Results 4,581-4,600 of 4,773 for speaker:Paudie Coffey

Seanad: Order of Business (26 Jun 2008)

Paudie Coffey: Fianna Fáil inherited it.

Seanad: Order of Business (26 Jun 2008)

Paudie Coffey: I listened with interest to the views of Senators on the economy and the challenges that lie ahead. It is important we can express our views. I know the Leader takes those views on board and it is important we are constructive in our debate on the economy. Our track record on this side of the House attests to that. We have always been constructive in protecting the economy and we have...

Seanad: Order of Business (26 Jun 2008)

Paudie Coffey: We can take it, but we can give it, too.

Seanad: Mental Health (Involuntary Procedures) (Amendment) Bill 2008: Second Stage (25 Jun 2008)

Paudie Coffey: I am pleased that we are debating mental health in general. In the short time I have been in the Seanad I have heard several Senators from all parties raise the issues of mental health, its treatment and the resources required for dealing with mental health in Ireland. An excellent document was produced in 2006 called A Vision for Change. The roll-out and implementation of the...

Seanad: Order of Business (25 Jun 2008)

Paudie Coffey: I also support the calls for a debate on the economy. Listening to all sections of the House, it is clear that there is a deep interest in what direction the Government wants to take and what direction we, as Oireachtas Members, want to take to face the challenges ahead. I reassure Senator Ross that the roll-out of broadband is one of my high priorities. I agree with him that we are hearing...

Seanad: Order of Business (25 Jun 2008)

Paudie Coffey: We will see what the next budget contains.

Seanad: Order of Business (25 Jun 2008)

Paudie Coffey: Quite right.

Seanad: Order of Business (24 Jun 2008)

Paudie Coffey: I support my colleague Senator Fitzgerald and second the proposed amendment to the Order of Business for a debate the economy. It is only eight months since we held a debate on housing in the Chamber when Deputy Batt O'Keeffe attended as then Minister of State at the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government with responsibility for housing. At that time it was outlined to...

Seanad: Order of Business (24 Jun 2008)

Paudie Coffey: These are the issues facing the people but we do not have the answers to them. The Government is sitting on its hands. We call on the Minister for Finance and the Taoiseach to come to the House to show real leadership in terms of how we propose to deal with these challenges. I refer to the health service and palliative care in the south east. Someone who is terminally ill should be...

Seanad: Order of Business (24 Jun 2008)

Paudie Coffey: The Government has been in office for 11 years and ruined it.

Seanad: Order of Business (24 Jun 2008)

Paudie Coffey: At the very start they are trying to get out of it.

Seanad: Order of Business (5 Jun 2008)

Paudie Coffey: I, too, support Senator O'Toole in his call for the Government to engage with the fishermen. Fisheries is a traditional industry that has served this country very well. However, fishermen feel very neglected by the manner in which they have been dealt with by Europe. This is, perhaps, a downside for Europe, and I hate saying this, but it provides material for debate on both the "Yes" and...

Seanad: Health Services: Motion (28 May 2008)

Paudie Coffey: So the Senator will vote for the motion.

Seanad: Broadcasting Bill 2008: Second Stage (Resumed) (28 May 2008)

Paudie Coffey: I welcome the Minister and this debate on the Broadcasting Bill. Like previous speakers, I welcome the general thrust of the Bill. It is a comprehensive and far-reaching measure, and its introduction is timely. I am one of the Members old enough to remember when there was only one television channel in this country, Telefís Éireann. In the south east — Senator Walsh will remember this...

Seanad: Order of Business (27 May 2008)

Paudie Coffey: I, too, support calls for further debate on the Lisbon treaty. We are now on the run-in to the referendum and in the next few weeks there must be renewed focus on the treaty and its contents. We must encourage balanced and informed debate, not only in this House but everywhere else. I, too, was disappointed to hear the Taoiseach engage in the blame game. He should focus on the ball rather...

Seanad: Order of Business (27 May 2008)

Paudie Coffey: Senator Norris suggested a debate on the proposed relocation of the Central Mental Hospital from Dundrum to Thornton Hall and I support this. More than 29 organisations on the front line promoting issues relating to mental health are seriously concerned by this issue. They say patients are not prisoners and I fully support that statement.

Seanad: Order of Business (27 May 2008)

Paudie Coffey: Patients, especially those involved in rehabilitation, need support and should not be put in isolated areas like Thornton Hall. A certain stigma is already attached to mental health and mental health patients and we should not exacerbate it by putting such people in a facility adjacent to a prison. That would amount to criminalisation by association and I feel mental health patients need...

Seanad: Job Protection (22 May 2008)

Paudie Coffey: I intend to share my time with Senator Cummins. I also welcome the Minister of State to the House. Yesterday we raised the predicament in which Waterford Crystal finds itself regarding sustaining its future, which is a matter of national significance. Being from the south of the country the Minister knows well what Waterford Crystal means not only from a manufacturing perspective but also...

Seanad: Order of Business (22 May 2008)

Paudie Coffey: Yesterday, I raised the issue of Waterford Crystal and the predicament in which it finds itself. I thank the Cathaoirleach for making facility for an Adjournment Debate on it today. I also called yesterday for a debate and called on the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment to attend the House to discuss this issue which I and many around the House believe to be an...

Seanad: Order of Business (22 May 2008)

Paudie Coffey: The Senator is not a GP. Were it not for GPs, we would have no health service in this country. The Senator should not criticise GPs.