Results 20,201-20,220 of 21,306 for speaker:Mary Lou McDonald

Private Members' Business: An Bille um an Naoú Leasú is Fiche ar an mBunreacht (Uimh. 2) 2011: An Dara Céim, Twenty-Ninth Amendment of the Constitution (No. 2) Bill 2011: Second Stage (18 Nov 2011)

Mary Lou McDonald: Sinn Féin is clear on where it stands and whose interests it represents. Sinn Féin wants to dismantle the golden circles that for too long have been protected by the establishment parties. Sinn Féin wants accountability and transparency in public life. While Fianna Fáil may wish to tackle perceptions, Sinn Féin wants to break the corrupting culture of cronyism that has done this State...

Private Members' Business: An Bille um an Naoú Leasú is Fiche ar an mBunreacht (Uimh. 2) 2011: An Dara Céim, Twenty-Ninth Amendment of the Constitution (No. 2) Bill 2011: Second Stage (18 Nov 2011)

Mary Lou McDonald: Those of us on the Oireachtas finance committee heard about this during a plenary session of the committee. Public confidence is not assisted in any way when politicians from Germany have access to information on budgetary measures which will affect the citizens of this State.

Private Members' Business: An Bille um an Naoú Leasú is Fiche ar an mBunreacht (Uimh. 2) 2011: An Dara Céim, Twenty-Ninth Amendment of the Constitution (No. 2) Bill 2011: Second Stage (18 Nov 2011)

Mary Lou McDonald: The Government should not duck and dive on this issue.

Private Members' Business: An Bille um an Naoú Leasú is Fiche ar an mBunreacht (Uimh. 2) 2011: An Dara Céim, Twenty-Ninth Amendment of the Constitution (No. 2) Bill 2011: Second Stage (18 Nov 2011)

Mary Lou McDonald: We need a debate and accountability on this matter in the Dáil.

Private Members' Business: An Bille um an Naoú Leasú is Fiche ar an mBunreacht (Uimh. 2) 2011: An Dara Céim, Twenty-Ninth Amendment of the Constitution (No. 2) Bill 2011: Second Stage (18 Nov 2011)

Mary Lou McDonald: I would be more than happy to do so.

Private Members' Business: An Bille um an Naoú Leasú is Fiche ar an mBunreacht (Uimh. 2) 2011: An Dara Céim, Twenty-Ninth Amendment of the Constitution (No. 2) Bill 2011: Second Stage (18 Nov 2011)

Mary Lou McDonald: We are legally prohibited from doing so.

Private Members' Business: An Bille um an Naoú Leasú is Fiche ar an mBunreacht (Uimh. 2) 2011: An Dara Céim, Twenty-Ninth Amendment of the Constitution (No. 2) Bill 2011: Second Stage (18 Nov 2011)

Mary Lou McDonald: There are probably few times in life that if one struck a match, the irony would be so intense that there would be a combustion but this is certainly one of them. To hear Deputy Martin talk about hypocritical cant while delivering hypocritical cant is hard to stomach.

Private Members' Business: An Bille um an Naoú Leasú is Fiche ar an mBunreacht (Uimh. 2) 2011: An Dara Céim, Twenty-Ninth Amendment of the Constitution (No. 2) Bill 2011: Second Stage (18 Nov 2011)

Mary Lou McDonald: Fianna Fáil and the former Minister, Deputy Martin, clearly feel the need to purge themselves of the past and that is understandable. At least they now accept they have a past of which they might purge themselves. The fact that since the foundation of the State, Fianna Fáil has been in government for more than 60 years cannot go unmentioned.

Private Members' Business: An Bille um an Naoú Leasú is Fiche ar an mBunreacht (Uimh. 2) 2011: An Dara Céim, Twenty-Ninth Amendment of the Constitution (No. 2) Bill 2011: Second Stage (18 Nov 2011)

Mary Lou McDonald: The Leas-Cheann Comhairle's colleagues need to let me speak.

Private Members' Business: An Bille um an Naoú Leasú is Fiche ar an mBunreacht (Uimh. 2) 2011: An Dara Céim, Twenty-Ninth Amendment of the Constitution (No. 2) Bill 2011: Second Stage (18 Nov 2011)

Mary Lou McDonald: Deputy Martin spoke about the need to change perception that big business can buy influence by financially supporting the election funds of parties or candidates, which is correct, but Fianna Fáil created this monster and not just over the past 14 years when it was in government but as far back as the days of Lemass. Fianna Fáil State board appointees were party people. That was an open...

