Results 2,981-3,000 of 6,046 for speaker:Frank Feighan

Joint Oireachtas Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement: Implications for Good Friday Agreement of UK Referendum Result (Resumed): Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform (9 Feb 2017)

Frank Feighan: I welcome the Minister. Brexit has taken up a great deal of time in all sectors because it is one of the most serious issues to hit our country, this island, the UK and Europe for many years. I was at two conferences, one in Carrick on Shannon a few weeks ago chaired by the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, about the impact on jobs. Last Monday I was at an all-Ireland...

Seanad: Order of Business (9 Feb 2017)

Frank Feighan: These are very difficult times in the health service. I have used six hospitals in the past two months, including Temple Street Hospital for my child, as well as hospitals in Sligo, Roscommon and Galway. Unfortunately, on two occasions ambulances had to be called as advanced paramedics were required to treat my mother and another member of my family. I cannot compliment the staff and...

Seanad: Order of Business (9 Feb 2017)

Frank Feighan: There is no point arguing on that one.

Seanad: Action Plan for Rural Development: Statements (9 Feb 2017)

Frank Feighan: I am delighted to have this opportunity to speak about the Action Plan for Rural Development. At the heart of this plan is a clear and targeted commitment to improve the lives of those living and working in rural areas. This is the first time we have had a comprehensive action plan to support and revitalise rural Ireland, an action for which I compliment the Minister. I know she is...

Seanad: Order of Business (8 Feb 2017)

Frank Feighan: I also commend the Minister of State, Deputy Catherine Byrne, on opening the first injection centre in Dublin. It does much to show that we are trying to tackle the serious drug addiction problem, particularly in Dublin. As did Senator Ó Ríordáin, I very much welcome it. Several months ago, Ms Nicola Sturgeon addressed the House and everyone called for Scottish independence....

Seanad: Amendments to Councillors' Conditions: Statements (8 Feb 2017)

Frank Feighan: I thank the Minister, the Local Authorities Members Associations, LAMA, and the Association of Irish Local Government, AILG, for working so hard to bring this to a virtual conclusion. I broadly welcome these commitments. I would like to see the 230 councillors included in some way and I know that working together we may be able to do that. I was elected to Roscommon County Council in 1999....

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Road Safety Strategy: Discussion (8 Feb 2017)

Frank Feighan: It is very disappointing and regrettable that 188 deaths occurred in 2016. That represents an increase of 26 on the number for 2015. Like the Minister, I believe in zero tolerance when it comes to drink-related driving. I have one or two questions. I am looking at this matter from the perspective of being a Senator - formerly Deputy - from a rural area. People who live in Dublin use...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Road Safety Strategy: Discussion (8 Feb 2017)

Frank Feighan: We had a love affair with alcohol, but over the past 30 years we have done a lot to stop drink driving. I was always amused to hear that many people did not drink and drive, not because they could have killed themselves or somebody else, but because they could have lost their driving licence and be put off the road. Penalties, including fines, have made a huge difference in making people...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Road Safety Strategy: Discussion (8 Feb 2017)

Frank Feighan: I thank the Minister for his invitation, but I am happy to stay in the Upper House.

Seanad: Order of Business (7 Feb 2017)

Frank Feighan: I should respond to Senator Leyden's timely intervention. Yesterday, while attending a conference a Boyle, a young man from Elphin thanked me for introducing an air ambulance service in County Roscommon, which saved his life. Six months ago, the air ambulance service transferred him from the scene of a car accident to an accident and emergency unit in Galway within 35 minutes. There are...

Seanad: Order of Business (7 Feb 2017)

Frank Feighan: Not one of these health professionals-----

Seanad: Order of Business (7 Feb 2017)

Frank Feighan: I would say to Senator Leyden to look at what is happening on the ground because I have seen a huge change in the last six months. The people in Roscommon are not fools. They will not tolerate people like the Senator going up to the top of the hill, moaning and shouting, and saying people's lives are at risk. They know that it is much safer, that they have a better hospital and that the...

Seanad: Order of Business (2 Feb 2017)

Frank Feighan: It was a sham.

Seanad: Order of Business (2 Feb 2017)

Frank Feighan: The Taoiseach should continue the long-term tradition of travelling to the White House to meet President Trump. It will afford him an opportunity to articulate all that is good in Ireland. He should tell the President that visitors and refugees are welcomed with compassion and courage on this island. He should also say Ireland is at peace, that we have torn down our walls and that we want...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement: Implications for Good Friday Agreement of UK Referendum Result: Discussion (Resumed) (26 Jan 2017)

Frank Feighan: We have been talking about Brexit for the past year and we will probably talk about it for another few years but it reminds me of the phoney war before the Second World War when there were eight months of no military manoeuvres and then all hell broke loose. This has been a phoney war so far but we are now coming up to the time when the trouble starts. We discussed the Norway-Sweden border...

Seanad: Order of Business (26 Jan 2017)

Frank Feighan: It would qualify for the International Fantasy Award.

Seanad: Order of Business (26 Jan 2017)

Frank Feighan: I agree with Senator Gerard P. Craughwell's comments on the men of Jadotville who were absolutely forgotten about. I was one of the first Deputies to correspond with the Minister on the way history and the State had mistreated them. I was delighted when they were eventually commemorated at a ceremony in Custume Barracks in Athlone which I attended alongside many of their families. That...

Seanad: Northern Ireland: Statements (26 Jan 2017)

Frank Feighan: I thank the Minister for coming to the House to explain the work he has done. I was in Belfast last Sunday and Monday. It was only on Sunday night that we saw the cowardly shooting of a PSNI officer which brought back the reality of a breakdown in trust and peace. All parties have worked and are working extremely hard to ensure that we never go back to the awful times we saw in the last 30...

Seanad: Order of Business (25 Jan 2017)

Frank Feighan: Senator Craughwell raised cross-Border health issues, for example, charging people who present at an emergency department in Enniskillen. There has been a great deal of co-operation in terms of health and I understand that, in recent years, 53,000 people have been treated in this way. If there are irregularities, though, they must be addressed. An air ambulance based in Athlone has saved...

Seanad: Junior Cycle Reform: Motion (25 Jan 2017)

Frank Feighan: I very much welcome this motion. It is very timely. As somebody who spent his time in school learning all aspects of history, I feel a minimum of two hours per week should be a requirement. In most cases this is the same or better than what is currently provided in terms of class time. I agree that we need to look at the way history is taught. When I was at school we understood our...