Results 26,001-26,020 of 26,788 for speaker:David Cullinane

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2011: Committee Stage (15 Dec 2011)

David Cullinane: Certainly in 2012, an increase from 156 contributions to 260 is envisaged. This is an increase from three years' contributions to five years'. This is similar to the debate that took place earlier on the disablement allowance payment in that Sinn Féin is concerned that this, again, could be a slippery slope, as the threshold appears to be increasing all the time. The number of...

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2011: Committee Stage (15 Dec 2011)

David Cullinane: Very good.

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2011: Committee Stage (15 Dec 2011)

David Cullinane: The only part of this section with which I can agree is the change in the definition of "spouse" to include "civil partner or cohabitant". Apart from this, I must oppose the thrust of what the Minister is trying to do. The section cuts the half rate qualified child increase for people on invalidity pension or contributory pension or in receipt of carer's benefit. The Minister has said...

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2011: Committee Stage (15 Dec 2011)

David Cullinane: That is in section 7.

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2011: Committee Stage (15 Dec 2011)

David Cullinane: The spin from the Government side has been mentioned, in that its representatives have stated that the people affected by this cut are entitled to secondary benefits.

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2011: Committee Stage (15 Dec 2011)

David Cullinane: We are aware of that. In some situations, they may qualify for an increase in family income supplement, FIS, but that will not compensate for this cut. The Minister is trying to put everyone on a par with the jobseeker's allowance, but not everyone should be. How can carers be on a par with jobseekers? There is a clear difference. The half-rate qualified child increase exists for a...

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2011: Committee Stage (15 Dec 2011)

David Cullinane: Amendments such as those to which the Senator refers would have been ruled out of order.

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2011: Committee Stage (15 Dec 2011)

David Cullinane: I will not oppose sections 1, 2 or 5. Unfortunately, matters go downhill from there because I will oppose all other sections.

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2011: Committee Stage (15 Dec 2011)

David Cullinane: I could do so but I must make a number of brief points because I wish to ensure that all of the sections will be discussed. A number of Senators referred to the difficult job the Minister is obliged to do. They are correct in that regard and everyone accepts that she has a difficult job. This matter comes down to the political and economic choices a Government is obliged to make....

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2011: Committee Stage (15 Dec 2011)

David Cullinane: I am trying to speak to the section. The Minister was very good in opposition, as was her party leader, the Tánaiste, Deputy Eamon Gilmore, at pointing to the madness of paying back bondholders and speculators, yet in November the Government paid a bond of €750 million and it will pay another of €1.2 billion in January. A number of weeks ago it extended the bank guarantee in a measure...

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2011: Committee Stage (15 Dec 2011)

David Cullinane: ——even those not covered under the bank guarantee scheme.

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2011: Committee Stage (15 Dec 2011)

David Cullinane: The Minister has provided some clarity and when she comes back, she will probably give us more clarity. The explanatory memorandum, which has been circulated to us by the Department, states that section 3 provides for the abolition of the entitlement to payment of disablement benefit in the case of assessments of loss of faculty amounting to less than 15%. It does not apply to existing...

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2011: Committee Stage (15 Dec 2011)

David Cullinane: That is my understanding. The problem we have is that people pay PRSI, which is a social insurance, so if they are victims of an accident, they can rely on it and can be covered. A number of advocacy organisations have made the point that this potentially could be a slippery slope, or a move towards a more graded scale of disability. While the section here states "amounting to 15%", could...

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2011: Committee Stage (15 Dec 2011)

David Cullinane: Something like that. However, people who are somewhat incapacitated need time to recover. That is the reality if they are victims of accidents at work.

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2011: Committee Stage (15 Dec 2011)

David Cullinane: Yes, but the disablement benefit is being cut and they will not be able to avail of it if the loss of faculty is less than 15%. It is 15% now, but can the Minister give us a guarantee that in future budgets, that figure will not become 20%, 30%, or 40%? How is this figure assessed? Does an independent medical doctor assess it? I look forward to the Minister's response.

Seanad: Order of Business (14 Dec 2011)

David Cullinane: Jesus Christ, Joe Hill and Thomas Francis Meagher already have been mentioned this morning and I wonder what any of those individuals would make of the cuts in education that have been announced by the Government. Senator Jim D'Arcy stated — I believe him in terms of his passion — that he wishes to see changes in education. Members should consider the changes announced in this budget...

Seanad: Order of Business (14 Dec 2011)

David Cullinane: As I stated, I propose an amendment to the Order of Business in order that the Minister for Education and Skills will come into the House to discuss the impact of these cuts.

Seanad: Order of Business (14 Dec 2011)

David Cullinane: Not today.

Seanad: Order of Business (14 Dec 2011)

David Cullinane: Yes.

Seanad: Order of Business (14 Dec 2011)

David Cullinane: Hear, hear.