Private Members' Business: An Bille um an Naoú Leasú is Fiche ar an mBunreacht (Uimh. 2) 2011: An Dara Céim, Twenty-Ninth Amendment of the Constitution (No. 2) Bill 2011: Second Stage (18 Nov 2011)

Mary Lou McDonald: It is an indictment of cronyism and not of teachers and I stand over it.

Private Members' Business: An Bille um an Naoú Leasú is Fiche ar an mBunreacht (Uimh. 2) 2011: An Dara Céim, Twenty-Ninth Amendment of the Constitution (No. 2) Bill 2011: Second Stage (18 Nov 2011)

Mary Lou McDonald: Plum jobs in commercial semi-States were kept for "its own" and it was all about who one knew and not what one knew. The lads in the mohair suits introduced money into the equation and Taca was born and the people of this State are still paying the price.

Private Members' Business: An Bille um an Naoú Leasú is Fiche ar an mBunreacht (Uimh. 2) 2011: An Dara Céim, Twenty-Ninth Amendment of the Constitution (No. 2) Bill 2011: Second Stage (18 Nov 2011)

Mary Lou McDonald: The inflated price of land and corrupting relationship Fianna Fáil fostered with developers started way back in the early days of Taca. This, of course, has been well documented. Taca may have been shut down in the 1970s but lessons had been learned. Dublin's beautiful and historic architecture was torn asunder for a quick buck.

Private Members' Business: An Bille um an Naoú Leasú is Fiche ar an mBunreacht (Uimh. 2) 2011: An Dara Céim, Twenty-Ninth Amendment of the Constitution (No. 2) Bill 2011: Second Stage (18 Nov 2011)

Mary Lou McDonald: Over the years land continued to get more expensive and a small number of developers grew in size and capacity. Huge amounts of EU Structural Funds landed in the coffers for massive road building projects and the like and gradually the golden circle was completed. Colleagues on the Fianna Fáil benches will not simply eradicate more than 60 years of sponsored cronyism with a single Bill no...

Private Members' Business: An Bille um an Naoú Leasú is Fiche ar an mBunreacht (Uimh. 2) 2011: An Dara Céim, Twenty-Ninth Amendment of the Constitution (No. 2) Bill 2011: Second Stage (18 Nov 2011)

Mary Lou McDonald: Perhaps that was because to have introduced this kind of radical change would have been to completely alter the DNA of successive Fianna Fáil leaderships. Government policy was designed to help developers and speculators to make huge profits for which ordinary taxpayers are now paying. A bank without any systemic importance to the State was bailed out because of connections between those...

Expenditure Reviews (17 Nov 2011)

Mary Lou McDonald: Question 2: To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform the impact he believes the Budget 2012 expenditure cuts of €2.2 billion will have on the vulnerable, low and middle income families; and the policy measures he will put in place to minimise hardship on citizens. [35356/11]

Expenditure Reviews (17 Nov 2011)

Mary Lou McDonald: I apologise for my late arrival.

Expenditure Reviews (17 Nov 2011)

Mary Lou McDonald: Tá brón orm. I got caught up in the finance committee. It was all fascinating, so I am sorry about that. I would like to ask about the impact of the expenditure cuts on lower and middle income families. I know the Minister is going to publish the comprehensive spending review. I understand that it is a very detailed document. I wonder about an impact assessment for those on fixed...

Expenditure Reviews (17 Nov 2011)

Mary Lou McDonald: It has dispensed with that. The argument was about expenditure cuts or taxation measures. The evidence is not that measures on the expenditure side are most effective. The Minister might dust down that analysis. What way does he propose to protect low and middle income families? What kind of an impact assessment has his Department carried out?

Sale of State Assets (17 Nov 2011)

Mary Lou McDonald: Question 5: To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform if he will reconsider the Programme for Government commitment to sell off commercial State assets taking into consideration that neither the IMF nor the EU have demanded the budgetary measure nor does the Memorandum of Understanding explicitly call for the privatisation of State assets. [35357/11]