Results 221-240 of 468 for speaker:Liam Fitzgerald

Seanad: Educational Facilities: Motion. (6 Oct 2004)

Liam Fitzgerald: I stand corrected. What happened subsequently has, in some cases, given rise to wild and unfounded allegations of political interference, cover-ups and ministerial intervention to suppress information from Deputy Andrews, the Information Commissioner and the chairperson of St. Catherine's, whom I understand is in the Gallery and whom I welcome. However, the known facts clearly prove that...

Seanad: Educational Facilities: Motion. (6 Oct 2004)

Liam Fitzgerald: They simply do not stand up to close scrutiny.

Seanad: Educational Facilities: Motion. (6 Oct 2004)

Liam Fitzgerald: The principal allegation is that the then Minister for Education and Science, Deputy Noel Dempsey, simply binned or, at best, ignored the consultant's report. The then Minister has stated repeatedly in public that the report was thoroughly examined and that the options for the future of the college were set out for his consideration. However, some important aspects of this have not been...

Seanad: Educational Facilities: Motion. (6 Oct 2004)

Liam Fitzgerald: ——but to suggest thus is to suggest that the quality of service at St. Angela's in Sligo is inferior. Nobody wants to assert that.

Seanad: Educational Facilities: Motion. (6 Oct 2004)

Liam Fitzgerald: I am sharing my time. I commend the amendment to the House.

Seanad: Educational Facilities: Motion. (6 Oct 2004)

Liam Fitzgerald: Can the Senator quote the Information Commissioner?

Seanad: Educational Facilities: Motion. (6 Oct 2004)

Liam Fitzgerald: She did not say that.

Seanad: Educational Facilities: Motion. (6 Oct 2004)

Liam Fitzgerald: He should draw a distinction.

Seanad: Disability Services: Motion. (29 Sep 2004)

Liam Fitzgerald: I second the motion. Like Senator Kett, I pay tribute to the former Minister of State, Deputy Mary Wallace. She produced a Bill before the last general election but, due to various negative and mischievous comments, it was compromised before it reached the Houses of the Oireachtas and had to be withdrawn. If that Bill had been brought before the Houses, the collective wisdom of Members would...

Seanad: Education for Persons with Special Educational Needs Bill 2003: Report and Final Stages. (8 Jul 2004)

Liam Fitzgerald: I thank the Ministers of State, Deputies de Valera and Brian Lenihan, who have piloted the Bill through the House. I join with my colleagues in complimenting them for their attention to the detail of the debate. More important, they have responded meaningfully and holistically to the many views expressed. I also thank the officials in the Department of Education and Science for their...

Seanad: Education for Persons with Special Educational Needs Bill 2003: Report and Final Stages. (8 Jul 2004)

Liam Fitzgerald: Whether the formula of words proposed by Senator Burke in his amendment is necessary is a matter for the Minister of State's judgment but the aspiration which it represents is essential. If that aspiration is not translated and given effect in the Bill, the state-of-the-art framework set out in the Bill will not be realised. That there is a timescale for the implementation of the Bill of five...

Seanad: Education for Persons with Special Educational Needs Bill 2003: Report and Final Stages. (8 Jul 2004)

Liam Fitzgerald: Not at all.

Seanad: Education for Persons with Special Educational Needs Bill 2003: Report and Final Stages. (8 Jul 2004)

Liam Fitzgerald: I am also sympathetic to the views expressed by Senator Ulick Burke. Any Member who has dealt with children with special needs in public life or professionally in education will know that 99% of what the Senator outlined is very true. We have all come face to face with such situations. If the Bill is to mean anything, its text must address the significant lacuna the existence of which has...

Seanad: Education for Persons with Special Educational Needs Bill 2003: Report and Final Stages. (8 Jul 2004)

Liam Fitzgerald: I listened to Senator Ulick Burke very carefully on Committee Stage and understood that every reference made to individual education plans in the Bill concerns the preparation of a plan for an individual child, as I tried to articulate on Committee Stage. There is no ambiguity in this matter at any point in the Bill. The Bill brings all the relevant agencies and partners involved towards the...

Seanad: Education for Persons with Special Educational Needs Bill 2003: Report and Final Stages. (8 Jul 2004)

Liam Fitzgerald: I remind Senator Ryan that the word used in section 13 is "may" and not "shall". It makes no significant difference whether we include or delete the phrase "with the consent of the Minister for Finance". The inclusion of the phrase is consistent with the role of Government and the way it operates. We discussed this matter yesterday and I do not propose discussing it in detail. The Bill is...

Seanad: Education for Persons with Special Educational Needs Bill 2003: Report and Final Stages. (8 Jul 2004)

Liam Fitzgerald: Senator Ryan referred to riachtanaisí speisialta. That requirement applies not alone to the Irish language but in an era of multiculturalism, across the board. There is a genuine case for the amendment and it is true that in many cases additional resources are needed to deal with the linguistic and cultural requirements in Gaeltachtaí and Gaelscoileanna but surely this Bill, the Education...

Seanad: Education for Persons with Special Educational Needs Bill 2003: Committee Stage (Resumed). (7 Jul 2004)

Liam Fitzgerald: On section 9, specifically section 9(7), I am sympathetic to the sentiments expressed by Senator Ulick Burke and the Minister of State has responded to them cogently. On Second Stage, it was remiss of me not to acknowledge the considerable input of Senator O'Toole to section 9(7). I was not aware of his input but was aware that an amendment had been tabled on this section in the Dáil. I...

Seanad: Education for Persons with Special Educational Needs Bill 2003: Committee Stage (Resumed). (7 Jul 2004)

Liam Fitzgerald: I could not agree more with Senator O'Toole. The idea behind our evolving educational policy is to make the education system more child-centred, not parent-centred. I agree with the Senator on his reference to the Constitution. I mean no disrespect to its author, but it is unfortunate that its wording regarding parents is sometimes misinterpreted — unwittingly, I am sure. To give parents...

Seanad: Education for Persons with Special Educational Needs Bill 2003: Committee Stage (Resumed). (7 Jul 2004)

Liam Fitzgerald: I expressed some views on the question of the consent of the Minister for Finance in my contribution on Second Stage. Article 17 of the Constitution requires that the Government be accountable to the Oireachtas for all moneys spent. It has always been the function of the Minister for Finance to organise Government expenditure. The logic of one of Senator O'Toole's proposals would be for the...

Seanad: Education for Persons with Special Educational Needs Bill 2003: Committee Stage (Resumed). (7 Jul 2004)

Liam Fitzgerald: The Senator may inform the House of his logic when I am finished.