Results 1-20 of 494 for speaker:Patricia Ryan in 'Dáil debates'

Covid-19 (Finance): Statements (20 May 2020)

Patricia Ryan: I asked the Minister to do everything in his power to ensure the bank branches that have closed temporarily because of Covid-19 will reopen when it is safe to do so. On 24 March, Bank of Ireland closed its branches in Monasterevin and Kilcullen in County Kildare, along with approximately 99 other branches throughout the country. Most of these branches are in small rural towns. They are an...

Covid-19 (Health): Statements (4 Jun 2020)

Patricia Ryan: I wish to address the waiting lists for child and adolescent mental health services, CAMHS, in County Kildare, where I come from. This is more important now than ever. It has always been important. There is an ongoing crisis in CAMHS. The waiting list comes up every year. The Minister and his predecessors have wrung their hands and promised that things would improve but all the evidence...

Reopening of Schools and Summer Provision 2020: Statements (24 Jun 2020)

Patricia Ryan: What plans has the Minister put in place for children with underlying health conditions who are to return to school in September? We need robust plans shared well in advance so parents can have the confidence to send their children to schools when they reopen in nine weeks. As matters stand, some parents are afraid of the potential consequences of keeping their children at home. We need...

Maternity Leave Benefit Extension: Motion [Private Members] (14 Jul 2020)

Patricia Ryan: Some 30,000 people have signed the Uplift petition calling on the Government to extend maternity leave by three months. Like many, Government Deputies here tonight have signed it too. The Fine Gael leader in the Seanad, Senator Regina Doherty, has in the last week confirmed to the Taoiseach that the Seanad stands ready and waiting to implement this extension. It is now time to do the right...

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (16 Jul 2020)

Patricia Ryan: Will the Tánaiste introduce legislation to give effect to the 2008 court recommendation on the pension rights of community employment, CE, supervisors? There is not a village in the country that does not benefit from CE scheme workers. That value of the work they do far outweighs the financial reward they receive. They keep community groups alive in rural areas in particular. I...

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (23 Jul 2020)

Patricia Ryan: I wish to ask the Tánaiste about the detail of the promise in the programme for Government to "[i]ncrease the number of specialist palliative care beds countrywide over the next five years, ensuring that there will be a hospice serving every region in the country." I was very disappointed when reading the programme for Government that there is a lack of detail throughout the document....

Future of School Education: Motion [Private Members] (28 Jul 2020)

Patricia Ryan: I welcome the publication of yesterday's roadmap for reopening schools. However, it is too little too late and it is light on detail. It is also a missed opportunity to address our spiralling pupil-teacher ratio, which is one of the highest in the OECD. Throughout this pandemic, we have seen the value of front-line workers. It is time for the Government to show its appreciation of them....

Criminal Justice (Enforcement Powers) (Covid-19) Bill 2020: Second Stage (2 Sep 2020)

Patricia Ryan: Many pubs known as "wet pubs" in south Kildare and north Laois have been closed for almost six months. More than 3,500 wet pubs across the country remain closed. Ireland is the only country in Europe where this is the case. September marks not only the sixth month of closure for wet pubs but also the end of a moratorium on mortgages. This will mark the entry of many pubs into mortgage...

Defence (Amendment) Bill 2020: Second Stage (8 Sep 2020)

Patricia Ryan: I welcome the legislation which is very much a housekeeping Bill and is long overdue. The Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the involvement of children in armed conflict was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in May 2000 and it entered into force in February 2002. It has taken 18 years to change the law to remove references to minors in the...

Mental Health and Older People: Statements (9 Sep 2020)

Patricia Ryan: I congratulate the Minister of State and look forward working with her constructively. Covid-19 has had a disproportionate effect on our older population, not just in the number of elderly people who died but in how the Government's response impacted on their daily lives. In the context of every roadmap and announcement, they were told to cocoon and stay hidden in their homes and that...

