Results 2,861-2,880 of 4,717 for speaker:Martin Mansergh

Seanad: Migration Report: Statements. (11 May 2006)

Martin Mansergh: I welcome the Minister of State and this debate. What has happened has partly been the result of making Ireland one of the most attractive countries in the EU in which to do business through, for example, corporation tax policies. That, along with having an open regime for the ten accession countries, has worked out extremely well from our perspective. It enables us to meet needs and because...

Seanad: Order of Business. (11 May 2006)

Martin Mansergh: While it is desirable to have as many ministerial meetings minuted as possible, taoisigh and Ministers of all parties had informal meetings without notetakers. It would have been impossible for them to carry on their business if this had not been allowed. As a country, we have benefited from the euro in terms of lower interest rates, an absence of exchange rate speculation and sheer...

Seanad: Order of Business. (11 May 2006)

Martin Mansergh: I was about to finish my point.

Seanad: Order of Business. (11 May 2006)

Martin Mansergh: I am sorry, a Leas-Chathaoirligh——

Seanad: Order of Business. (11 May 2006)

Martin Mansergh: They are not prepared notes.

Seanad: Order of Business. (11 May 2006)

Martin Mansergh: Deputy Jim O'Keeffe was the person responsible and he agreed to the delay——

Seanad: Order of Business. (11 May 2006)

Martin Mansergh: The Fine Gael Party——

Seanad: Order of Business. (11 May 2006)

Martin Mansergh: —— suggested that the moratorium should be——

Seanad: Order of Business. (11 May 2006)

Martin Mansergh: ——that is why the reserve force is being brought in correctly.

Seanad: Order of Business. (11 May 2006)

Martin Mansergh: The Fine Gael Senators do not like it, do they?

Seanad: Road Safety Authority Bill 2004: Second Stage. (10 May 2006)

Martin Mansergh: It would be preferable if Members could debate these issues without descending into election broadcasts. I welcome the Minister of State——

Seanad: Road Safety Authority Bill 2004: Second Stage. (10 May 2006)

Martin Mansergh: ——and the Bill. First, I welcome it from the perspective of public administration. It is good that a discrete function such as this is hived off into an authority. It is a priority in its own right. Notwithstanding what one of my colleagues said, I am pleased that someone of the profile of Gay Byrne will chair the body. It will guarantee that what he says and does will get substantial...

Seanad: Order of Business. (10 May 2006)

Martin Mansergh: What about the institutions of the State?

Seanad: Order of Business. (10 May 2006)

Martin Mansergh: Hear, hear.

Seanad: Order of Business. (10 May 2006)

Martin Mansergh: We all want to see a resolution of this problem. It is not the Garda Síochána that is in conflict with the Oireachtas but the Garda associations. As far as the principle is concerned, which is accepted and working very well in many other countries, it is our duty to uphold the institutions of the State and not to call that into question. I am rather surprised at Senator Finucane's...

Seanad: Order of Business. (10 May 2006)

Martin Mansergh: I dislike the suggestion.

Seanad: Order of Business. (10 May 2006)

Martin Mansergh: On another but related topic, I am delighted Kathleen O'Toole, who was a member of the Patten commission, a distinguished member of which we have in this House, is to be appointed to the Garda inspectorate. I also welcome the comments made yesterday by a South African police chief, Robert MacBride, who may be a descendant of Major John MacBride, that republicans must get involved in policing.

Seanad: Order of Business. (10 May 2006)

Martin Mansergh: The exact timing is not the issue, but the principle certainly is.

Seanad: Order of Business. (9 May 2006)

Martin Mansergh: I wish to associate myself with remarks made by other Senators and pay tribute to the role of Archbishop Eames in the peace process. For over 20 years, he was a sounding board and source of advice for successive Irish Governments. He also played a crucial role in the transformation of what is now referred to as the Hume-Adams initiative into the Downing Street Declaration, which was the...

Seanad: Order of Business. (27 Apr 2006)

Martin Mansergh: It is understandable that a body such as the Institute of Industrial Engineers would like to reopen a debate on nuclear energy. However, I am sure all of us remember being warned that the lights would go out in or around 1985 and, therefore, this matter will be treated with a great deal of scepticism. A debate on the subject would be useful in order to set out certain realities. There is not...