Results 21-40 of 42 for speaker:Laura Harmon

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (5 Mar 2025)

Laura Harmon: I want to raise the issue of student accommodation. I attended a briefing in the audiovisual room this morning by the University of Galway Students Union, which recently published a report to which 1,700 students at the university responded. The report contains some stark findings. It found that 78% of respondents had struggled to find accommodation, and one in 20 was living in temporary...

Seanad: The Diaspora: Statements (5 Mar 2025)

Laura Harmon: I wish to share time with Senator Cosgrove.

Seanad: The Diaspora: Statements (5 Mar 2025)

Laura Harmon: I thank the Minister of State, Deputy Richmond, and welcome him to the House. It is encouraging to hear his words about the diaspora and the plans for a new strategy in that regard. Our diaspora is a huge strength for Ireland. It is not just soft power; this is real power that we have, showing how well Ireland is regarded across the world. It is very important that we continue to support...

Seanad: International Women's Day - Women's Health: Statements (5 Mar 2025)

Laura Harmon: I welcome the Minister and congratulate her. It is clear she has hit the ground running in her brief. I wish her well. The first issue I wish to raise is that we will always need to have stand-alone discussions on women's health because it is a specific subject, just as we must also have stand-alone discussions on Traveller women's health or LGBTQ women's health. There are so many...

Seanad: Care, Supports and Enhanced Provision of Services for Older People: Motion (5 Mar 2025)

Laura Harmon: We are an ageing population, as has been mentioned. The population is projected to grow by 800,000 by 2040 with an extra half a million people over 65 by that point. I have been really struck in the community in Cork South Central by the older people I have met on the doors and some of their stories have stayed with me. One woman told me she has nothing to do, that everyone belonging to...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (4 Mar 2025)

Laura Harmon: I want to raise the issue of gardaí in Cork city. It is alarming that the Garda Representative Association, GRA, said that there is a shortfall of 125 gardaí in Cork city and that this is affecting the health and safety of gardaí in the city because of the work they have to do and the extra work they have to pick up as a result. The official figures from Garda management...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (27 Feb 2025)

Laura Harmon: I want to raise a concerning issue this morning in respect of Sunbeam House, a residential service for people with intellectual disabilities. We saw the reports about this. There were 482 safeguarding incidents reported to the HIQA chief inspector. They were found to have staffing and management issues and poor behavioural support for the residents who had been living there. I support the...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (26 Feb 2025)

Laura Harmon: I want to state my deep concern about over spending and wastage of public funds. We have seen printers that do not fit into rooms, great walls, spenny security huts and astronomical bike sheds. The phase "an embarrassment of riches" comes to mind with the emphasis on "embarrassment". When will this parody of public spending end? You could not make it up. Today, I want to zone in on...

Seanad: Response to Storm Éowyn: Statements (26 Feb 2025)

Laura Harmon: I welcome the Minister of State to the House. Storm Éowyn was a particular type of storm in terms of wind. We have had other types of storms, particularly in recent years. This is becoming part of our daily life and of the calendar year. There is often a series of storms. With climate chaos, this is something we have to be prepared for. We are probably the last generation of humans...

Seanad: Public Transport: Motion (26 Feb 2025)

Laura Harmon: I am sharing time with Senator Cosgrove.

Seanad: Public Transport: Motion (26 Feb 2025)

Laura Harmon: I welcome the Minister of State to the House. It is good to see him. I wish to talk about public transport in County Cork and Cork city in particular. I raise the issue of the need for the light rail project to progress in Cork city. This is something even the Taoiseach spoke about recently in regard to it needing to be a priority for Cork. We really need to see action on the project....

Seanad: Public Transport: Motion (26 Feb 2025)

Laura Harmon: Not at all.

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Education Policy (25 Feb 2025)

Laura Harmon: I wish to ask what is being done to amend and improve assault leave for teachers and SNAs. With her consent, I will talk about the experience of a special education teacher, Sophie Cole. I had the privilege of meeting Sophie and her husband, Shane O'Brien, last November in their home in Carrigaline, County Cork. They are a young couple very much in love and starting out on their married...

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Education Policy (25 Feb 2025)

Laura Harmon: I thank the Minister of State for his reply. It is welcome that this scheme will be reviewed, as has been promised, in 2025. We await that. It is very important that the unions and the teachers themselves are consulted as part of this. I know this is on the radar of Fórsa, representatives of which I will meet in the next week, and of the INTO. As regards the case I outlined of...

Seanad: Community Safety: Statements (25 Feb 2025)

Laura Harmon: I thank the Minister of State for joining us for the second time today. It is great to have the opportunity to discuss these matters. I raise the issue of safety in Cork city. The allocation of gardaí to the city is nowhere near enough compared with the trends in population growth. I am aware that people in other cities have the same view regarding their location. We need more...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (19 Feb 2025)

Laura Harmon: I intend to speak about housing and education. The Irish Council for International Students launched a new report on the rental sector this morning. It is from the perspective of the experience of international students. The report is stark in that it highlights the overcrowding in the sector, the significant costs involved and the level of scamming that is happening. The report indicates...

Seanad: Election of Leas-Chathaoirleach (19 Feb 2025)

Laura Harmon: I campaigned quite passionately in 2013 to retain the Seanad on the premise that it would be reformed. I agree with Senator McDowell's proposal and the others. It is a rarity that I would agree with Senator Mullen on a number of issues but I do agree with him today.

Seanad: Election of Leas-Chathaoirleach (19 Feb 2025)

Laura Harmon: This is testament to the Seanad that we can form commonality with people who potentially we would not always agree with and we can have respect for each other. We have two fine candidates for the selection. I said informally to Senator Byrne earlier that she is a fantastic candidate. I will be participating in this election and voting for my colleague, Senator Flynn. She is an outstanding...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (13 Feb 2025)

Laura Harmon: I congratulate the Leader of the House, Senator Kyne. I look forward to working with everyone. I thank the people who supported me in getting to this position, particularly the people in Cork South-Central. I have had three elections this year. I put on record my thanks to my parents, Mary and Ted, my four younger sisters, Michelle, Andrea, Rachel and Celine, and my campaign manager,...

Seanad: Ministers and Secretaries and Ministerial, Parliamentary, Judicial and Court Offices (Amendment) Bill 2025: Second Stage (13 Feb 2025)

Laura Harmon: I welcome the Minister of State. We need to be clear that investing in democracy is always a good thing but we in the Labour Party are not convinced that this is the best value for money or the most effective way to invest in our democracy. It is up to the Government to convince us and the public otherwise on this matter. This is about accountability, the effective delivery of government...