Results 121-140 of 431 for speaker:Lorraine Higgins

Seanad: National Lottery Bill 2012: Committee Stage (30 Apr 2013)

Lorraine Higgins: I welcome the Minister. With regard to security of employment for the employees, will the Minister confirm that it might be a situation where the transfer of undertakings legislation will come into effect to secure the tenure of employment for those employees?

Seanad: Adjournment Matters: School Accommodation (1 May 2013)

Lorraine Higgins: I welcome the Minister of State to the House and thank her for taking this matter on the Adjournment. My home town of Athenry is a growing urban area the population of which has increased from 1,000 during pre-boom times to 5,000 currently and, as a consequence, the local schools, and in particular the Presentation College in Athenry, is experiencing over-capacity and ongoing demand for...

Seanad: Adjournment Matters: School Accommodation (1 May 2013)

Lorraine Higgins: I thank the Minister of State for her response. I am glad some clarity has been provided. I am aware that the Department is in contact with the school, on behalf of which I have raised the issue this evening. The school was seeking clarity as to a definite timeline and a date by which students and staff could occupy the accommodation in the new building. As I said, there was concern...

Seanad: Adjournment Matters: Local and Community Development Programme Project Funding (8 May 2013)

Lorraine Higgins: I welcome the Minister to the House. I wish to raise the need for him to clarify the employment position of Leader and community funded scheme employees. I have concerns that the proposed realignment process his Department is undertaking as part of his local government reform agenda will lead to direct job losses without this group and the loss of economic opportunity in communities...

Seanad: Adjournment Matters: Local and Community Development Programme Project Funding (8 May 2013)

Lorraine Higgins: I thank the Minister for his detailed response and for clarifying the position on the alignment working group, the expressions of interest which have been sought by it and funding issues. I stress that the security of jobs in Athenry and throughout the country is of paramount importance to the people and the towns and local communities that benefit from the economic activity generated by...

Seanad: Overseas Development Issues: Statements (9 May 2013)

Lorraine Higgins: I welcome the Minister of State. On behalf of the Labour group in the Seanad, I also welcome the opportunity to lead the debate on the recent launch of Ireland's policy on international development. It is essential to any foreign affairs or trade process to have a roadmap covering the various issues that might affect the Department or the Third World. One World, One Future sets out the...

Seanad: Adjournment Matters: Architectural Heritage (9 May 2013)

Lorraine Higgins: I thank the Minister of State for his attendance. This matter concerns Yeats Tower, Thoor Ballylee, County Galway. This is a building of special importance from an historical, recreational and cultural perspective to the people of Kiltartan and Gort in County Galway. Indeed, in 1965, for the centenary of W. B. Yeats's birth, Ballylee was fully restored by the Kiltartan Gregory Cultural...

Seanad: Adjournment Matters: Architectural Heritage (9 May 2013)

Lorraine Higgins: I thank the Minister of State for his detailed response. Like the Minister, I am committed to seeing something worthwhile happen with the project. The tower has an historical, cultural and educational significance. It is heartening for the people who are interested in it to discover that there may be further plans for it, and we all welcome the initiative. Senator Healy Eames mentioned...

Seanad: Address to Seanad Éireann by Mr. Jim Higgins, MEP (16 May 2013)

Lorraine Higgins: I welcome Mr. Higgins to the Chamber. I should perhaps refer to him as "Deputy Higgins", which I understand is the title used by Members of the European Parliament themselves in the course of their work. I get a kick out of that title because it is one I aspire to myself within our national Parliament. It is always a welcome departure to have Members of the European Parliament address the...

Seanad: Adjournment Matters: Garda Vetting Applications (22 May 2013)

Lorraine Higgins: A central pillar of Government policy is to have large numbers of those who are currently without work gain meaningful employment as a means of resolving the economic crisis. I commend the efforts the Government has made in this regard, including successfully increasing foreign direct investment, implementing two action plans for jobs and announcing a schools building programme. Despite the...

Seanad: Adjournment Matters: Garda Vetting Applications (22 May 2013)

Lorraine Higgins: I thank the Minister of State for her response. It is excellent to hear that 23 people have recently been transferred from the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine to the central vetting unit. I also welcome the plans to introduce an e-vetting system. On the question of dealing with multiple applications, it might be worth considering introducing a card system so that a person...

Seanad: Adjournment Matters: Architectural Heritage (23 May 2013)

Lorraine Higgins: I thank the Minister of State, Deputy John Perry, for taking this matter on the Adjournment. It relates to the opening of Athenry medieval castle for the use and benefit of the people of Athenry who want to host a social evening at the castle to mark a twinning event in the town on Thursday, 15 August 2013. Athenry tourism committee has been working extremely hard since its inception to...

Seanad: Adjournment Matters: Architectural Heritage (23 May 2013)

Lorraine Higgins: We will extend an invitation to the Minister of State.

Seanad: Adjournment Matters: Architectural Heritage (23 May 2013)

Lorraine Higgins: I welcome the response of the Minister of State and the approval to open the castle for the event, albeit in limited circumstances. This is the first time that the people of Athenry have sought its opening so I expect that every effort will be made to facilitate them. I welcome the suggestion of guided tours and the possibility of a marquee being allowed on the grounds of the castle and...

Seanad: Adjournment Matters: Architectural Heritage (23 May 2013)

Lorraine Higgins: I commend the Minister of State for his enthusiasm for the project that will take place on his birthday, 15 August. The people of Athenry will welcome him wholeheartedly to the town.

Seanad: Adjournment Matters: Architectural Heritage (23 May 2013)

Lorraine Higgins: Will the Minister of State ask his colleague, Deputy Hayes, to supply my office with a contact name in order to avoid unnecessary delays and get the project moving in the right direction immediately?

Seanad: Order of Business (28 May 2013)

Lorraine Higgins: I express my serious concern at the news that a senior official in the National Asset Management Agency, NAMA, who was responsible for managing some of the most indebted borrowers with the banks in this country has taken up a new job with a London based property investment firm just weeks after leaving his position with the agency. To have a senior NAMA official taking a position in a...

Seanad: Order of Business (28 May 2013)

Lorraine Higgins: This is a matter that was reported in a Sunday newspaper; therefore, it is very much in the public-----

Seanad: Order of Business (28 May 2013)

Lorraine Higgins: People are familiar with the individual in question. However, the point is that he was-----

Seanad: Order of Business (28 May 2013)

Lorraine Higgins: I will, a Chathaoirligh, and apologise for doing so. The individual in question will have had access to commercially sensitive information which could potentially benefit him to the detriment of the taxpayer in his new role in the business in which he is a partner. We must do something about this. It is outrageous that there is still an inside track culture in Ireland. We must call on the...