Results 1,521-1,540 of 1,730 for speaker:Aisling Dolan

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: School Admissions (29 Nov 2023)

Aisling Dolan: I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Smyth. This Commencement matter is for the attention of the Minister for Education, Deputy Foley, and it relates to providing an update on school capacity reviews in County Galway, including Ballinasloe. It is crucial that we provide an update on school capacity across the country because this is the data the Department of Education uses to identify...

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: School Admissions (29 Nov 2023)

Aisling Dolan: I thank the Minister of State for his response but it does not answer the question around when the school capacity review will be completed. The school returns are one aspect of the information that is gathered by the Department of Education. A school capacity review is a separate review and that is the information, along with other data sources, that we use when we are trying to identify...

Seanad: Recent Violence in Dublin City Centre: Motion (29 Nov 2023)

Aisling Dolan: Hear, hear.

Seanad: Recent Violence in Dublin City Centre: Motion (29 Nov 2023)

Aisling Dolan: It was an absolutely horrendous attack on Parnell Square for a young girl, the other victims, the family and the school. It was down to the bravery of those who intervened, who acted on instinct. Both people who have been here for generations and people who moved to this country were involved in intervening and trying to save young people on Parnell Square. Afterwards, thugs made an attack...

Seanad: Organisation of Working Time (Reproductive Health Related Leave) Bill 2021: Committee Stage (Resumed) and Remaining Stages (29 Nov 2023)

Aisling Dolan: Yes, the definition. I will keep it very short. The Government is paying attention to this matter. I thank colleagues in the House for all the work done on it. It is literally about considering how we support paid leave upon a loss, particularly a pregnancy loss. The Government is looking into this. Senator Sherlock has mentioned all the work done by the Department of Health on supports...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (5 Dec 2023)

Aisling Dolan: I thank the Cathaoirleach and Senators for being kind enough. I acknowledge that we have the Roscommon branch of the Parkinson's Association of Ireland here today. So many of our families know what it is like to engage with the Parkinson's Association of Ireland and the supports it offers. I was very lucky during the year to attend an event with my family at Oran GAA Club in Oran, County...

Seanad: Finance (No. 2) Bill 2023: Report and Final Stages (12 Dec 2023)

Aisling Dolan: To follow on from what Senator Cummins said regarding the reasons we are bringing in the vacant homes tax, it is intended to incentivise the use of properties that have been put out of use, especially when we are doing everything as a Government to provide as much housing as possible.My county of Galway is one of the counties with the highest number of applications for the Croí...

Seanad: Social Welfare (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2023: Committee and Remaining Stages (12 Dec 2023)

Aisling Dolan: I welcome the Minister. Her focus is particularly on carers, as has been highlighted in the amendment. It has been absolutely crucial. As she will be aware, in rural areas it is family carers who are doing a lot of the work. It is very difficult to access carers in rural areas for many different reasons. Access for people living in city centres is a bit easier because there are more...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (14 Dec 2023)

Aisling Dolan: Like my colleagues, I wish the staff in the Seanad Office a happy Christmas, and wish Tom Hickey well in this retirement. I thank my colleagues, including Caroline, Mikayala and my team in Roscommon and Galway, for all their support this year. It has been a difficult year. People are preparing for Christmas. I encourage them to shop local, where they can, when they are buying presents....

Seanad: Appropriation Bill 2023: Second Stage (14 Dec 2023)

Aisling Dolan: I welcome the Minister for public expenditure to the Chamber. This Bill will ensure payments, particularly social welfare payments and I want to comment on the social welfare side. The budget this year provided the largest ever package for social projection. I do not want to underestimate that. People will be able to access increased pension payments and carers will be able to claim back...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Recent Reclassification of Beef Indexes: Discussion (13 Dec 2023)

Aisling Dolan: I thank the Chair for giving me the time to speak and to the Irish Cattle Breeding Federation, which is before us. We are speaking about the impact on suckler farmers and farming families of the recent beef Euro-Star index changes. I will ask Mr. Coughlan a question that relates to his role as chief executive of the organisation. He referred to suboptimal communications. Would he accept...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Recent Reclassification of Beef Indexes: Discussion (13 Dec 2023)

Aisling Dolan: That failure, which Mr. Coughlan has just admitted, has impacted on the livelihoods of farmers and farming families.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Recent Reclassification of Beef Indexes: Discussion (13 Dec 2023)

Aisling Dolan: As Mr. Coughlan said, they amount to 16% of herds. As he mentioned, animals that stay within the herd of course keep their rating. What is the likelihood of that? Many farming families will need to sell cattle on. Once they do that, the star rating changes. Is that correct?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Recent Reclassification of Beef Indexes: Discussion (13 Dec 2023)

Aisling Dolan: I come from a family where we grew up as suckler farmers. We kept cattle for a short time and they went to the mart. If we did not make a sale, it had a huge impact on our family's income as small farmers.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Recent Reclassification of Beef Indexes: Discussion (13 Dec 2023)

Aisling Dolan: I ask Mr. Coughlan again about the impact in the failure in communication on the livelihoods of farmers who now need to sell cattle and go to the mart, with the cattle's star rating having now dropped. They were not aware of that. Does the failure in communication not indicate that it has an impact on the livelihoods of farmers?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Recent Reclassification of Beef Indexes: Discussion (13 Dec 2023)

Aisling Dolan: The ICBF is a large enterprise with close to 80 employees. It has agri-advisers. How many locations does it have across the country?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Recent Reclassification of Beef Indexes: Discussion (13 Dec 2023)

Aisling Dolan: Does the ICBF have any liaison officers who work with farmers?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Recent Reclassification of Beef Indexes: Discussion (13 Dec 2023)

Aisling Dolan: Who does that?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Recent Reclassification of Beef Indexes: Discussion (13 Dec 2023)

Aisling Dolan: Teagasc does it on the ICBF's behalf.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Recent Reclassification of Beef Indexes: Discussion (13 Dec 2023)

Aisling Dolan: Is Teagasc represented on the board?