Results 3,241-3,260 of 6,944 for speaker:Michael McNamara

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Covid-19 Pandemic Supports (3 Nov 2020)

Michael McNamara: 1580. To ask the Minister for Rural and Community Development further to Parliamentary Question No. 1481 of 8 September 2020, the status of an appeal by a person (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [32520/20]

Level 5 Response to Covid-19: Statements (Resumed) (23 Oct 2020)

Michael McNamara: I agree with what Deputy Carthy said about the need for the Government to consider proposals that will enable the marts to function. Deputy Fitzmaurice and I are bringing proposals to the Tánaiste, Deputy Varadkar, who said he will consider them. When we raised the matter with the Taoiseach, he said that there could be no special provisions for any interest group and that is what I...

Health (Amendment) Bill 2020: Committee and Remaining Stages (23 Oct 2020)

Michael McNamara: I welcome the Sinn Féin amendments, which I will support. I thank Deputy Cullinane and his party for tabling them. I endorse what Deputies Howlin, Shortall and Bríd Smith have said. I hope none of them takes offence at my endorsement. I will take this opportunity to ask the Minister a specific question and I would welcome an answer to it. We are allowing the Minister to...

Health (Amendment) Bill 2020: Committee and Remaining Stages (23 Oct 2020)

Michael McNamara: I apologise. If I stand too close to it, I walk into it. I probably need to lose some weight. I am not the only one, but that is a different matter.

Health (Amendment) Bill 2020: Committee and Remaining Stages (23 Oct 2020)

Michael McNamara: I have no doubt that An Garda Síochána will do the job this House assigns it to do but will the Minister rule out asking gardaí to fine a parent visiting his or her child? If parents cannot pay such a fine, will the Minister have him them brought to court? If they will not go to court, a bench warrant will be issued, which An Garda Síochána will have to execute...

Health (Amendment) Bill 2020: Committee and Remaining Stages (23 Oct 2020)

Michael McNamara: My problem with this Act and with this section is that it delegates the question of what a dwelling event is to secondary legislation. We are also delegating the punishment for contravention of the rules on dwelling events. I question that approach. It is not unusual to delegate powers to a Minister, but it is unusual to delegate powers that define a criminal offence. I am not aware of...

Health (Amendment) Bill 2020: Committee and Remaining Stages (23 Oct 2020)

Michael McNamara: I want to speak on the section.

Health (Amendment) Bill 2020: Committee and Remaining Stages (23 Oct 2020)

Michael McNamara: We are delegating to secondary legislation what a dwelling event is.

Health (Amendment) Bill 2020: Second Stage (23 Oct 2020)

Michael McNamara: I will conclude with the point that laws are made by the Oireachtas in accordance with the Constitution. I accept that we can delegate powers to the Minister, but there is a finite amount that we can delegate. An event is an event. A friend visiting another friend or a family member visiting a family member is not an event.

Health (Amendment) Bill 2020: Second Stage (23 Oct 2020)

Michael McNamara: A party is an event. Throwing a party in one's home at this time would be reckless and irresponsible but a family visit is not, so if the Minister intends to bring in fines for that, it gives rise to issues of concern.

Health (Amendment) Bill 2020: Second Stage (23 Oct 2020)

Michael McNamara: The Minister, Deputy Stephen Donnelly, just left the Chamber.

Health (Amendment) Bill 2020: Second Stage (23 Oct 2020)

Michael McNamara: Like colleagues in my group, I will vote against this Bill. The Bill is a fig leaf. It tries to give responsibility to An Garda Síochána to do the work the health service failed to do. Whether it failed to do that because it was mismanaged or was inadequately resourced is not pertinent. Either way, the responsibility for that rests firmly with the Government. The Minister of...

Health (Amendment) Bill 2020: Second Stage (23 Oct 2020)

Michael McNamara: Laws are made by the Oireachtas. Yes, we can delegate powers.

Health (Amendment) Bill 2020: Second Stage (23 Oct 2020)

Michael McNamara: Could I use some of the time the Government did not use?

Health (Preservation and Protection and other Emergency Measures in the Public Interest Act) 2020 - Part 3: Motion (Resumed) (22 Oct 2020)

Michael McNamara: We could not have parliamentary accountability, could we?

Health (Preservation and Protection and other Emergency Measures in the Public Interest Act) 2020 - Part 3: Motion (Resumed) (22 Oct 2020)

Michael McNamara: That is not true.

Health (Preservation and Protection and other Emergency Measures in the Public Interest Act) 2020 - Part 3: Motion (Resumed) (22 Oct 2020)

Michael McNamara: That is not true.

Health (Preservation and Protection and other Emergency Measures in the Public Interest Act) 2020 - Part 3: Motion (Resumed) (22 Oct 2020)

Michael McNamara: It was a decision of the Government.

Health (Preservation and Protection and other Emergency Measures in the Public Interest Act) 2020 - Part 3: Motion (Resumed) (22 Oct 2020)

Michael McNamara: No. I explained how important debate is to a democracy, because if it does not happen here, it happens somewhere else.

Health (Preservation and Protection and other Emergency Measures in the Public Interest Act) 2020 - Part 3: Motion (Resumed) (22 Oct 2020)

Michael McNamara: I call for the record of the House to be corrected. Regulation 5(1) sets out that a person shall not leave his or her home without reasonable excuse. Regulation 5(2) sets out what a reasonable excuse is. It states that a priest or a minister saying mass online only is a reasonable excuse. By extension, saying mass in public is not a reasonable excuse. Regulation 5(3) states that...