Results 3,001-3,020 of 5,013 for speaker:Victor Boyhan

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Road Traffic Offences (31 May 2021)

Victor Boyhan: I thank the Cathaoirleach for his initiative in relation to the National Day of Sweden. I know he has been marking these occasions in recent months. It is a nice gesture to recognise significant national days, particular those of other countries in Europe. I think his initiative will go down well with them. I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Josepha Madigan, to the House. In raising...

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Road Traffic Offences (31 May 2021)

Victor Boyhan: While I recognise that the words in the reply are not those of the Minister of State and that she is responding on behalf of the Minister for Transport, the response is very disappointing. The Minister for Transport is telling us that while it is very nice of me to raise this very important matter, he is not prepared to change the status quo. What does his stance say to disabled groups, the...

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Ambulance Service (31 May 2021)

Victor Boyhan: I welcome the Minister of State at the Department of Finance, Deputy Sean Fleming, to the House.

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Water Quality (31 May 2021)

Victor Boyhan: I thank the Minister of State. That concludes Commencement matters for today. The House will suspend until 12 noon. Is that agreed? Agreed.

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (31 May 2021)

Victor Boyhan: I thank the Deputy Leader for setting out the Order of Business. I am happy to accept it. To touch on the theme to which Senator Gallagher referred in the context of TidyTowns and tidy districts, I make an appeal for all of us, with our political connections, regarding the winding down of restrictions and the reopening of society. I acknowledge the importance of opening businesses, doing...

Seanad: Maritime Jurisdiction Bill 2021: Second Stage (31 May 2021)

Victor Boyhan: I welcome the Minister of State to the House and thank the Department for the comprehensive briefing note provided to Members. It is always helpful to have such briefing notes. The information provided gives us a detailed breakdown of the Bill but does not oversimplify what is relatively complex, consolidating legislation. The purpose of the Bill is to update and set out in one stand-alone...

Seanad: Affordable Housing Bill 2021: Committee Stage (Resumed) (31 May 2021)

Victor Boyhan: I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Burke, back to the House on this important legislation, the Affordable Housing Bill. I will speak briefly to this series of important amendments. They are at the very heart of the issue of affordability, as Senator Higgins has said. It struck me as rather odd that the Bill is entitled the Affordable Housing Bill, but it could not even give us a...

Seanad: Civil Legal Aid (Exclusion of Value of Free or Partly Free Board) (Amendment) Bill 2021: Second Stage (31 May 2021)

Victor Boyhan: I thank Senator Boylan and Sinn Féin for bringing this important Bill to the House. We heard from Senator Boylan about the litany of excuses and inconsistencies from the Government in responses to parliamentary questions, Commencement matters, dialogue, conversations and correspondence on this issue. One must therefore ask why that has now changed? This Bill has undoubtedly been...

Seanad: Affordable Housing Bill 2021: Committee Stage (28 May 2021)

Victor Boyhan: I welcome the Minister of State to the House.Before proceeding to talk briefly about Senator Moynihan’s amendment, I wish to thank the Bills Office. What an enormous task it has and it is under enormous pressure. If one looks at the legislation coming through both Houses and, in particular, how we will have to turn this legislation around for next week, I wish to acknowledge the...

Seanad: Affordable Housing Bill 2021: Committee Stage (28 May 2021)

Victor Boyhan: I have some reservations about this because I think we need to use all options to secure homes. Hopefully, in time, we will have options to buy affordable homes in the private sector. It is not a matter of private versus public. Every option, angle and opportunity must be about enabling people to get a home. I do not even like the slogan "housing for all". I prefer a home for all as I...

Seanad: Affordable Housing Bill 2021: Committee Stage (28 May 2021)

Victor Boyhan: I am interested in what Senator Higgins said and look forward to that amendment because it would address some of the concerns that have been raised. To be clear, my understanding is that this amendment seeks to remove an open market dwelling as a category of affordable housing, leaving only houses made available by a housing authority and Part V houses. That is the issue. I ask the...

Seanad: Affordable Housing Bill 2021: Committee Stage (28 May 2021)

Victor Boyhan: I am very happy to support this amendment, which is a good one. It is important that in the spirit of working together we support this, and I hope the Minister of State will support it. We have seen traditionally smaller co-operatives and community housing trusts establish units. It has worked. I have been to see a few of them in the west. Some projects have run into difficulties, and...

Seanad: Affordable Housing Bill 2021: Committee Stage (28 May 2021)

Victor Boyhan: I have concerns about the amendment and do not support it. While I have major concerns about the LDA, we will have opportunities under the Land Development Agency Bill to examine some of those.As I said earlier, we must have mixed tenure and use every available resource, vehicle and opportunity to provide homes for people. There are some issues with the LDA. Some of the Senators who are...

Seanad: Affordable Housing Bill 2021: Committee Stage (28 May 2021)

Victor Boyhan: Again, I have some concerns about this amendment. Before I start, I am looking at amendment No. 7 tabled by Senators Higgins and Ruane. The effect of that amendment, if agreed to, is that any public private partnership arrangement must have 80% social and cost-rental housing. There is an acceptance in that amendment that the Senator is supportive of public private partnerships in certain...

Seanad: Affordable Housing Bill 2021: Committee Stage (28 May 2021)

Victor Boyhan: That is fair enough. That is part of the argument. The follow-on in the next amendment is that the Senator is suggesting she is not against public private partnership arrangements. It is important to clarify that. I am trying to be consistent with the argument the Senator is making with regard to amendment No. 6. We have had bad experiences with public private partnerships. There are...

Seanad: Affordable Housing Bill 2021: Committee Stage (28 May 2021)

Victor Boyhan: It has been an interesting debate and I note that issue about flexibility. I want to address some of the issues in what Senator Casey said. The Senator touched on the lack of available land within his own local authority, in this case Wicklow County Council, and the challenges there are. I note the Senator said that we have to reach out. We have to reach out to everybody. The Senator...

Seanad: Affordable Housing Bill 2021: Committee Stage (28 May 2021)

Victor Boyhan: I do not necessarily agree with what Senator Seery Kearney has said. In fact, I totally concur with Senator Warfield. It is very important that we are vigilant at all times. This is the place where we make legislation. Language is critical and we know this from the diverse views and situations in the politics of this island. Language means everything. It is how we communicate. It is...

Seanad: Affordable Housing Bill 2021: Committee Stage (28 May 2021)

Victor Boyhan: There is a great deal of merit in what Senator Fitzpatrick said. It is about tracking, tracing, targeting and holding people to account. There has been much talk today about empowering housing authorities and local authorities but it goes back to that thing about the executive and the reserve function. Most people here have been involved in local government at some level and we know the...

Seanad: Affordable Housing Bill 2021: Committee Stage (28 May 2021)

Victor Boyhan: I thank the Minister of State for his engagement today. I hope we will continue to have meaningful engagement and that we will not guillotine or close down this debate. There are some imaginative ways in which we can look at our schedule next week. I have some in mind already, which I will bring to the House on Monday so that we can prolong this debate. It is good we are having it because...

Seanad: Search and Rescue System: Motion (28 May 2021)

Victor Boyhan: I welcome the Minister of State to the House. I second the motion. First, I want to thank the members of the Irish search and rescue service who risk their lives to save the lives of many other people. Regardless of who they are or for which service they work, they face the same challenges and difficulties and they put themselves at risk for us. It is important that we never lose sight of...