Results 301-320 of 4,715 for speaker:Neale Richmond

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Third Level Education (11 Jun 2024)

Neale Richmond: I join the Senator in that hope, genuinely, and I have no doubt that the individual will be successful. The Senator has highlighted the constraints and while I understand and completely empathise with the point he makes, it is important for me to address the wider context and to say why those constraints are there. While it may be maddeningly frustrating and appear to be, quite frankly,...

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Special Educational Needs (11 Jun 2024)

Neale Richmond: The Senator is correct. Only 24 children are looking for equality of access and opportunity. It is not too much to ask. The technology is evolving daily. There have been changes to what the Senator and I experienced when we did our leaving certificate a number of years ago, and we would have known individuals for whom no accommodation was made. Changes have reached a 1999 or 2001...

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Mother and Baby Homes (11 Jun 2024)

Neale Richmond: I am more than happy to do that and I will have the official correspondence sent to the Minister in due course. The main point is it is with the chief archaeologist in a different Department. I do not think any of us here are archaeologists, though I am open to correction, so we cannot put an exact timeframe on a review of a file like this, given the massive amount of work that goes into...

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Special Educational Needs (11 Jun 2024)

Neale Richmond: I thank Senator McGreehan for raising this issue. I welcome Niamh to the Chamber and it is great to see my old pal Ciarán accompanying her. This is a very timely Commencement matter. I am meeting Vision Ireland tomorrow afternoon to discuss this and many other issues relating specifically to my work with the Department of Finance on access to financial services for those with visual...

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Mother and Baby Homes (11 Jun 2024)

Neale Richmond: I thank Senator Ruane for raising this issue and for providing such a detailed overview to the House. I apologise if there is an element of repetition in my reply with respect to what the Senator has already stated but I think it is important, for the record, to state the exact context and exactly what the Government is doing and has been doing in partnership with the Senator and so many...

Special Education: Motion [Private Members] (11 Jun 2024)

Neale Richmond: I greatly appreciate the opportunity to contribute to the debate. This is an issue that is emotive to many of us and not just from our work as constituency TDs dealing with so many different families on a daily basis who face such a range of challenges and need so much support from their local representatives. Those of us who are lucky enough to have children also see it in the schools they...

Seanad: Future Ireland Fund and Infrastructure, Climate and Nature Fund Bill 2024: Committee Stage (29 May 2024)

Neale Richmond: I thank Senator Higgins for tabling these four amendments and for her clear rationale and motivation. Senator Higgins will understand that I am dealing with this legislation and have to respond specifically to it and address the issues that she raises in amendments as they apply to this legislation. I am not for an instant taking away from the points she has made. I accept her bona fides...

Seanad: Future Ireland Fund and Infrastructure, Climate and Nature Fund Bill 2024: Committee Stage (29 May 2024)

Neale Richmond: I will come in briefly. As I said, I appreciate the sentiment of the Senator's contribution. She is right that I am in a position as a Minister of State in the Government to be able to ensure we get the reassurances required in this regard. To be frank, I do not think there is a need for a legislative requirement for a report. The legislation is clear on what the responsibilities are in...

Seanad: Future Ireland Fund and Infrastructure, Climate and Nature Fund Bill 2024: Committee Stage (29 May 2024)

Neale Richmond: I thank the Senator for placing these amendments and for her very clear rationale on the justification and the very serious concerns that she holds in respect of current and previous or proposed investment strategies of the State. There is quite a bit in these amendments and I will address some aspects that the Senator did not directly refer to, if that is okay.

Seanad: Future Ireland Fund and Infrastructure, Climate and Nature Fund Bill 2024: Committee Stage (29 May 2024)

Neale Richmond: No, just aspects of the amendments themselves. The thrust of your argument is well made; do not worry about that. I think it is important for the totality of the debate to examine some of the impact of the entire drafting of the legislation and what considerations a government may have to take in hand in respect of utilisation, as per the middle part of amendment No. 32, in respect of the...

