Results 421-440 of 1,033,100 for in 'Dáil debates' OR (speaker:Ciarán Cuffe OR speaker:Catherine Martin OR speaker:Stephen Donnelly) in 'Committee meetings'
- Defence (Amendment) Bill 2024: Report and Final Stages (12 Jun 2024)
Brendan Howlin: I move amendment No. 2: In page 9, lines 10 and 11, to delete "in relation to a political matter or matter of Government policy" and substitute "in relation to a matter for political controversy". I wish to discuss amendment No. 2 and all the amendments that are related physically and, I suppose, transubstantially, in various ways. Amendment No. 2 is an important amendment and it...
- Defence (Amendment) Bill 2024: Report and Final Stages (12 Jun 2024)
Réada Cronin: I wish to refer to amendments Nos. 3, 5 and 18. I ask the Minister to consider withdrawing amendment No. 13. Amendments Nos. 3, 5 and 18 seek to delete "or matter of Government policy". As Deputy Howlin was saying, everything is a matter of politics. With regard to members of the Defence Forces not being allowed to discuss anything related to Government policy, the price of bread-----
- Defence (Amendment) Bill 2024: Report and Final Stages (12 Jun 2024)
Micheál Martin: In uniform.
- Defence (Amendment) Bill 2024: Report and Final Stages (12 Jun 2024)
Réada Cronin: -----and the butter spread on it all come down to Government policy. The Government published its draft Bill prior to the pre-legislative scrutiny by the defence committee. The Minister said he had listened to stakeholders but he had not. He did not listen to the representative groups, the Opposition or his own defence committee. He just cannot explain why he is pushing this. He says he...
- Defence (Amendment) Bill 2024: Report and Final Stages (12 Jun 2024)
Cathal Berry: I support the general thrust of those comments. I wish to speak to amendments Nos. 3 and 5. I agree with the two Deputies that the phrase "or matter of Government policy" is unnecessary. It is probably superfluous. The relevant sentence could very easily stop after the phrase "in relation to a political matter". A tradition dating back 30 or 40 years means members of the Defence Forces...
- Defence (Amendment) Bill 2024: Report and Final Stages (12 Jun 2024)
Brendan Howlin: I very much appreciate what the Tánaiste has said and I look forward to the debate but perhaps we might just have a modicum of democracy about it. Would the Tánaiste not present the discussion paper in the House before it is actually presented to us as a fait accompli in legislation so we can actually have that sort of discussion? I know it is a radical suggestion that Parliament...
- Defence (Amendment) Bill 2024: Report and Final Stages (12 Jun 2024)
Cathal Berry: I will just speak briefly to support the principle of Deputy Howlin's amendment. I agree that the structures are not fit for purpose in any shape or form. They are nearly a century old and definitely need to be reformed for sure. I will also zoom in on Deputy Howlin's point on the Accounting Officer piece. Maybe this is not for today but it is very important to put on the Dáil record...
- Defence (Amendment) Bill 2024: Report and Final Stages (12 Jun 2024)
Micheál Martin: The Deputy is pre-empting the debate. This one amendment would not cover any of this, and deep down Deputy Howlin knows this, with no proper discussion or debate-----
- Defence (Amendment) Bill 2024: Report and Final Stages (12 Jun 2024)
Brendan Howlin: Tús maith, leath na hoibre.
- Defence (Amendment) Bill 2024: Report and Final Stages (12 Jun 2024)
Micheál Martin: I welcome the Deputy's interest in this and his promoting of it but an amendment is short and it could create more challenges in the working out of the details. A lot of work has gone into this. Deputy Howlin has been in government. He is a veteran of Government as well as of Opposition. He tends to be a bit more radical when on the Opposition benches when it comes to the sharing of...
- Defence (Amendment) Bill 2024: Report and Final Stages (12 Jun 2024)
Brendan Howlin: I thank the Tánaiste for that. I am no wiser on his intentions in relation to that. It will be a debate on a paper that is being produced but I would like the Oireachtas to be part of that debate, not after the decisions are made by way of being presented with heads of a Bill but in the sort of complication of debate the Tánaiste has just outlined. I fully accept the amendment I...
- Defence (Amendment) Bill 2024: Report and Final Stages (12 Jun 2024)
Micheál Martin: That is not quite how it works.
- Defence (Amendment) Bill 2024: Report and Final Stages (12 Jun 2024)
Brendan Howlin: Okay, well-----
- Defence (Amendment) Bill 2024: Report and Final Stages (12 Jun 2024)
Micheál Martin: It does not work that way.
- Defence (Amendment) Bill 2024: Report and Final Stages (12 Jun 2024)
Brendan Howlin: Well, let us have that discussion and see how we can do things better. I do not intend to press my amendment. I take on board exactly what the Tánaiste has said but would like to hear from him whether he might share with us his ideas when they are fleshed out a little bit better and before they are presented to us and we are told that amendments are wonderful but are not accepted and...
- Defence (Amendment) Bill 2024: Report and Final Stages (12 Jun 2024)
Seán Canney: There is no more time for debate on this amendment.
- Defence (Amendment) Bill 2024: Report and Final Stages (12 Jun 2024)
Brendan Howlin: Could the Tánaiste respond for one minute?
- Defence (Amendment) Bill 2024: Report and Final Stages (12 Jun 2024)
Micheál Martin: Is the Deputy being somewhat mischievous? Under the Constitution, the Government must prepare legislation and develop legislation. That is the context. I said there is working paper that I approved recently, to give the Deputy a sense that this is happening right now. I was afraid he might have thought this was on the long finger and that I was only saying it. There is advanced work...
- Defence (Amendment) Bill 2024: Report and Final Stages (12 Jun 2024)
Brendan Howlin: In truth, that will be the Department of Defence presenting it because other Ministers will not really be involved in that. As the Tánaiste has said, I have some experience in Government.
- Defence (Amendment) Bill 2024: Report and Final Stages (12 Jun 2024)
Micheál Martin: The Deputy has indeed.