Results 301-320 of 468 for speaker:Liam Fitzgerald

Seanad: Higher Education: Motion. (3 Mar 2004)

Liam Fitzgerald: ——we must all have the courage of our convictions and give them a fair hearing.

Seanad: Order of Business. (2 Mar 2004)

Liam Fitzgerald: The decision of the Minister for Education and Science to take part in your education system, YES style debates at the teachers' conferences this easter is a reasonable and genuine attempt to fully engage with 1,700 teacher representatives on the future of our education system. His suggestion that the other principal partners in education should be present is good because it will enhance the...

Seanad: Order of Business. (2 Mar 2004)

Liam Fitzgerald: While such conferences provide a forum for teachers' unions to get involved in industrial relations issues, they also provide a wonderful opportunity for teachers to exchange educational problems and share solutions.

Seanad: Order of Business. (2 Mar 2004)

Liam Fitzgerald: Parents' representatives and boards of management agree with the Minister. I call on the unions to enthusiastically embrace the challenge thrown down by the Minister in the interest of all our schoolchildren.

Seanad: Public Service Superannuation (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2004: Committee Stage (Resumed). (26 Feb 2004)

Liam Fitzgerald: There is far more logic in supporting this case than there was in previous cases. I urge the Minister of State to examine the matter for Report Stage.

Seanad: Public Service Superannuation (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2004: Committee Stage. (26 Feb 2004)

Liam Fitzgerald: I admit to being a little confused. Given my background, I am very sympathetic towards some of the sentiments expressed by Senator O'Toole. However, I am not at all sure that there is such a closeness between the different circumstances outlined. Consider the case of a primary teacher and a member of An Garda Síochána. I have always understood that there is no contract involved when a...

Seanad: Public Service Superannuation (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2004: Committee Stage. (26 Feb 2004)

Liam Fitzgerald: I do not see the analogous precision that Senator O'Toole does. While there is a close analogy, the big distinction is the continuum. I consider this to be relevant and await a reply from the Minister of State. I am supportive of what he says and I hope his suggestion is workable. I hope it can be introduced and that the Minister for Finance sees the wisdom and relevance of what he is saying....

Seanad: Public Service Superannuation (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2004: Committee Stage. (26 Feb 2004)

Liam Fitzgerald: While it supports the argument, it does not establish the right and this is the problem. There is a chasm between supporting the argument and establishing the right. While I would be delighted to support the closing of this gap, I foresee enormous difficulties. The Minister of State referred to slippery slopes and I would be inclined to agree with him. I am extremely supportive of the...

Seanad: Order of Business. (26 Feb 2004)

Liam Fitzgerald: I support Senator Quinn's call for a debate on the issue of random drug testing in schools. Drug abuse in schools is quite a serious issue according to all reliable sources. I am aware, as others are, that both at primary and secondary level teaching staff have had ongoing discussions on formulating policy to deal with this issue and they are reporting back to the Minister. I understand that...

Seanad: Order of Business. (25 Feb 2004)

Liam Fitzgerald: Senator Brendan Ryan has called for a debate on third level education. I assure the Leader that we on this side of the House are happy to debate third level education at any time and look closely at our record vis-À-vis that of others. Senator Ryan reminded us that the OECD is conducting an in-depth analysis of third level education commissioned by the Minister. However, as Senator Minihan...

Seanad: Public Service Superannuation (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2004: Second Stage. (24 Feb 2004)

Liam Fitzgerald: Over the coming decades most industrialised countries will face the problem of an ageing population, despite the doubts and reservations about the projections being made and the available statistics. By 2050, for example, on the basis of the information we have, the overall population in Europe will decline by more than 3% and the number of people aged 65 and over in proportion to the working...

Seanad: Revenue Commissioners: Motion. (18 Feb 2004)

Liam Fitzgerald: I second the Government amendment to the motion. The motion measures success and effectiveness in the enforcement of the tax laws solely in terms of the number of criminal convictions secured on the basis of those laws and the 1993 tax amnesty. To be fair to Senator McDowell, in the course of his contribution he covered a much wider area. However, I must interpret the motion on the basis of...

Seanad: Third Interim Report of the Commission to Inquire into Child Abuse: Statements. (4 Feb 2004)

Liam Fitzgerald: I welcome the Minister of State to the House. I am delighted to have an opportunity to contribute to the debate on the third interim report of the Commission to Inquire into Child Abuse. I am disappointed, having listened to the debate on this matter in the other House last night, to hear the Opposition here trump up various allegations, accusations and insinuations against the Minister for...

Seanad: Third Interim Report of the Commission to Inquire into Child Abuse: Statements. (4 Feb 2004)

Liam Fitzgerald: It is an assertion, nothing more. Not one scintilla of genuine, logical evidence has been put forward to support that argument other than that a Department whose files are being investigated by the commission should not be the sponsoring Department. That is the only logic being put forward to support the arguments made. It is a desperate attempt to once again make political capital from the...

Seanad: Third Interim Report of the Commission to Inquire into Child Abuse: Statements. (4 Feb 2004)

Liam Fitzgerald: The Opposition is in constant denial and in a permanent state of nausea at that fact. The Taoiseach publicly acknowledged the abuse and apologised for it on behalf of the State. Allegations that there has been no progress, that there has been only denial by the Minister for Education and Science, that there have been a litany of complaints from the various workings of the commission, that the...

Seanad: Order of Business. (28 Jan 2004)

Liam Fitzgerald: I regret that Senator Ross chose to introduce the issue of travel allowances for prison visiting committees when addressing the terrible tragedy that occurred in Mountjoy Prison yesterday. There is a deep problem in social engineering that has now surfaced in the prisons. There are also problems in prison management that need to be addressed. I regret that Senator Ross sought to drag in the...

Seanad: Order of Business. (28 Jan 2004)

Liam Fitzgerald: He is also deeply committed to the provision of services and back-up facilities. I invite Members to read the programme he launched for Ireland's term of the EU Presidency with its emphasis on teachers' professionalism and welfare.

Seanad: Order of Business. (28 Jan 2004)

Liam Fitzgerald: The Senator is not averse to throwing red herrings himself.

Seanad: Address by Mr. Seán Ó Neachtáin, MEP. (11 Dec 2003)

Liam Fitzgerald: Is mian liom freisin fiorchaoin fáilte a chur roimh an Fheisire inár measc. Is mian liom comhghairdeas a ghabháil leis as ucht bheith ina Bhall de Phairlimint na hEorpa le bliain go leith anois freisin. Chun an fhírinne a rá, tá clú agus cáil bainte amach aige. Dár leis na tuairiscí, bíonn sé an-ghnóthach sa Pharlaimint ar son na tíre agus ar son mhuintir Chonnachta agus Uladh....

Seanad: Order of Business. - Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs (Powers and Functions) Bill 2003: Second Stage. (3 Dec 2003)

Liam Fitzgerald: Is mian liom fáilte a chur roimh an Aire. Tá áthas orm tacaíocht a thabhairt do Bhille an Aire Gnothaí Pobail, Tuaithe agus Gaeltachta (Cumhachtaí agus Feidhmeanna) 2003.