Results 1-20 of 1,812 for speaker:Chris Andrews

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (9 Apr 2025)

Chris Andrews: Yesterday, I put a specific question to the Minister of State, Deputy Troy, as to why Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael had proposed in their manifestos a betting tax levy increase of 1%, from 2% to 3%, yet when they got into government, it was abandoned. There is no sign of it in the programme for Government. I got absolutely zero answers as to why it has been abandoned. It is not good...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (9 Apr 2025)

Chris Andrews: Deputy Harris.

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Gambling Sector (8 Apr 2025)

Chris Andrews: Prior to the last election, both the Minister of State's party and its coalition partners made firm commitments in their manifestos to increase the betting tax from 2% to 3% and to use this funding for investment in sport. This commitment strangely vanished from the programme for Government with no mention of the betting tax or additional capital investment in sport infrastructure and...

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Gambling Sector (8 Apr 2025)

Chris Andrews: It seems that the Government has bowed at the altar of the gambling industry, while sport and Irish football have to pick up the tab. I find it hard to take that the discredited and abusive greyhound industry gets €19 million a year, and Irish football and other sports get hardly a fraction of that figure. Governments will talk about sports capital and individual funding projects, as...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (8 Apr 2025)

Chris Andrews: Last week, a young zebra was brought into a bar in County Clare. Colleagues might imagine I am about to tell a joke but this is actually true. Many people thought it was an April Fool's Day joke. Bizarrely, this is not against the law and it highlights the lack of legislation and enforcement relating to animal welfare. My Lovely Horse Animal Rescue recently called for urgent reform of...

Seanad: Disability Services: Statements (8 Apr 2025)

Chris Andrews: I welcome the Minister of State and congratulate her on her new role. I hope she is successful. It is important for many people that she is. The Minister of State may have heard of Involve Autism, an advocacy group based in Dublin 6. It is very constructive, positive, detailed and solution focused. One of the things it has highlighted is the cost of transporting children with special...

Seanad: International Trade and International Relations: Statements (3 Apr 2025)

Chris Andrews: I extend my condolences to Mick O'Dwyer's family on his passing this morning. He was an icon of Irish sport and football. His loss is a huge loss. On the issue of genocide in Gaza, I would like to know why this Government has accepted the normalisation of genocide. Israel continues with a colonial settlement project and there are absolutely no sanctions for it. Those colonial...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (2 Apr 2025)

Chris Andrews: I raise the issue of animal welfare, particularly dog welfare. Last week, three dogs were shot and dumped in a bog in Westmeath. This Government's attitude to dog welfare, and animal welfare generally, is lamentable. We see images of horses around the country that are emaciated, have open wounds and are without water. Dogs are in pounds or are being shot and dumped. The Government needs...

Seanad: Housing: Statements (2 Apr 2025)

Chris Andrews: I wish the Minister the very best in his new position. It is important for everybody in the country that he is successful. I wish him the best. When it comes to housing, it is hard to know where to start. The list is extremely long. I will start with the regeneration of flat complexes in the city of Dublin. In my own constituency of Dublin Bay South, Pearse House is a large flat complex...

Seanad: Air Navigation and Transport (Arms Embargo) Bill 2024: Committee Stage (2 Apr 2025)

Chris Andrews: The Minister of State's colleague, the Minister, Deputy O'Brien, said that every member of Government was horrified by what was happening in Gaza. I hear that, but it is really hard to believe it because the actions suggest that is not the case. The Government's actions suggest that it is actually complicit in the horrors that are happening in the Gaza Strip. This Bill seeks to close one...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (1 Apr 2025)

Chris Andrews: I wish Jeremy and George well. Best wishes in your new role, Jeremy. For George, it is like replacing Alex Ferguson after his time at Manchester United. He has big shoes to fill, as has been said. Best wishes to both of you. My colleague, Senator Ruane, brought up the issue of the peaceful protest yesterday by Mothers Against Genocide and the fact that protestors were removed. It is...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (27 Mar 2025)

Chris Andrews: I want to raise the ongoing dismantling of Irish neutrality and the attempt to get rid of the triple lock, which it should be noted is being supported by many in the media. The reality is that the only people who will benefit from war and the ending of our neutrality are those in the armaments industry. That industrial complex makes billions of euro. It accounts for a tiny fraction of the...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (27 Mar 2025)

Chris Andrews: On a point of order, in case there is any suggestion that I am not, I want to clarify that I am very proud of Irish Army personnel. The point I was making is that the vast majority of those fighting on the front line come from working families. I am very proud of the peacekeeping tradition and of Irish Army personnel.

Seanad: Special Education Provision: Motion (26 Mar 2025)

Chris Andrews: I acknowledge Sarah and Darren and the fight they are undertaking for their son, Freddie. They are replicating the battle that so many people and families have had to put up with in recent years. It does not seem a lot to ask that a child would have access to an education. I acknowledge the Minister of State's new role. It is important and I wish him success. It is important for...

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Child Protection (25 Mar 2025)

Chris Andrews: I thank the Minister of State for coming to the House. I wish him well in his role. It is an interesting role. It is in everyone's interest that he is successful. I rise here today to ask a question that weighs heavily on the minds of many in this Chamber but, far more importantly, on the hearts of countless survivors throughout the country.Why will the Department not commission a full...

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Child Protection (25 Mar 2025)

Chris Andrews: I thank the Minister of State. I have heard that response before - that is being honest - and it is not acceptable. No one has been held accountable for the abuse at St. John Ambulance. An apology is not enough. Survivors have been to hell and back. Some are struggling with homelessness and addiction and are struggling to cope. An apology is not good enough and accountability is what is...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (25 Mar 2025)

Chris Andrews: In recent days, the Minister for housing has slammed the door on the redevelopment and regeneration of the Pearse House flats. This is devastating for the residents of Pearse House, who put up with completely unacceptable living conditions that are getting worse by the day. This is just another example of the Government abandoning the residents of the inner city, and it is a case of further...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (20 Mar 2025)

Chris Andrews: Surgical insemination of greyhounds is deeply disturbing and inhumane. It is a practice that continues to plague the greyhound industry in Ireland. It is a procedure where a female dog's uterus is removed, semen is injected into the uterus, the uterus is then returned to the greyhound and she is then sewn back up and expected to carry the litter of dogs for 60 days while recovering from...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (19 Mar 2025)

Chris Andrews: When you think the horror in the Gaza Strip cannot get any worse, it does. It gets worse on a daily basis. First, we had the genocide, the destruction of hospitals, the murder and the slaughter. Then we have the starvation, the killing, the terror, the blocking of food, the blocking of medicines and the turning off of electrical power, which impacts the desalination systems and water so...

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Public Parks (6 Mar 2025)

Chris Andrews: I congratulate the Minister of State on his new role. It is an important role, as we have seen, for communities across the country. It is also important the Minister of State is successful in it. I wish him the best of luck. The Iveagh Gardens is a green lung for this city. They are more than just a park; they are a piece of our living history. They are one of the few surviving...