Results 261-280 of 431 for speaker:Lorraine Higgins

Seanad: Adjournment Matters: Farm Safety (11 Jul 2013)

Lorraine Higgins: I thank the Minister of State for his response. I welcome in particular the work of the Health and Safety Authority, including the survey carried out, as well as the steps taken by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine relating to farm safety. I welcome the comments of the Minister of State to the effect that he would welcome suggestions. Earlier, I referred to looking at...

Seanad: Adjournment Matters: Farm Safety (11 Jul 2013)

Lorraine Higgins: I wrote to the Joint Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine on this matter last year and the committee members will be aware of my correspondence in this regard. If the Minister of State could chase it up, I would appreciate it.

Seanad: Adjournment Matters: Farm Safety (11 Jul 2013)

Lorraine Higgins: I believe the Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Deputy Tom Hayes, is in the House to take the matter on the Adjournment, not my constituency colleague.

Seanad: Adjournment Matters: Farm Safety (11 Jul 2013)

Lorraine Higgins: I welcome the Minister of State and congratulate him on his recent appointment to the post. There is no doubt he will be a great asset to the Department given his vast experience in farming and politics. I commend the Minister, Deputy Coveney, on his work on the recent Common Agricultural Policy, CAP, negotiations and the great results he secured for the country in his endeavours. Not only...

Seanad: Adjournment Matters: Mortgage Arrears Proposals (10 Jul 2013)

Lorraine Higgins: If ever there was as reason to save the Seanad, it might be the dedication seen tonight from various Senators, including Senator Ó Clochartaigh, Byrne and myself. On a more serious note, I thank the Minister of State for coming into the House. It is the first time I have raised a matter in the wee hours of the morning so I am grateful he is here. The matter relates to the upcoming...

Seanad: Adjournment Matters: Mortgage Arrears Proposals (10 Jul 2013)

Lorraine Higgins: I thank the Minister of State for his response. I want to make it clear that I am not against the introduction of this law. I was a practising barrister for a number of years and would have acted for and against financial institutions during that time. It is important that banks and those people who are availing of loans have certainty. For banks in particular, it is a commercial reality...

Seanad: Adjournment Matters: Mortgage Arrears Proposals (10 Jul 2013)

Lorraine Higgins: It is very important for the Government to get that message out. I am very mindful of the fact that it is a last resort but I am concerned about any distortion of the property market.

Seanad: Order of Business (Resumed) (2 Jul 2013)

Lorraine Higgins: -----but this is quite clearly a breach of contract, a breach of duty and a breach of the Central Bank's code of conduct. It is completely unacceptable.

Seanad: Order of Business (Resumed) (2 Jul 2013)

Lorraine Higgins: The reality is the banks took a gamble in offering tracker mortgages some time ago, this has not worked out and they are attempting to shift the goalposts. I would say to those on tracker mortgages that the banks must live with this situation and it is very much a commercial reality. In the circumstances, I ask that the Minister for Finance come to the House to debate this matter further...

Seanad: Order of Business (Resumed) (2 Jul 2013)

Lorraine Higgins: It is fitting that I am the next speaker, given that I come from County Galway. I welcome Senator Craven. It is a great honour to have her visit the Seanad to listen to our debate, which has been quite lively thus far. I want to raise a troubling matter which has raised its head in today's newspaper. It relates to a number of banks which have been contacting customers who have tracker...

Seanad: Order of Business (27 Jun 2013)

Lorraine Higgins: It is timely that I am making my submission after my Sinn Féin colleague. I welcome the fact that the leader of Sinn Féin, Deputy Gerry Adams, took up my point in the Dáil yesterday when addressing the Taoiseach. I raised this issue in the House last Tuesday, when I called on the Minister for Finance to seek the taped telephone conversations from all the State bailed-out...

Seanad: Order of Business (26 Jun 2013)

Lorraine Higgins: Yesterday, I called for all tapes from all the bailed-out banks to be made available to the Joint Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, in the public interest. I reiterate that call today. I want to raise an issue related to the Anglo Irish Bank debacle and the individuals recorded on the tapes. Were their terms and conditions of employment contracts changed in their...

Seanad: Adjournment Matters: NAMA Staff Recruitment (25 Jun 2013)

Lorraine Higgins: I thank the Minister of State for his response and it is unfortunate that the Minister for Finance is not here this evening to address the issue. It is regrettable that he pre-empted my submission this evening. I am a qualified barrister and I have an understanding of the law. I spent quite a number of years at King's Inns and in practice thereafter. I make it clear that the issue is not...

Seanad: Adjournment Matters: NAMA Staff Recruitment (25 Jun 2013)

Lorraine Higgins: It is also a breach of privacy and confidentiality agreements, as well the European Convention of Human Rights. These details are on public record and they were part of-----

Seanad: Adjournment Matters: NAMA Staff Recruitment (25 Jun 2013)

Lorraine Higgins: I understand but it is very important to clarify the matter.

Seanad: Adjournment Matters: NAMA Staff Recruitment (25 Jun 2013)

Lorraine Higgins: I have a right to clarify the issue when the ministerial reply intimated I was abusing parliamentary privilege. I want to make it very clear that I am not. There are serious issues that must be addressed and I will furnish the Minister with the details.

Seanad: Adjournment Matters: NAMA Staff Recruitment (25 Jun 2013)

Lorraine Higgins: I thank the Minister of State, Deputy White for coming into the House this evening, but I am a little disappointed that the Minister for Finance is not here, given that the issue I raise on the Adjournment is a matter of national importance and of particular concern and interest to the taxpayer. This matter relates to the recent revelations regarding a former employee of NAMA who secured...

Seanad: Adjournment Matters: NAMA Staff Recruitment (25 Jun 2013)

Lorraine Higgins: I apologise. It will not happen again. This communication may be prejudicial to NAMA's customer and has left the State and the taxpayer exposed to a potential claim for damages for hundreds of millions. It is quite clear to me that NAMA did not act in the best interest of its customer in this instance. My concern is that this may very well be the tip of the iceberg. Will the State be...

Seanad: Order of Business (25 Jun 2013)

Lorraine Higgins: The contents of the Anglo Irish Bank tapes which have emerged in recent days are not only outrageous but insulting to the people. The effect of those details on taxpayers' lives is almost matched by the arrogance dripping from Bowe, Drumm and Fitzgerald. It is outlandish that these people were able to-----

Seanad: Order of Business (25 Jun 2013)

Lorraine Higgins: I will not mention them again. In any case, it is outlandish that these people were able to dupe the regulatory authorities of this country and the taxpayers to such an extent. The question that arises is whether there are further tapes. Are there tapes similar to what we have heard, where bankers act and behave in a cavalier manner towards the taxpayers of this country? We should demand...