Results 21-40 of 98 for echo speaker:Sean Barrett

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Seanad: Order of Business (17 Jul 2015)

Sean Barrett: I echo the sentiments of Senator Mooney and the Leader on the loss of Alexis Fitzgerald, a most popular, friendly and courteous man to meet. I extend the sympathy of the Independent Senators to his wife, Mary. I welcome that two of the students injured in Berkeley, Niall Murray and Jack Halpin, are returning to Ireland this week. For them and the others who survived that tragedy - Sean...

Seanad: Urban Regeneration and Housing Bill 2015: Committee and Remaining Stages (17 Jul 2015)

Sean Barrett: Without wishing to hold up the House, I echo the sentiments of Senator Cullinane. The Minister of State said we should consider the whole package. NAMA estimates that in south County Dublin, development levies of €60,000 per house are imposed by the local authority. I had thought the object of having property taxes that were levied annually was to allow us to move away from those...

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (9 Jul 2015)

Sean Barrett: Thank you and welcome, Ms Herbert. You say on page 4 of your document - and it echoes some of the discussion you had with Deputy O'Donnell just now - where you talk, in the fourth paragraph of your statement, about your relationship with the departmental officials, "From the knowledge I subsequently acquired it is clear that many of these advisers were hampered in their analysis of the...

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (18 Jun 2015)

Sean Barrett: ...was something people avoided volunteering to others. This was not a comfortable place in which to drive policy innovation and implementation. I think Professor John FitzGerald when was in to us, echoed those sentiments. He said there was a cultural change in the Department of Finance in the last decade: It became more concerned about the politics of things and less interested in the...

Seanad: Order of Business (16 Jun 2015)

Sean Barrett: I echo the Leader’s sentiments about the sad loss in California of five young Irish people. I also note the President issued a statement from Italy on it and the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade has expressed his regrets and is assisting the relatives. I welcome the Taoiseach’s announcement yesterday that the Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, Deputy Heather...

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (11 Jun 2015)

Sean Barrett: Thank you, Chairman. And I ... Mr. O'Reilly, you're welcome. I echo the Chairman's welcome for ... to you earlier. In a general question, you mentioned in your papers that you studied in Queen's in Kingston, Ontario. The World Economic Forum has rated Canada's banking system the soundest in the world seven years in a row. And, I think, in 2009 we were ranked 121 out of 123 countries -...

Seanad: Yeats 2015: Statements (9 Jun 2015)

Sean Barrett: ...a better place. That is why we are here, and few people inspire us as much as W.B. Yeats. I am delighted the Government is honouring him and I thank the Minister for her presence tonight. I also echo the thanks to Senator O'Keeffe for the work she and her friends in Sligo have done to keep the name of a great poet alive and constantly growing. Each year at the end of July and the...

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Nexus Phase (14 May 2015)

Sean Barrett: Thank you very much, Chairman, and I echo your welcome to our two ex-governors this morning. Mr. Burrows, let me start with you. Mr. Crowley in his statement said "In particular, I do not recall any issues of imprudent lending being brought to a Board by the Executives of the Bank, the internal auditors or the external auditors." Did that happen in your term as governor or would you make...

Seanad: Order of Business (16 Apr 2015)

Sean Barrett: ...sure the bus is, as Senator Hayden noted, the work horse of public transport. It is growing very rapidly in some aspects, particularly since the motorways were built and in light of access to airports. I echo Senator Leyden's hope that a strike does not happen on 1 May. Members of the Oireachtas Committee on Transport and Communications have been invited to hear a presentation on 28...

Seanad: Order of Business (31 Mar 2015)

Sean Barrett: ...It is good news for towns where banks are closing branches and good news for small post office which are under pressure. There has been concern about the closure of post offices in rural areas. I echo the concern of Senator Darragh O'Brien about the prospect of a €30 million tender to operate bus services in this country. It seems that would mean that 150 buses would have to be...