Seanad: Future Ireland Fund and Infrastructure, Climate and Nature Fund Bill 2024: Committee Stage (29 May 2024)

Neale Richmond: I thank the Senators for tabling this amendment and I thank Senator Warfield for his contribution. This is a repeat of a debate we had a number of weeks ago with the relevant spokespersons from the Senator's party in the Dáil. My response will remain the same in that I fully accept the clear intention and focus on the need for the State to improve investment in many areas, including of...

Seanad: Future Ireland Fund and Infrastructure, Climate and Nature Fund Bill 2024: Committee Stage (29 May 2024)

Neale Richmond: I will always consider any amendment put forward by the Senator. Indeed, these amendments were considered and debated when they were proposed by his colleagues in the Dáil a number of weeks ago. The context of this discussion, which is key, is the real purpose of this fund. The point I am about to make might provide an element of reassurance to the Senator. Regrettably, we have seen...

Seanad: Future Ireland Fund and Infrastructure, Climate and Nature Fund Bill 2024: Committee Stage (29 May 2024)

Neale Richmond: Needless to say, I do not choose the grouping but I will speak to each amendment separately because they merit being treated as such. In any event, if there are votes, they will be taken consecutively. From the outset, I think it is fair to say, although the Senator may choose to disagree, that there will be an element of this on which we are just going to disagree. It is okay to disagree...

Seanad: Future Ireland Fund and Infrastructure, Climate and Nature Fund Bill 2024: Committee Stage (29 May 2024)

Neale Richmond: I thank the Senator for the proposed amendment. Under this legislation, there is a requirement for the NTMA to consult with the Minister of Finance and the Minister for Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform and to have regard to the views expressed. This aligns with the existing requirements for the Ireland Strategic Investment Fund, and the Minister can also...

Seanad: Future Ireland Fund and Infrastructure, Climate and Nature Fund Bill 2024: Committee Stage (29 May 2024)

Neale Richmond: I thank the Senator for the proposed amendment. I will provide some context as to where we are at. As has been discussed throughout the debate on the Infrastructure, Climate and Nature Fund, there are two purposes provided for under this Bill, namely, to support State expenditure in any year from 2026 where there has been, or is likely to be in the subsequent year, a significant...

Seanad: Future Ireland Fund and Infrastructure, Climate and Nature Fund Bill 2024: Committee Stage (29 May 2024)

Neale Richmond: I thank both Senators for their contributions. I will respond to the easy one first. Senator Kyne's presumption is correct. I would like to speak more widely to these amendments and acknowledge the contribution, as ever, from Senator Higgins. I would like to make a number of points about including these provisions. The main point to be considered for each of the additions is that only a...

Seanad: Future Ireland Fund and Infrastructure, Climate and Nature Fund Bill 2024: Committee Stage (29 May 2024)

Neale Richmond: I will take the amendments together as they relate to the management of the funds by the NTMA. The elements the Senator proposes to amend are very important operational positions that have been carefully drafted to ensure the effective management of the new funds and to align with the existing framework of the Ireland Strategic Investment Fund. Amendment No. 24 would prevent the agency from...

Seanad: Future Ireland Fund and Infrastructure, Climate and Nature Fund Bill 2024: Committee Stage (29 May 2024)

Neale Richmond: I could go into great detail on all of the points the Senator has made. Throughout the course of this debate, she has a fair idea of what I am going to say and will appreciate the very clear position of the Government. There is a clear position which has been laid out not only in my remarks but throughout the Bill. I cannot accept the three amendments, but I am more than happy to engage...

Business Support Package: Statements (23 May 2024)

Neale Richmond: I am delighted to be given the opportunity to say a few words here this afternoon and to point out some of the excellent work that has been done by a slew of Ministers and officials across a number of Departments, led by the Minister, Deputy Burke, and following on, despite some revisionism, which we are used to, from certain parties across the Chamber, from a package announced a couple...