Results 1,941-1,960 of 9,894 for speaker:Thomas Byrne

Seanad: Health Service Executive (Governance) Bill 2012: Report and Final Stages (24 Oct 2012)

Thomas Byrne: I second the amendment.

Seanad: Amendment to Terms of Reference of Tribunal of Inquiry: Motion (24 Oct 2012)

Thomas Byrne: I support the proposal of the Government in the Seanad. It is most important we allow the Smithwick tribunal to get on with the work it is doing, including the taking of evidence, when that is appropriate, and the examination of the new evidence. The murders of Harry Breen and Robert Buchanan were very cowardly and were carried out, allegedly, on the basis of inside information. They were...

Seanad: Adjournment Matters: Garda Vetting (24 Oct 2012)

Thomas Byrne: I second the amendment. It is a very important issue and it should be supported.

Seanad: Adjournment Matters: Garda Vetting (24 Oct 2012)

Thomas Byrne: I second this amendment in the strongest possible terms. The Government proposes to hand-pick an individual and I must note this debate is not about the individual person but about the principle itself. He could be the saviour of the health service for all one knows. However, the point is one will not know that unless there is an open recruitment process. In its programme for Government,...

Seanad: Adjournment Matters: Garda Vetting (24 Oct 2012)

Thomas Byrne: On openness and transparency.

Seanad: Adjournment Matters: Garda Vetting (24 Oct 2012)

Thomas Byrne: I hope the Minister can provide many examples and precedents for what he is doing now.

Seanad: Adjournment Matters: Garda Vetting (24 Oct 2012)

Thomas Byrne: I second the amendment.

Seanad: Adjournment Matters: Garda Vetting (24 Oct 2012)

Thomas Byrne: I second the amendment.

Seanad: Adjournment Matters: Garda Vetting (24 Oct 2012)

Thomas Byrne: It is just gas. We are reforming the health service and we have a Bill which is a carbon copy of what was there before. One word is different in the Minister's Bill and he has decided to go back to the way it was before. Just in case we might change anything, we had better keep the exact wording. This emphasises the point that this is a sham. There is no reality to what is going on here....

Seanad: Adjournment Matters: Garda Vetting (24 Oct 2012)

Thomas Byrne: I am opposing it to make the point that changes-----

Seanad: Adjournment Matters: Garda Vetting (24 Oct 2012)

Thomas Byrne: Is there scope for rationalisation of all these organisations? They all do tremendous work but there are many of them and it is an inefficient way to run the health service. I acknowledge this is the way it has built up over many years and we will take the flak for that. Many of them are charities. They do outstanding work and run their own separate fund raisers. There seems to be a...

Seanad: Adjournment Matters: Garda Vetting (24 Oct 2012)

Thomas Byrne: I second the amendment.

Seanad: Amendment to Terms of Reference of Tribunal of Inquiry: Motion (24 Oct 2012)

Thomas Byrne: I support the proposal of the Government in the Seanad. It is most important we allow the Smithwick tribunal to get on with the work it is doing, including the taking of evidence, when that is appropriate, and the examination of the new evidence. The murders of Harry Breen and Robert Buchanan were very cowardly and were carried out, allegedly, on the basis of inside information. They were...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Operations and Functioning of AIB: Discussion (31 Oct 2012)

Thomas Byrne: I tried to follow proceedings on the monitor when I was not here because I was involved in a different matter today. I apologise if my questions have been asked already and if they have been the delegation can close me down. Will AIB comment on the mis-selling of payment protection policies and the associated Central Bank investigation? How many AIB customers were involved and what is the...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Operations and Functioning of AIB: Discussion (31 Oct 2012)

Thomas Byrne: Has AIB been in discussions with the Department of Finance in this regard? Has AIB lobbied the Department of Justice and Equality to make changes to the law in this area? Has the Department of Justice and Equality indicated that it is prepared to make any changes in respect of that judgment?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Operations and Functioning of AIB: Discussion (31 Oct 2012)

Thomas Byrne: Have the Departments given any indication of whether they are prepared to agree with AIB or whether they see this as necessary?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Operations and Functioning of AIB: Discussion (31 Oct 2012)

Thomas Byrne: When a person becomes unemployed, he or she applies to the Department of Social Protection for jobseeker's allowance or jobseeker's benefit, to the Health Service Executive for a medical card and, if he or she has a mortgage, to the bank to discuss repayment options. It is notable that such persons are obliged to provide much more information to the bank than to the Department or the HSE. I...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Operations and Functioning of AIB: Discussion (31 Oct 2012)

Thomas Byrne: What does Mr. Murphy mean by "challenging" the SFS? If a customer has a Sky movies subscription, for example, will the bank instruct him or her to downgrade to the standard Sky package or switch to Saorview? Does it come down to that level of detail when the bank engages with customers?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Operations and Functioning of AIB: Discussion (31 Oct 2012)

Thomas Byrne: Does the bank have criteria from the Central Bank as to how "necessary" expenditure is assessed?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Operations and Functioning of AIB: Discussion (31 Oct 2012)

Thomas Byrne: In other words, the bank is operating according to its own view of what a person should be spending on a monthly basis.