Results 20,821-20,840 of 21,047 for speaker:Alan Kelly

Seanad: Anglo Irish Bank Corporation Bill 2009: Second Stage (20 Jan 2009)

Alan Kelly: The consistent underestimation of the situation in the past six months poses serious questions. If the Minister needs help, he should get it for the good of the country. The Labour Party will oppose the Bill. We do not want to protect bad gamblers engaged in monopolistic gambling. We do not know how much the nationalisation will cost or how accountable the new regime will be to the Oireachtas.

Seanad: Anglo Irish Bank Corporation Bill 2009: Second Stage (20 Jan 2009)

Alan Kelly: I ask that the Minister respond to the questions posed today.

Seanad: Order of Business (17 Dec 2008)

Alan Kelly: I agree with what Senators Hannigan and Donohoe said about the impact on this country's competitiveness of the US interest rate changes that were announced last night. I will not repeat what they said. When I attended the Business and Finance awards last week, Mr. Niall FitzGerald, who won the outstanding achievement award, made the very good point that this country needs to get back to...

Seanad: Order of Business (17 Dec 2008)

Alan Kelly: They must be published. The HSE must explain why reports that have been finalised since this time last year — almost on this date last year — have not been published in the intervening year. A survey of migrant workers, published by the Migrant Rights Centre of Ireland, found that 53% of migrants working in restaurants are being paid less than the minimum wage. Collectively we should...

Seanad: Schools Building Projects (10 Dec 2008)

Alan Kelly: While I thank the Minister of State for his response, I wish to raise a couple of matters. First, it is difficult for Nenagh Vocational School to maintain its enrolment at the appropriate level when parents can see its current condition. Would the Minister of State enrol his child in a school that he knew lacked showers and adequate physical education facilities and where health and safety...

Seanad: Schools Building Projects (10 Dec 2008)

Alan Kelly: A serious issue exists in respect of wheelchair access and I ask the Minister of State to investigate it as a matter of priority. One cannot have national headlines in which a student who attempts to enrol in a school cannot so do because he or she has a disability. Finally, the Minister of State should ask his ministerial colleague to re-assess the band rating for the two schools under...

Seanad: Schools Building Projects (10 Dec 2008)

Alan Kelly: I thank the Chair for accepting this motion on the Adjournment. I also welcome the Minister of State. The reason I raise the motion is to make the case for two vocational schools in north Tipperary, Nenagh and Borrisokane, to be moved up the list of school building projects sanctioned by the Department. They should be two of the main priorities. In my travels throughout Munster I have...

Seanad: Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2008: Report and Final Stages (10 Dec 2008)

Alan Kelly: I call a quorum.

Seanad: Order of Business (9 Dec 2008)

Alan Kelly: We should be having a debate about the scary situation in which our food industry finds itself this week, and we should be doing it today rather than tomorrow. I acknowledge that the Leader has provided time for it tomorrow but it is something that we should be speaking about today. It has a dramatic impact on a great many people. As the Cathaoirleach will be well aware, in our own areas...

Seanad: Order of Business (3 Dec 2008)

Alan Kelly: I will not prejudge the debate on the economy on Friday but the turnaround in Exchequer figures over the past year amounts to €9.5 billion and updated live register figures will be announced later. We have rightly engaged in a great deal of discussion about the reform needed in the public service but the debate on Friday should concentrate on how to stimulate job creation. The Government...

Seanad: Order of Business (3 Dec 2008)

Alan Kelly: ——and work with the rest of us to ensure these practices are discontinued, that the exploitation of workers is stopped and that they will do all in their power, as they try to do in other areas of their industries, to ensure these practices are not tolerated?

Seanad: Order of Business (27 Nov 2008)

Alan Kelly: I return to the subject matter of the public service, about which I spoke yesterday in light of the Government's announcement. I will not repeat everything I said, but yesterday's announcement was much ado about nothing. Another report will be commissioned and, no matter what language is used or what thesaurus is brought out to say the same thing in a different way, this will be the fifth...

Seanad: Order of Business (27 Nov 2008)

Alan Kelly: ——and we would not have the scenario where everybody is refusing or afraid to get information under the freedom of information legislation because the costs are so excessive. That is to the detriment of democracy and to information.

Seanad: Order of Business (26 Nov 2008)

Alan Kelly: I, too, wish to raise the issue of the public service. Mr. Rody Molloy was right to resign and took the honourable option. In a time when we have not seen that from many people, especially in politics, it is good to see honour still exists and we did not see enough of it during the Celtic tiger years. If it is coming back into vogue for a person to resign because he or she believes it is...

Seanad: Order of Business (20 Nov 2008)

Alan Kelly: I call for the Minister for Health and Children to come before the House to debate acute care in hospitals. I do so in the belief that she should resign because we, as Oireachtas Members, and public servants in general are being misled by the HSE——

Seanad: Order of Business (20 Nov 2008)

Alan Kelly: ——on acute care and the recommendations that have not been published by the HSE with regard to various hospitals throughout the country. I do so in the knowledge that the final report on acute services in the mid-west was completed on 20 December 2007. Why are we attending meetings, engaging in debates and meeting occasionally with the Health Service Executive only to be told...

Seanad: Special Educational Needs: Motion (29 Oct 2008)

Alan Kelly: I welcome the Minister of State to the House. I hope he does not have as difficult a week this week as he has had in the past two weeks. However, from the telephone calls I have been receiving I somehow doubt it. This is a very important motion and the Labour Party is proud to bring it before the House. I am very proud to second it. The motion is about protecting the most vulnerable in...

Seanad: Order of Business (21 Oct 2008)

Alan Kelly: I support the proposed amendment to the Order of Business. I also support my colleague, Senator Alex White, in asking how many changes there will be to the budget. How many more climbdowns will there be? Contrary to the previous speaker for whom I have great respect, I do not believe this medical cards issue has been sorted. It simply has not. Frankly, I do not believe the statistics I...

Seanad: Order of Business (21 Oct 2008)

Alan Kelly: If it were only 5% who would be affected by this and who would lose their medical cards, from an administrative point of view it would be hardly worth doing.

Seanad: Order of Business (21 Oct 2008)

Alan Kelly: The calculations that have been done suggest approximately 14% will lose their medical cards. I would not like to accuse the Taoiseach of misleading the people, but in the next few weeks we will certainly find that out. We may have to come back into the House and say so. The other aspect is that there is a fundamental change in that the Minister can use a ministerial order to change the...