Results 15,961-15,980 of 29,533 for speaker:Brendan Howlin

Seanad: Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest Bill 2013: Committee and Remaining Stages (30 May 2013)

Brendan Howlin: The Senator might let them vote.

Seanad: Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest Bill 2013: Committee and Remaining Stages (30 May 2013)

Brendan Howlin: They must vote before the Senator can say what they will do.

Seanad: Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest Bill 2013: Committee and Remaining Stages (30 May 2013)

Brendan Howlin: I wish to be clear, in response to my friend and colleague, Senator Norris, that democracy is not optional. However, Senator Norris cannot get into his car and decide to drive on the right hand side of the road because that is his democratic right. Societies do not operate like that. There are consequences. One can exercise one's democratic right to absurdity.

Seanad: Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest Bill 2013: Committee and Remaining Stages (30 May 2013)

Brendan Howlin: People are perfectly at liberty to reject the Haddington Road agreement. At the same time, it is reasonable for me to say that we need to make savings, or rather, we must make them and this is what I propose to do. This is the democratic Chamber that will make a determination on that. The elected representatives of the people set out the law. No more than one can decide to drive on the...

Seanad: Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest Bill 2013: Committee and Remaining Stages (30 May 2013)

Brendan Howlin: It is not equitable, fair or reasonable to expect workers on the front line, for example, to carry the burden while others refuse to carry it with no consequences. We must lay out the savings that are required and negotiate to see if we can reach an agreement on that. Failing that, Government must govern because we must have a sustainable path and must ensure that there is pay and pensions...

Seanad: Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest Bill 2013: Committee and Remaining Stages (30 May 2013)

Brendan Howlin: I will not accept either amendment. It is unconstitutional to cut the pay of the President. It would not be possible to reduce the salary of the President as it is set in the Constitution. I am not sure it was the intention of the Senator to reduce the entire remuneration of all officeholders in the House to nil. The amendment would result in a 100% reduction in the remuneration of the...

Seanad: Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest Bill 2013: Committee and Remaining Stages (30 May 2013)

Brendan Howlin: I am always attracted to the Senator's arguments. The whole purpose of the Bill is to make a saving for the Exchequer in the pay and pensions bill. To cut pay in the commercial semi-states would not accrue any money to the Exchequer. One could suggest a new levy of an appropriate amount on these bodies to make them pay it back to us, and I suppose that would be possible. However, there is...

Seanad: Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest Bill 2013: Committee and Remaining Stages (30 May 2013)

Brendan Howlin: Obviously, that is a much wider issue than what is involved in this instance. The Senator will be aware that we have a new overarching pensions provision that I brought into force, having brought it through both Houses of the Oireachtas, one year ago. It came into force on 1 January last and comprised new pension provisions generally. The pension-related deduction is not a pension...

Seanad: Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest Bill 2013: Committee and Remaining Stages (30 May 2013)

Brendan Howlin: The Senator is right: if we were to accept this amendment, it would only have prospective impact. We have had this discussion before. We cannot retrospectively alter these conditions. We have already fundamentally altered the top level appointment committee, TLAC, terms and all new appointments made since shortly after we came into office have been on the revised terms. It was a surprise...

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Public Expenditure and Reform: Houses of the Oireachtas (Inquiries, Privileges and Procedures) Bill 2013: Committee Stage (5 Jun 2013)

Brendan Howlin: I have proposed 26 amendments to the Bill but 17 of them relate to inquiries under Article 12.10° of the Constitution, which involves the unthinkable process of impeaching the President. I have been reflecting on this since the Bill was published. As the Bill is drafted, this process is anchored in a section dealing with the impeachment of other constitutional officeholders. It should...

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Public Expenditure and Reform: Houses of the Oireachtas (Inquiries, Privileges and Procedures) Bill 2013: Committee Stage (5 Jun 2013)

Brendan Howlin: We considered this when drafting the Bill. Since cloud computing might be overtaken in a year or two, we have a definition which is future proofed by defining "electronic device" in section 2 to include any device which includes any electrical, digital, magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, biometric or photonic means or other forms of related technology or any combination of any forms of...

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Public Expenditure and Reform: Houses of the Oireachtas (Inquiries, Privileges and Procedures) Bill 2013: Committee Stage (5 Jun 2013)

Brendan Howlin: That is encompassed.

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Public Expenditure and Reform: Houses of the Oireachtas (Inquiries, Privileges and Procedures) Bill 2013: Committee Stage (5 Jun 2013)

Brendan Howlin: I move amendment No. 2: In page 14, subsection (1), line 2, to delete "or section 10 inquiry" and substitute ", section 10 inquiry or section 15 inquiry".These technical amendments are consequent on the substantial amendment No. 18, which I will deal with in due course. That amendment deals with a new section 15 on the President. These are the first of the technical consequential amendments...

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Public Expenditure and Reform: Houses of the Oireachtas (Inquiries, Privileges and Procedures) Bill 2013: Committee Stage (5 Jun 2013)

Brendan Howlin: I move amendment No. 3: In page 15, subsection (1), between lines 10 and 11, to insert the following:" "section 15 inquiry" means an investigation referred to in section 15(1)(a);".

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Public Expenditure and Reform: Houses of the Oireachtas (Inquiries, Privileges and Procedures) Bill 2013: Committee Stage (5 Jun 2013)

Brendan Howlin: I move amendment No. 4: In page 15, subsection (1), to delete lines 13 and 14 and substitute the following:" "terms of reference", in relation to a Part 2 inquiry which is not a section 15 inquiry, means the terms of reference for the inquiry set under section 12;".These are technical amendments on the presidential issue, as are the previous two amendments.

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Public Expenditure and Reform: Houses of the Oireachtas (Inquiries, Privileges and Procedures) Bill 2013: Committee Stage (5 Jun 2013)

Brendan Howlin: I move amendment No. 5: In page 16, before section 6, but in Part 2, to insert the following new section: "CHAPTER 1 Section 6, section 7, section 8, section 9 and section 10 inquiries, etc.6.--A reference in this Chapter to a Part 2 inquiry does not include a reference to a Part 2 inquiry which is a section 15 inquiry.".

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Public Expenditure and Reform: Houses of the Oireachtas (Inquiries, Privileges and Procedures) Bill 2013: Committee Stage (5 Jun 2013)

Brendan Howlin: I understand the Deputy's intention. He made the same point when discussing the heads of the Bill and on Second Stage. There is always a much more democratic perspective when one is on the other side of the House. That rush of blood normally does not migrate to this side when one is in the majority. In constructing this Bill, I considered the point that is being made. We are not...

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Public Expenditure and Reform: Houses of the Oireachtas (Inquiries, Privileges and Procedures) Bill 2013: Committee Stage (5 Jun 2013)

Brendan Howlin: When we created the committee in advance of the legislation, there was a Sinn Féin Chairman.

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Public Expenditure and Reform: Houses of the Oireachtas (Inquiries, Privileges and Procedures) Bill 2013: Committee Stage (5 Jun 2013)

Brendan Howlin: Yes. It was to be a-----

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Public Expenditure and Reform: Houses of the Oireachtas (Inquiries, Privileges and Procedures) Bill 2013: Committee Stage (5 Jun 2013)

Brendan Howlin: No. What I had in mind was for the petitions committee to set and regulate the terms of reference. It was not for that committee to conduct an inquiry. In fact, it was forbidden to conduct inquiries. It was the regulator of inquiries.