Results 21,621-21,640 of 26,293 for speaker:Darragh O'Brien

Seanad: Order of Business (18 Nov 2014)

Darragh O'Brien: Last evening, the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport, Deputy Paschal Donohoe, signed two commencement orders to tear apart the pension entitlements of 15,000 members of the Irish aviation superannuation scheme, IASS. All Members will have been written to by retired people in their 60s, 70s or 80s who will lose a minimum of six weeks pay, which is a more than a 10% cut, and will carry...

Seanad: Commemoration Planning: Statements (13 Nov 2014)

Darragh O'Brien: The Minister is very welcome to the House, and I welcome this opportunity to put a few points to her. I will address the 1916 commemorations, which are the most significant ones. It was a watershed moment in the history of this independent State. While other areas deserve to be commemorated, I will not be able to cover all of them in a short five minutes, so I will deal only with the 1916...

Seanad: Seanad Bill 2013: Committee Stage (12 Nov 2014)

Darragh O'Brien: I agree I have probably overstepped the mark.

Seanad: Seanad Bill 2013: Committee Stage (12 Nov 2014)

Darragh O'Brien: I am not one to follow everyone else. There are other areas which need to be covered. I will hold back on those comments until we get to the relevant section.

Seanad: Seanad Bill 2013: Committee Stage (12 Nov 2014)

Darragh O'Brien: I welcome the Minister of State. I have been watching the debate on the monitor. The Government gave very clear commitments on Oireachtas reform prior to the election . Seanad reform, unfortunately, from that party's perspective meant abolition. As we know, the people decided not to abolish the Seanad. I commend the Senators who put this reform Bill together. As I said to Senators...

Seanad: Order of Business (12 Nov 2014)

Darragh O'Brien: We will see.

Seanad: Order of Business (12 Nov 2014)

Darragh O'Brien: They have been hammered in every budget.

Seanad: Order of Business (12 Nov 2014)

Darragh O'Brien: Given the past performance of Labour Party parliamentarians, it would be better for them to seek advice from farther afield because they might then resolve the issue. I suggest that they be more collegiate and invite people in.

Seanad: Order of Business (12 Nov 2014)

Darragh O'Brien: If the Labour Party Senators support the amendment, the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government can easily come into the House to clear up the matter if it is the case that he does not want to abolish Sligo County Council. Either he wants to abolish it or he does not. It is as simple as that. I understand that the Minister is, ironically, in Swords, County Dublin, this...

Seanad: Order of Business (12 Nov 2014)

Darragh O'Brien: I second the amendment put forward by Senator MacSharry. It might be Sligo this week, but it could be Leitrim next week. If this is the line the Minister is taking on smaller local authorities, we should all be concerned. I hope to be able to speak directly to the Minister today, if this amendment is agreed to, and I will tell him that if meetings are held here concerning local...

Seanad: Order of Business (12 Nov 2014)

Darragh O'Brien: I note that Senator Comiskey was not even invited. Perhaps it was only a select few from the Labour Party who were invited.

Seanad: Order of Business (5 Nov 2014)

Darragh O'Brien: For the first hour.

Seanad: Order of Business (5 Nov 2014)

Darragh O'Brien: The Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government will be here today. That is what we want in order that we can have a meaningful debate. The motion is now on the floor for the first hour and the motion will be voted on or agreed in the first hour of that debate. That is better than having statements. It is realistic and a message from the Seanad will go out about Irish...

Seanad: Order of Business (5 Nov 2014)

Darragh O'Brien: For the sake of clarity, the first item on the floor now is the motion which I will move. People can speak in the first hour and in the second hour. They are two separate items, one being the motion. I will move the motion at the start and the Minister will reply to the motion. The second hour will be a general debate on other issues related to Irish Water.

Seanad: Order of Business (5 Nov 2014)

Darragh O'Brien: To move this on, we will work out that people on the Opposition side will not speak twice. We will work out that as many people as possible from the Opposition side will have an opportunity to speak. I do not envisage any of our speakers speaking twice. They are two distinct debates.

Seanad: Order of Business (5 Nov 2014)

Darragh O'Brien: That is with regard to the statements. Will the Minister be responding to the motion?

Seanad: Order of Business (5 Nov 2014)

Darragh O'Brien: At what time will he respond to the motion? There will be a vote on the motion after one hour.

Seanad: Order of Business (5 Nov 2014)

Darragh O'Brien: We want to get this very clear.

Seanad: Order of Business (5 Nov 2014)

Darragh O'Brien: It is a point of order. The amendment to the Order of Business was that this item be taken before No. 1, statements on Irish Water, and for one hour. Therefore, the motion must be taken first because this is what the House has decided. We will work out the speaking arrangements here. It is open to the Leader to ask the Minister to extend the time he can give to statements but the motion...

Seanad: Order of Business (5 Nov 2014)

Darragh O'Brien: If that is not possible for him, so be it. However, the motion as passed by the House must be taken in the first hour.