need teeth and the wherewithal to be able to go into a premises without the necessity of...

Seanad: Animal Health and Welfare Bill 2012: Report and Final Stages (18 Jul 2012)

Brian Ó Domhnaill: I agree with the Minister's statement that the crux of the matter pertains to how authorised officers fulfil their duties. It is a question of their appointment. From my interpretation of the legislation, there are three ways in which an authorised officer can be appointed, namely, through the Minister, through the local authority structure or through a welfare organisation. Which...