Results 2,741-2,760 of 3,356 for speaker:Feargal Quinn

Seanad: Tourism Industry: Motion. (18 May 2005)

Feargal Quinn: I think it did. I know the Senator has a link. I can remember the time when it said Ireland was a low-cost place in which to invest but those days are long gone. What we emphasise now is the education of our people and their ability to carry out high value tasks. Some people did that in the past also. What we have to remember is that anything we offer in these terms is offered by other...

Seanad: Order of Business. (17 May 2005)

Feargal Quinn: I am surprised that the recent troubles at the THORP reprocessing plant at Sellafield have attracted so little attention because they give us a chance to achieve what we want. The THORP plant has been closed down and will remain closed for a number of months. This closure provides us with an opportunity to push for the permanent closure of the THORP plant. The closure has apparently provoked...

Seanad: Order of Business. (10 May 2005)

Feargal Quinn: Last week I asked for a debate on the Prison Service following the publication of the prison visiting committee report but since then I have discovered that the annual report of the Inspector of Prisons and Places of Detention has also been published. Both reports make interesting reading and it would be of immense benefit to us to hear the views of the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law...

Seanad: Registration of Deeds and Title Bill 2004: Second Stage (Resumed). (5 May 2005)

Feargal Quinn: I wish to share my time with Senator Norris. I am pleased to see the Minister in the House. I welcome the Bill because it is a decisive step to take us into the 21st century. I received a telephone call this morning from an Irish friend who happens to be in Australia. He wanted to compliment me on the words I used in the Seanad debate last night. I was very impressed because, even though he...

Seanad: Registration of Deeds and Title Bill 2004: Second Stage (Resumed). (5 May 2005)

Feargal Quinn: Yes, but no more so than is the case with a Laser or Visa card.

Seanad: Registration of Deeds and Title Bill 2004: Second Stage (Resumed). (5 May 2005)

Feargal Quinn: I mention the use of this technology because it contrasts with the way in which we used to buy our groceries 50 years ago, of which our methods of conveyancing property and land registration are the equivalents. It was interesting to hear the Minister and Senator Mansergh refer to the interesting historical records that exist. They should be part of our history but should not be used in a...

Seanad: Order of Business. (5 May 2005)

Feargal Quinn: Figures published last Saturday in The Irish Times indicate that 70% of the wider prison population reoffend after they are released from prison. The Government introduced the Connect scheme some years ago, which dramatically reduced the rate of recidivism among participants. Only 5% of the scheme's participants reoffended and wound up in prison again. The abolition of the Connect scheme some...

Seanad: Immigrant Workers: Motion. (4 May 2005)

Feargal Quinn: I welcome the opportunity to debate this subject. I have some difficulty supporting the Government's amendment, particularly its second bullet point, which says "condemns exploitation of all workers in Ireland". I do not believe that all workers in Ireland are exploited. I am sure that is not the meaning the Minister intends.

Seanad: Immigrant Workers: Motion. (4 May 2005)

Feargal Quinn: It does avoid making one, but to——

Seanad: Immigrant Workers: Motion. (4 May 2005)

Feargal Quinn: That is indeed the point. I suggest that the wording in the amendment is not correct.

Seanad: Immigrant Workers: Motion. (4 May 2005)

Feargal Quinn: The wording could be taken to mean that all workers in Ireland are exploited. As an employer, I have some difficulty with that. I am sure that is not the meaning the Minister intends. I have mentioned just now that I am an employer. As a class, we are the villains of this piece. I cannot, and will not, take the part of those employers who have been letting the side down by abusing the rights...

Seanad: Immigrant Workers: Motion. (4 May 2005)

Feargal Quinn: One reason countries welcome immigrants is that, to get on in their new home, they are prepared to do work that is no longer attractive to people already living here and to work for rates of pay that people already living here do not find attractive enough. I recently spoke to somebody working for my company. She is a floor cleaner from the Ukraine, and is happy working in this country, but...

Seanad: Immigrant Workers: Motion. (4 May 2005)

Feargal Quinn: That is a reminder that people will undertake work far beneath their capability. One of our tasks is somehow to find a way to change that situation. I know the Minister's heart is in the right place, but I am not sure how we achieve that aim. We have seen people's ability to lift themselves up from where they were before within a short period. On a recent visit to America, I met a man born in...

Seanad: Immigrant Workers: Motion. (4 May 2005)

Feargal Quinn: We need to recognise that need as a nation.

Seanad: Immigrant Workers: Motion. (4 May 2005)

Feargal Quinn: In that particular store, they are all European. They are Spanish, French and Italian.

Seanad: Immigrant Workers: Motion. (4 May 2005)

Feargal Quinn: Another difficulty arises from the fact that the immigrants do not know what are their rights. Sometimes, trade unions can be to blame for that. There is an onus on us all, including trade unions, to draw the attention of those who do not know their rights to what their rights are. Many of the workers come from a totally different situation in their home countries. They might be more used to...

Seanad: Immigrant Workers: Motion. (4 May 2005)

Feargal Quinn: Senator Ryan drew my attention to the wording.

Seanad: Order of Business (Resumed). (4 May 2005)

Feargal Quinn: Will the Leader bring to the attention of the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the challenge facing a juror who must sit beside the family of the accused in court, a family that takes note of the names and addresses of every juror called? This happened recently in the case of a murder trial. We do not have an immediate ability to address this matter but the danger of intimidation...

Seanad: Order of Business (Resumed). (4 May 2005)

Feargal Quinn: It should be drawn to the attention of the Minister.

Seanad: State Airports: Motion. (20 Apr 2005)

Feargal Quinn: I wish to tell a story about arriving in Shanghai Airport in Singapore a few years ago. The plane on which my wife and I arrived landed at the same time as two other jumbo jets. I looked to the left and to the right and said we would be at the airport all day. As we came to the immigration department I was impressed that every seat was occupied. There was no delay. The immigration authorities...