Results 33,301-33,320 of 33,392 for speaker:Paschal Donohoe

Seanad: Order of Business (10 Apr 2008)

Paschal Donohoe: Again, in deference to the Cathaoirleach, I will focus on just one point, that is, the economy and the current rate of inflation, as referred to by Senator Regan. We find ourselves in a unique position in that the value of goods and services entering our economy is declining because of changes in the exchange rate, yet the inflation rate is increasing. This will set the background for the...

Seanad: Civil Law (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2006: Second Stage (9 Apr 2008)

Paschal Donohoe: My colleague, Senator Regan, has outlined the general welcome our party gives to this Bill and to the wide variety of proposals and issues dealt with within. I wish to focus on three elements of the Bill, namely, Parts 4, 9 and 11, which deal with leases for commercial property, the operation of the current film censorship office, and the reference to parental leave and the ability to share...

Seanad: Education for Persons with Special Educational Needs: Motion (9 Apr 2008)

Paschal Donohoe: I second the motion proposed by Senator Frances Fitzgerald. I find myself in an unusual position because the amendment from the Government more clearly illustrates the scale of the problem we are facing than the original motion tabled by my party. If one examines the range of measures and statements contained in the amendment, they demonstrate a level of disconnection from the reality of...

Seanad: Education for Persons with Special Educational Needs: Motion (9 Apr 2008)

Paschal Donohoe: It is a disgrace that we have 70 families in this country who have been forced to go to the courts, 47 of whom did so to attempt to vindicate the rights of their autistic children. It is shameful that they had to go to court to secure the needs of their children. One such family lives quite near me and the desperation I see in their faces when I talk about the lengths to which they must go...

Seanad: Order of Business (9 Apr 2008)

Paschal Donohoe: Other colleagues have called for a debate on the escalation of crime and the Garda response to it. I support those calls. The response we frequently hear from the Government is that the necessary funding is in place and the needs of the Garda are being met to enable it provide an adequate and sufficient response to deal with this issue. However, a report published today from a body set up...

Seanad: Order of Business (20 Mar 2008)

Paschal Donohoe: I support Senator Fitzgerald's call for a debate on the economy. I would like the debate to focus in particular on the impact of the international banking sector on Ireland. In recent weeks, a major European bank, Comerzbank, announced a €450 million exposure to the sub-prime market. This week Morgan Stanley suffered a 42% drop in its earnings for the first quarter and this Monday the...

Seanad: Order of Business (20 Mar 2008)

Paschal Donohoe: Hear, hear.

Seanad: Sustainable Residential Development: Motion (19 Mar 2008)

Paschal Donohoe: I thank my colleagues for their contributions to this discussion and support their comments. I welcome the Minister to the House. It is great to have a Minister here for debates on such important policy areas. There are two overall points I wish to emphasise. I support the comments of my colleague Senator Coffey on the need for the Minister to back up his clear good intentions with action...

Seanad: Protection of Employees (Agency Workers) (12 Mar 2008)

Paschal Donohoe: I wish to quote from someone who knows a great deal more about these matters than I do. He wrote, "As awesomely productive as market capitalism has proved to be, its Achilles' heel is a growing perception that its rewards, increasingly skewed to the skilled, are not distributed justly." The writer of those words is Alan Greenspan, the recent chairman of the Federal Reserve. By the use of...

Seanad: Order of Business (12 Mar 2008)

Paschal Donohoe: I wish to request a number of debates. My first query relates to the status of the Civil Law (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill which is on our programme for later in the month. I refer to a clause in that Bill which is causing a number of tenants leasing commercial properties to be forced out of those properties because the landlords are claiming the powers of the tenants under the proposed...

Seanad: Order of Business (12 Mar 2008)

Paschal Donohoe: The groceries order reinforced that. If any supplier in this country, particularly a small domestic one, is asked by a large multinational retailer to pay for its product to be placed on the retailer's shelf, it is an utter indictment of what we have done with the groceries order. It is a very serious issue that will impact on domestic employment across a period when we will depend on it...

Seanad: Order of Business (12 Mar 2008)

Paschal Donohoe: I want to reinforce the call that has been made for a debate on the implementation of that new legislation. I will conclude by making the point, which was previously made by the Leader, that domestic competitiveness will be probably the key point on which we must act in the future. As such, the groceries order deserved to be abolished. However, what is in its place is not working and we...

Seanad: Order of Business (6 Mar 2008)

Paschal Donohoe: I concur with my colleagues in seeking a debate on public transport and particularly Transport 21. Two further points should be raised in that regard. First, not only has the Minister for Transport not met the targets, which are now referred to as indicative timings, in the past, he is also refusing to set new targets for many of the projects that have been delayed. Of the five projects...

Seanad: Order of Business (6 Mar 2008)

Paschal Donohoe: It cannot become a body upon which the Government dumps all responsibility and blame when it cannot deliver its targets and is seeking to evade ministerial accountability.

Seanad: Order of Business (6 Mar 2008)

Paschal Donohoe: In the debate on the Dublin transport authority in this House, my party will seek to ensure that three conditions are met in creation of the new body. First, political accountability cannot be diluted by the setting up of that body. Second, there must be clear lines of accountability and responsibility in the new organisation. Third, we cannot be in the position whereby in a year's time we...

Seanad: Order of Business (6 Mar 2008)

Paschal Donohoe: They are not happening.

Seanad: Order of Business (6 Mar 2008)

Paschal Donohoe: He is living on another planet.

Seanad: Order of Business (6 Mar 2008)

Paschal Donohoe: The Leader is being patronising now.

Seanad: Order of Business (5 Mar 2008)

Paschal Donohoe: Many calls were made last week for a debate on anti-social and criminal behaviour following the tragic deaths in Dublin. The vigil which took place over the weekend underscores the magnitude of the issue we face. It is incumbent on us as legislators to recognise what is happening in our society and seek to do more about it. I call for a debate on the related issue of school attendance...

Seanad: Order of Business (28 Feb 2008)

Paschal Donohoe: Other Senators have called for a debate on values and how our communities are responding to the issues they are facing. I call for a debate on establishing joint policing committees and policing forums that were recently introduced under legislation in many towns and cities. They have been in place for between only one and two years. In my constituency of Dublin Central, four of them are...