Results 21-40 of 1,683 for speaker:Derek McDowell

Seanad: Roads Bill 2007 [Seanad]: Second Stage (7 Mar 2007)

Derek McDowell: The fine charged in Vancouver is 49 Canadian dollars if one defaults and does not pay within a certain period. If the fine is substantial in Ireland a considerable additional income will accrue to the tolling company in the early years. Some 90,000 cars use the toll booth, meaning 8,000-10,000 cars will default every day. If they pay a substantial fine the additional profit accruing to the...

Seanad: Roads Bill 2007 [Seanad]: Second Stage (7 Mar 2007)

Derek McDowell: That is not clear in the text of the Bill, which refers to the undertaking. This could refer to the tolling company. While I do not have a problem with this in principle, we should not seek to use this as a revenue raising mechanism from hard-pressed motorists using a road that should not be tolled. The fine should be pitched at a realistic level, deterring people from skipping the toll...

Seanad: Roads Bill 2007 [Seanad]: Second Stage (7 Mar 2007)

Derek McDowell: Surely we can consult with authorities there to have interoperability of databases. There are major information technology issues involved in giving the tolling company access to our database of car registration details.

Seanad: Roads Bill 2007 [Seanad]: Second Stage (7 Mar 2007)

Derek McDowell: Senators are being much nicer to one another. The temperature has gone down, for some strange reason. It would be important to gain access to the registration database in Northern Ireland if possible. This may require intergovernmental agreement. I imagine it will be difficult to grant the tolling company access to our database of car registration details and perhaps we should attempt to...

Seanad: Roads Bill 2007 [Seanad]: Second Stage (7 Mar 2007)

Derek McDowell: I am not suggesting that having built a port tunnel we should now abandon the port or move it, but the port will continue to expand and that must done outside the city centre.

Seanad: Roads Bill 2007 [Seanad]: Second Stage (7 Mar 2007)

Derek McDowell: Quite apart from anything else, the M50 will be unable to cope with the traffic. We should not be at this point, but a bad deal got us to it. The concept of tolling the M50 was bad in the first instance. I cannot stand over the notion of paying such a huge amount both to expand the M50 and to pay compensation to NTR. We must find a rational way of dealing with this and put it in place as...

Seanad: Roads Bill 2007 [Seanad]: Second Stage (7 Mar 2007)

Derek McDowell: That was the principle of the M50 when it was first thought of.

Seanad: Credit Union Savings Protection Bill 2007: Second Stage (1 Mar 2007)

Derek McDowell: I am pleased to contribute to the debate. The legislation provides the opportunity for a useful discussion on an issue that demands early resolution. I join others in acknowledging the important and vibrant role of credit unions in our society over many decades. However, their role has changed significantly in recent years. When most credit unions were established, they largely dealt with...

Seanad: Defamation Bill 2006: Committee Stage (20 Feb 2007)

Derek McDowell: Let us imagine it from the point of view of somebody getting an award of €500,000 against Senator Norris and he or she is coming up North Great George's Street with the order for possession. Not having done so spectacularly the first time around, instead of going back down to the High Court for a second outing, Senator Norris might be pleased——

Seanad: Defamation Bill 2006: Committee Stage (20 Feb 2007)

Derek McDowell: He might be much happier to have the Supreme Court state this was never worth more than €20,000 and that one should forget about the €500,000. I imagine if an individual were concerned rather than an institutional defendant, it could be very punitive to send the case back to the High Court for a second trial. It could be very onerous. For example, if a politician were being sued for a...

Seanad: Defamation Bill 2006: Committee Stage (20 Feb 2007)

Derek McDowell: A body corporate could be a county council or, even worse, the fellows and scholars of Trinity College Dublin.

Seanad: National Development Plan: Motion (7 Feb 2007)

Derek McDowell: On the contrary, I believe the Minister's spontaneous response was fine; it would be so much the better if we had more of that in the House. I am satisfied to take his script as read. It simply summarised what is in the plan, which we all know about already.

Seanad: National Development Plan: Motion (7 Feb 2007)

Derek McDowell: I meant no disrespect to the Minister or the unfortunate officials who had to write his speech. His spontaneous response is far more helpful and informs discourse in a much better way than a delivery of his script would have done.

Seanad: National Development Plan: Motion (7 Feb 2007)

Derek McDowell: I have no difficulty with most of the vision to which the Minister refers. On the contrary, it is encouraging and inspiring to hear. Neither do I have any difficulty with what is in the plan in terms of vision, even though it is in far drier language. The trouble is that we have read and heard it many times before.

Seanad: National Development Plan: Motion (7 Feb 2007)

Derek McDowell: Many of us remain to be convinced that the proposed developments will happen. The Minister tells us with certainty that a metro is included in the plan and will be constructed. The Leader told us the same in 2000, however, when she was Minister. She announced it solemnly in the Department of Transport seven years ago.

Seanad: National Development Plan: Motion (7 Feb 2007)

Derek McDowell: Senator McDowell without interruption.

Seanad: National Development Plan: Motion (7 Feb 2007)

Derek McDowell: That is merely a detail. I am sure she meant it at the time. Seven years later, however, we have only just agreed the route.

Seanad: National Development Plan: Motion (7 Feb 2007)

Derek McDowell: The Minister tells us with certainty that there will be investment in rail services. Again, the Leader, as Minister, told us there would be a feasibility plan for the Cork commuter route and that the Galway route would be examined. She also said that the Maynooth route would be expanded, which has only just happened, and that the Kildare route would be expanded, something we are still only...

Seanad: National Development Plan: Motion (7 Feb 2007)

Derek McDowell: It is fine to tell us there will be investment in rail services but we have been hearing that for ten years and little of it has been delivered.

Seanad: National Development Plan: Motion (7 Feb 2007)

Derek McDowell: The Minister tells us with certainty that we will have a national road network. A commitment was made in this respect in the last plan and those improvements should already be in place. The reality is that we have approximately one third of a national motorway network. Perhaps we have learned much in the last ten years but there was clearly an awful lot to be learned. The Minister must, if...