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Context Phase (10 Mar 2015)

Sean Barrett: I welcome Mr. Carswell and echo what Senator D'Arcy said about the book. Did Mr. Carswell cover the McDonough report on financial regulation and the hostile reaction to it by the Central Bank?

Seanad: Order of Business (24 Feb 2015)

Sean Barrett: I echo the praise for the Acting Leader for his organisation of the meeting of the British Irish Parliamentary Association, BIPA. Praise for him was echoing around the halls because the guests he brought into the country enjoyed the occasion very much. One whom I met, who is strongly of the Unionist persuasion, told me not to let British Airways take over Aer Lingus because when it took...

Committee of Inquiry into the Banking Crisis: Context Phase (5 Feb 2015)

Sean Barrett: I echo the Chairman's welcome to Mr. Nava and his football analogy. Many Irish people will be in Rome this weekend for rugby, and we have many happy memories of Italia '90, even "Toto" Schillaci. We got one back four years later when Ray Houghton got the goal. Terrific friendships were formed at that time, and I join the Chairman in welcoming Mr. Nava here. Mr. Nava also represents a very...

Seanad: Irish Collective Asset-management Vehicles Bill 2014: Second Stage (3 Feb 2015)

Sean Barrett: ...Deputy Noonan, will get something useful in return. I also thank the officials who offered a briefing on this legislation, but we were busy trying to keep Aer Lingus as an independent airline. I echo the comments of Senators O'Donovan and Michael D'Arcy. A drop from tenth to 70th requires analysis. We developed a dreadful reputation in financial services. It was the largest banking...

Seanad: Order of Business (27 Jan 2015)

Sean Barrett: I echo the concerns of Ministers, Deputies Donohoe and Howlin and Senator Darragh O'Brien regarding the proposed takeover by British Airways of Aer Lingus. In remote parts of the UK such as Scotland, which has a population of 5.3 million - a half million more people than in this State - there is six times more capacity on the North Atlantic out of Dublin than there is out of Glasgow and...

Seanad: Valuation (Amendment) (No. 2) Bill 2012: Report and Final Stages (20 Nov 2014)

Sean Barrett: I echo what Senator O'Keeffe and others have said. The Minister of State showed mastery of his brief and his officials were most courteous in dealing with Members. He showed flexibility in changing times in business and he appreciated the role of sport in Irish society. As he said, he made a gesture, in so far as he could in this Bill, towards the problem of child care, which we must...

Seanad: Order of Business (20 Nov 2014)

Sean Barrett: I echo Senator Bacik on last night’s adoption Bill. Senators Power, van Turnhout and Healy Eames did this House a great service and were ably supported on the Government side by Senators Burke, Maloney, Brennan and others. I did detect, however, a distinct lack of enthusiasm by the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs. I hope Members on the Government side will ensure this Bill...

Seanad: Valuation (Amendment) (No. 2) Bill 2012: Committee Stage (Resumed) (22 Oct 2014)

Sean Barrett: I echo what Senator Quinn has said. Sometimes the taxpayer can actually win in the courts. While we talk about entrepreneurship, the sometimes defensive reaction on behalf of the Exchequer is: "Let us go and rewrite the rules. That will teach them to bring cases. You can never overturn the State. You argue with city hall and city hall always wins." We have very long-winded, verbose...

Seanad: Order of Business (15 Oct 2014)

Sean Barrett: Echoing what Senator Bacik said, today “Morning Ireland” reported that the financial pages carried the headline, “Irish recovery stuns Germans” and the sports pages carried the headline, “Irish recovery stuns Germans”. In his speech to the Dáil yesterday, the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, Deputy Howlin said the reform agenda must...

Seanad: Order of Business (1 Oct 2014)

Sean Barrett: ...Property buyers borrow too much yet again". The article stated:Home-buyers are once again overstretching themselves with outsized mortgages in the fresh frenzy to get on the property ladder. In echoes of the recklessness that preceded the crash, some banks are lending up to 4.5 times combined income when a maximum of three to four times is considered prudent ... [Davy has] called on the...