Results 441-460 of 4,608 for speaker:Joe O'Toole

Seanad: Order of Business (6 May 2010)

Joe O'Toole: Hear, hear.

Seanad: Order of Business. (5 May 2010)

Joe O'Toole: Following on from the point made by the Leader of the Opposition, I agree the House should discuss what is happening in Greece but perhaps from a different perspective. Like their counterparts in Greece, Irish workers are also extraordinarily angry and resentful and morale is low in both the public and private sectors. The Croke Park agreement is an attempt to deal with the situation in the...

Seanad: Order of Business. (5 May 2010)

Joe O'Toole: I do, if I understand it.

Seanad: Order of Business. (5 May 2010)

Joe O'Toole: It is more expensive.

Seanad: Order of Business. (5 May 2010)

Joe O'Toole: I get that broadband from Westmeath.

Seanad: Order of Business. (29 Apr 2010)

Joe O'Toole: In recent days the levels of anger, resentment and outrage at the Government have been evident at various conferences. Members are aware that public sector or construction workers who are out of work or the Quinn Group workers who face job losses are not those who can be held responsible for the mess the country is in. There is a responsibility on Members, including those on the Government...

Seanad: Order of Business. (29 Apr 2010)

Joe O'Toole: Hear, hear.

Seanad: Order of Business. (28 Apr 2010)

Joe O'Toole: This is Workers' Memorial Day. During the past week we read that dozens of workers had been blown to smithereens in an explosion when an oil rig platform went on fire. That was a big incident which hit international headlines, but all of us, on both sides of the House, know of other incidents, perhaps involving a farm worker, a farmer, the child of a farmer who drowned in a slurry tank or a...

Seanad: Order of Business. (28 Apr 2010)

Joe O'Toole: -----said we should look at retired politicians working in other parts of the public sector, perhaps in order to cut back their pensions also. It is only a matter of time before we look at retired teachers, gardaí or Army officers doing some extra work here and there. It is time leadership was shown on the issue. I am with the Taoiseach on this one: it is for people themselves to make...

Seanad: Order of Business. (28 Apr 2010)

Joe O'Toole: I want people to consider that the Ministerial and Parliamentary Offices Act was not brought forward by accident or through backroom chat by a number of people here and there. It was brought forward in the hungry 1930s and 1940s when it was considered important to draw people in who could make a contribution to public life and that they should have some element of comfort and safety. We...

Seanad: Order of Business. (28 Apr 2010)

Joe O'Toole: In light of the very positive response from the Leader I will not put this matter to a vote. I will raise it again next week, unless we come to some agreement in the meantime. I look forward to a debate on this matter and it should be very helpful. Order of Business agreed to.

Seanad: Order of Business. (27 Apr 2010)

Joe O'Toole: Senator Fitzgerald raised an important issue concerning the women's prison. We must not take a simple approach to this issue, in which there is considerable interest, as there is also a legislative responsibility in the matter. We have created an imperative whereby people who do not pay their television or credit union bills are thrown into jail. What kind of a modern society are we...

Seanad: Women's Participation in Politics: Statements. (27 Apr 2010)

Joe O'Toole: I welcome the Minister of State. Both of us survived our previous encounter on the high seas. This has been a fascinating and exceptionally good debate which has focused on important issues. I concur with Senator Twomey in most of the points he made. I have seen identical developments in teaching. Twenty years ago, when people were arguing that teaching was about to become a female...

Seanad: Women's Participation in Politics: Statements. (27 Apr 2010)

Joe O'Toole: My question was rhetorical. I was a member of the Houses of the Oireachtas Commission at the time and know exactly what took place. The reason Members did not use the facility was they could not be sure when they would start and finish work. They could not operate in the manner normal workplaces worked. They could not, for instance, leave work at 5 p.m. or indicate that their child would...

Seanad: Women's Participation in Politics: Statements. (27 Apr 2010)

Joe O'Toole: I am sorry I was unable to make many of the points I set out to make. Will the discussion resume?

Seanad: Women's Participation in Politics: Statements. (27 Apr 2010)

Joe O'Toole: As I am still in possession, I will make further points when the discussion resumes.

Seanad: Banking: Statements. (27 Apr 2010)

Joe O'Toole: I thank the Minister of State for coming to the House. It is important that we continue to have these discussions on developments in the banking sector. We should begin by defining what a bank is, as that would help us in the future. Having banks which were too big fail in the system is what led to the huge problems in the American economy. It was not stated in quite these terms in the...

Seanad: Banking: Statements. (27 Apr 2010)

Joe O'Toole: That is the reality, no matter what amount of auditing we put in place. When auditing was established in Victorian times, the function of the auditor was described as that of a watchdog, not a bloodhound. That is the reality. An auditor can only deal with the information he or she is given. If there is a lack of information, for example, where one bank does not reveal major transfers or...

Seanad: School Staffing. (27 Apr 2010)

Joe O'Toole: I thank the Minister of State for attending the House to deal with this issue on behalf of the Tánaiste and Minister for Education and Science, with whom I have discussed it, as well as with her predecessor, Deputy Batt O'Keeffe. It concerns the system that operates when a school needs a teacher to cover for an absent teacher. A teacher may be absent for a variety of valid reasons,...

Seanad: School Staffing. (27 Apr 2010)

Joe O'Toole: I regret the fact the Minister has not moved one bit since we last discussed this issue. We are dealing with the most disadvantaged schools in many cases. The supply panel presents teachers who are qualified, experienced and vetted at a time when that is important. Withdrawing the scheme is regressive in a way that lacks planning and vision. I cannot understand the figures or how this...