Expenditure Response to Covid-19 Crisis: Statements (Resumed) (17 Sep 2020)

Patricia Ryan: I wish to express my dissatisfaction and the dissatisfaction of the people I represent with the Government's spending in response to Covid-19. For example, almost €9 million has been spent on advertising since the start of the pandemic. That figure does not include the recent hiring of a public relations firm following criticisms of the mixed messaging around Covid restrictions. A...

Climate Action: Statements (17 Sep 2020)

Patricia Ryan: Dare I say it, but I had some hope when the Green Party became involved with this Government that we might see some movement on a just transition regarding climate change. Instead, we got the blunt instrument of carbon taxes. Like many others, I have been disappointed by the Green Party and how it has been absorbed into the Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael way of thinking. The easiest,...

Sick Leave and Parental Leave (Covid-19) Bill 2020: Second Stage [Private Members] (23 Sep 2020)

Patricia Ryan: I welcome the introduction of this Bill and hope that the Government and those who support it will get behind it. I ask all voters to pay particular attention to those who vote against this Bill. Those Deputies who claim to be champions of workers' rights will be exposed as frauds in the way they vote on this Bill, in the same way that they were exposed by their response to the recent...

EU-UK Negotiations on Brexit: Statements (24 Sep 2020)

Patricia Ryan: The Irish Government is co-guarantor of the Good Friday Agreement. The full implementation and effective operation of the Good Friday Agreement and all subsequent agreements should be the utmost priority of this Government. We have all benefited from the peaceful solution offered by the Good Friday Agreement. This needs to be protected. Customs infrastructure on the island of Ireland...

Health (Amendment) (Professional Home Care) Bill 2020: Second Stage [Private Members] (24 Sep 2020)

Patricia Ryan: I welcome the Bill introduced by Deputy Colm Burke. It is unfortunate that it is coming nine years after legislative provision in this area was recommended by the Law Reform Commission. Strong regulation in respect of professional home care services is long overdue. The number of people aged over 65 in this country is expected to increase to more than 1 million by 2040. Moreover, the...

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (30 Sep 2020)

Patricia Ryan: Will the Taoiseach outline the Government's plans to proceed with its climate action plan in light of the recent Supreme Court decision in the case of the Friends of the Irish Environment v. Government of Ireland? In this case, the Supreme Court decision in effect quashes the climate mitigation plan. Is there a timeframe for the delivery of the new mitigation plan? Can the Taoiseach assure...

Roadmap for Living with Covid-19: Statements (1 Oct 2020)

Patricia Ryan: Today is International Day of Older Persons, a group of people who have been left behind in the many roadmap announcements over the past few months. I have asked on numerous occasions in this House that the Government consider older people when formulating plans and that it consider those who have different abilities. We cannot continue to ask them to live like hermits. We need a balance...

Winter Plan 2020: Statements (1 Oct 2020)

Patricia Ryan: Gabhaim buíochas leis an gCeann Comhairle. I agree with my colleague, Deputy Cullinane. This winter plan is a wish list which is short on targets, on timelines and on ambition. I am very fearful of a winter crisis at Portlaoise, Tullamore, and Naas hospitals. When Covid-19, in particular, is taken into account, the plan is lacking in detail, targets and timelines for staff...

Covid-19 Pandemic Unemployment Payment: Motion [Private Members] (7 Oct 2020)

Patricia Ryan: I also welcome the opportunity to speak on this motion. Cutting the PUP payment has caused immense worry for workers and their families. Many workers have only returned to work after months away, only to be told their workplaces must close again. Those on the PUP have been told that they must face cuts of up to €200 a month to their supports and yet this Government has seen fit to...

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (7 Oct 2020)

Patricia Ryan: I wish to ask about the promise on page 35 of the programme for Government to prioritise the development of microgeneration, letting people sell excess power back to the grid by June 2021. I wholeheartedly support this objective which was proposed by my colleague, Teachta Brian Stanley, in the form of the Microgeneration Support Scheme Bill 2017. This Bill had cross-party support but...