Results 301-320 of 994 for speaker:Emer Currie

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Disability Matters: An Inclusive Education for an Inclusive Society: Department of Education (25 Jun 2024)

Emer Currie: For primary. There are nine at secondary level and the Minister of State believes there are 11 or 12 places. That information will go to the NCSE so it can update the parents.

Seanad: Courts, Civil Law, Criminal Law and Superannuation (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2024: Second Stage (25 Jun 2024)

Emer Currie: I welcome the Minister of State. I will talk about knife crime, which is a concerning issue for people in Dublin West. Last year, we lost somebody in the middle of the day in Ongar village, who was killed in a knife attack. Almost one year later, in almost the same spot, there was another knife incident. I understand that knife seizures have started to increase, but there is a bigger...

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Early Childhood Care and Education (19 Jun 2024)

Emer Currie: I am going to get right to the heart of matters this morning and talk about core funding and staffing issues for childcare providers. This is based on engaging with a range of childcare providers of various types in Dublin West. All of them speak to overburdensome paperwork and financial reporting; accounting requirements that go far beyond their capacity and capability when everything is...

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Early Childhood Care and Education (19 Jun 2024)

Emer Currie: I thank the Minister of State for his response. As I said, however, core funding is working for some but not for all. It is like a tale of two experiences and I fear we are not listening to the people who are having difficulty. My experience is that this issue is not affecting new services. There is not enough supply in the sector and we need to protect the services that are operating now...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (19 Jun 2024)

Emer Currie: Today I want to speak about the updated procedures that were announced last week by the Minister, Deputy Foley, on the use of school buildings, including sports facilities, outside of school hours. It has come up in this House quite a lot and I have raised it myself frequently. If we have public sports facilities in schools, they should be accessible by the community outside school hours....

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (13 Jun 2024)

Emer Currie: I raise the shortage of class places for children with additional needs. I am working with multiple families in the west of Dublin. We need urgent reform of the schools admissions process. The Minister for Education, Deputy Foley, has committed to ensuring that any child who is known to the National Council for Special Education, NCSE, and who needs a school place will get one. She has...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (11 Jun 2024)

Emer Currie: I wish the best of luck to the Leader. I congratulate everyone who was elected over the weekend, particularly in the Dublin West constituency, where we had Councillor Ted Leddy, Councillor Siobhán Shovlin, Councillor Kieran Dennison, Councillor Colm O’Rourke and the new councillor, Ms Gayle Ralph. However, Mr. Steve O’Reilly, who only had three months to campaign, just...

Seanad: Order of Business (30 May 2024)

Emer Currie: It is a huge honour to be here today with the students of St. Andrew’s National School. I thank their teacher, Mr. O’Dwyer, and all of their teachers for facilitating their visit today. What I want to raise today is the frustration that is sometimes felt by communities, community organisations, schools and school communities with the bureaucracy of the Department of...

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Emergency Services (29 May 2024)

Emer Currie: Gabhaim buíochas leis an gCathaoirleach. I welcome the Minister of State and thank the Taoiseach for the announcement last night that emergency medicine doctors are to crew the helicopter response service alongside paramedics for four months in a new trial. That is a huge step forward for the thousands of people who desperately need major pre-hospital trauma care. Ireland is an...

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Emergency Services (29 May 2024)

Emer Currie: I refer to the situation in Ireland compared with the rest of Europe and the world, as well as the disparity on the island itself and in rural versus urban areas. This is an opportunity we need to grasp with both hands.

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Emergency Services (29 May 2024)

Emer Currie: When I initially submitted this question, we did not have this extremely positive news. The important line in the Minister of State's contribution was the confirmation that the overall delivery of HEMS services in Ireland is consultant-led but the service is delivered by highly-trained advanced paramedics. She also stated: "emergency medicine consultants, with considerable experience in...

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Emergency Services (29 May 2024)

Emer Currie: -----and the benefit of the North-South is going to be availed of. We have the North-South Ministerial Council up and running for the first time since 2017. Let us add this matter to the list of things where we co-operate.

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (29 May 2024)

Emer Currie: I am the Fine Gael Seanad spokesperson for special education and inclusion. I have met with our new Minister of State, Deputy Naughton, a couple of times in the last couple of weeks with regard to our inclusive education policies and the shortage of special class, autism class and special school places for September 2024. Obviously, this is a huge priority for her and is critical for the...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (21 May 2024)

Emer Currie: I raise the work of physician-staffed helicopter emergency medical services as opposed to paramedic-led emergency care. A lot of our focus is on having access to air or road ambulances which primarily aim to get patients to hospitals and emergency departments in a timely manner. However, in other countries, they bring the hospital to the scene of the emergency, whether that is at the...

Seanad: Future Ireland Fund and Infrastructure, Climate and Nature Fund Bill 2024: Second Stage (21 May 2024)

Emer Currie: I invite the Minister, Deputy McGrath, to take the floor.

Seanad: Future Ireland Fund and Infrastructure, Climate and Nature Fund Bill 2024: Second Stage (21 May 2024)

Emer Currie: Before we move to the Fianna Fáil spokesperson, Senator Ollie Crowe, I welcome our visitors from Archbishop McHale College, Tuam. You are very welcome to the Seanad.

Seanad: Future Ireland Fund and Infrastructure, Climate and Nature Fund Bill 2024: Second Stage (21 May 2024)

Emer Currie: I welcome the Minister to the House today.I am delighted to speak about the Future Ireland Fund and Infrastructure, Climate and Nature Fund Bill. Despite the attendance here today, this is a really significant moment for us as a country. It shows that we have been able to bring economic stability and are now in a position, because of the national reserve fund and economic prudence, to take...

Seanad: Future Ireland Fund and Infrastructure, Climate and Nature Fund Bill 2024: Second Stage (21 May 2024)

Emer Currie: -----to invest in public lands. I do not want that to happen again.

Seanad: Gambling Regulation Bill 2022: Second Stage (14 May 2024)

Emer Currie: The Minister of State is very welcome. It is a testament to the legislation that so many Senators want to contribute on Second Stage.This is flagship legislation from this Government. We have reached the point where we are getting into the nitty-gritty; we are in the final stretch. It is now about tying it all together. The construct is in place and the support is there. I hope we are...

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Bus Services (9 May 2024)

Emer Currie: I thank the Minister of State for being here. The Minister for Transport, Deputy Ryan, has been vocal about the cost of gridlock and the priority that needs to be given to public transport, walking and cycling to help us meet our climate targets. We are investing an eye-watering amount of money - I believe it is €100 billion - in capital transport projects in the coming decades and...