Results 2,821-2,840 of 3,356 for speaker:Feargal Quinn

Seanad: Order of Business. (9 Feb 2005)

Feargal Quinn: I was delighted to hear Senator Glynn refer to road safety, a topic I have raised on many occasions. Sometimes one believes one is not heard or listened to in this House. One of the topics which I raised with a Minister in this House, and about which I wrote an article in The Irish Times some months ago, is the prevention of road accidents by investing in installing speed cameras around the...

Seanad: Order of Business. (9 Feb 2005)

Feargal Quinn: I hope he was listening to me. The reason I raise the issue is that the number of deaths on our roads is an issue for which we have a responsibility. We know we can do something about it, that speed cameras are good value for money, that we can invest in such a system and that we must argue very strongly for it. I am delighted to see that the British authorities have decided to do this...

Seanad: Death of Former Member: Expressions of Sympathy. (3 Feb 2005)

Feargal Quinn: I speak today on behalf of the Independent Members but I also speak on behalf of Senator Ross who was a friend of Gordon Lambert. I knew Gordon very well and had known him since the 1960s. If the term "Renaissance Man" means anything, he was exactly that sort of man. His mother was one of the Mitchell family of wine merchants and it was from her he inherited the art collection to which he...

Seanad: Tsunami Disaster: Statements. (2 Feb 2005)

Feargal Quinn: Will the Minister of State confirm that the target of 0.7% is the Government aim and does not include private contributions?

Seanad: Tsunami Disaster: Statements. (2 Feb 2005)

Feargal Quinn: I thank Senator Phelan for allowing me to share his time. I congratulate the Minister on the Government's rapid response as the tsunami crisis developed. There is an old Oxfam saying, "if you give somebody a fish you feed them for a day but if you teach them to fish you feed them for life". I recognise that when disasters happened in the past we have helped financially. What we have not done...

Seanad: Order of Business. (2 Feb 2005)

Feargal Quinn: A suggestion was made to me in light of the decision of the Government last week to build a new prison in north County Dublin and I would like the Leader to pass it on to the Minister, namely, that a court should be located near the prison. My mentioning this has nothing to do with the site of the complex, wherever that will eventually be, but concerns the very high travel costs that are...

Seanad: Order of Business. (27 Jan 2005)

Feargal Quinn: A number of Senators spoke yesterday about the tsunami disaster which occurred on St. Stephen's Day and about the good response of the Government and the Irish people. However, what we are doing will only at the very most bring the situation in the stricken areas back to where it was. We must take this opportunity to consider how one might eliminate poverty from those areas. The Government...

Seanad: Order of Business. (16 Dec 2004)

Feargal Quinn: I do not want to be accused of scaremongering. However, two reports were issued recently, one from the World Health Organisation and the other from the Harvard School of Public Health. While quite frightening, they are also a reminder that we can do something about the issues outlined. One relates to the danger of an outbreak of H5N1 avian flu and the possibility of a pandemic. The Harvard...

Seanad: Road Traffic Bill 2004: Committee Stage. (14 Dec 2004)

Feargal Quinn: As Senator Dooley said, this applies not only to roads and other public places but also outside shopping centres. Recently, I spoke to a young wheelchair user at a Superquinn store located in a shopping centre. She drew my attention to an announcement about a car causing an obstruction in the car park, which had been given repeatedly over the loudspeaker for the previous 20 minutes. She...

Seanad: Road Traffic Bill 2004: Committee Stage. (14 Dec 2004)

Feargal Quinn: It is a serious problem. This Bill may not be the appropriate place in which to include such a provision but the amendment deserves support. It must be extremely frustrating for a disabled person to find that the small number of designated parking spaces have been taken by people who are not disabled. It is a problem that occurs regularly and there must be some provision that will give teeth...

Seanad: Road Traffic Bill 2004: Committee Stage. (14 Dec 2004)

Feargal Quinn: What is the position with regard to speed cameras and how is it developing? This section deals with exceeding the speed limit. My French son-in-law was with me last weekend and he could not believe the number of cars that passed us while we stuck to the speed limit. He learned his lesson when the cameras came into Paris and he was caught three times in the first month. He never breaks the...

Seanad: Road Traffic Bill 2004: Committee Stage. (14 Dec 2004)

Feargal Quinn: I thank the Minister of State for his comments but I do not hear anything like the sense of urgency I would love to hear from him. Investment in road safety measures pays for itself rapidly. The state of Victoria in Australia has set an example in this. While the number of road deaths has come down since the 1990s it is nowhere near the standard it should be. We have the power to do something...

Seanad: Road Traffic Bill 2004: Committee Stage. (14 Dec 2004)

Feargal Quinn: I agree entirely. We have all seen so many people doing this. On my way in this morning, I saw three different drivers using a mobile telephone. I do not know what went wrong last time but this is clearly sensible legislation. It must be covered by dangerous driving legislation as well because the person is driving using only one hand. There is a problem and the Minister of State should...

Seanad: Road Traffic Bill 2004: Committee Stage. (14 Dec 2004)

Feargal Quinn: I would like to ask a similar question. When I became a Senator 12 years ago, I was surprised by the length of time it takes to get something done. We thought that legislation we introduced some years ago addressed these problems, but it transpires that it did not. I accept that the Minister of State has held this new portfolio for a short period of time. I cannot get over the length of time...

Seanad: Road Traffic Bill 2004: Committee Stage. (14 Dec 2004)

Feargal Quinn: Senator Jim Walsh spoke about the frustration — I believe it is road rage — that causes many accidents. I have been impressed by drivers, particularly truck drivers, who pull in to allow one to pass. I approve of the tradition of giving such drivers a little signal to thank them. Manners on the road have improved considerably but there is still great frustration. In the knowledge that I...

Seanad: Order of Business. (14 Dec 2004)

Feargal Quinn: Will the Leader draw the attention of the Government to the decision yesterday of the Conservative Party in Britain to back the British Government on the introduction of identity cards? We are fighting crime here with one hand tied behind our backs. We are one of the few countries that does not have some form of compulsory identity card. With the support of the Conservatives, the introduction...

Seanad: Order of Business. (10 Dec 2004)

Feargal Quinn: I fully agree with what has been said on this issue and in particular with what Senator Ó Murchú said. Over the years I have said that this is the wrong time for a debate on Northern Ireland because intemperate language can do a great deal of harm when discussions are going on. I now believe the time is right for such a debate. So much is happening. Now that an agreement has been published,...

Seanad: Road Traffic Bill 2004: Second Stage. (9 Dec 2004)

Feargal Quinn: I wish to share time with Senator Norris.

Seanad: Road Traffic Bill 2004: Second Stage. (9 Dec 2004)

Feargal Quinn: I welcome the Minister of State to the House and I welcome the changeover to metrification. I went metric 15 years ago and I am not allowed to let the old imperial measurements pass my lips. I have become much taller and lighter than I was.

Seanad: Road Traffic Bill 2004: Second Stage. (9 Dec 2004)

Feargal Quinn: However, I will concentrate on the scandal of deaths on the road. While I agree with much of Senator Dooley's contribution, I disagree with his repetition of the Department's mantra that the recent increase in the number of road deaths, which followed the decrease caused by the introduction of penalty points, is a blip. We found the way to resolve this scandal but we have lost our way since....