Results 4,701-4,720 of 10,573 for speaker:Patrick O'Donovan

Seanad: Public Service Pay and Pensions Bill 2017: Committee and Remaining Stages (14 Dec 2017)

Patrick O'Donovan: Senator Horkan raises an issue raised in the other House and in that debate, the Minister, Deputy Donohoe, pointed out, and I am sure the Senator has followed the debate, that we are not trying to single out one group of people here. We want to have everybody covered by the agreement and the benefits laid out in the legislation. We do not want to single out one group. While I do not doubt...

Seanad: Public Service Pay and Pensions Bill 2017: Committee and Remaining Stages (14 Dec 2017)

Patrick O'Donovan: I thank Senator Horkan for raising the issue. The same issue was raised in the Dáil by his colleague, Deputy Calleary, and at the time, the Minister, Deputy Donohoe, agreed to supply information to Deputy Calleary, by means of a paper to him personally or to the Joint Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach, whichever is more appropriate to discuss and debate...

Seanad: Public Service Pay and Pensions Bill 2017: Committee and Remaining Stages (14 Dec 2017)

Patrick O'Donovan: I thank Senator Horkan for his co-operation. I acknowledge the comments of Senator Norris. As a young fellow, I watched the Senator from afar and little did I think I would wind up in the same room as him. We had a very good discussion on Second Stage on the issue that he is suggesting. As I said in another forum, politics is a very honourable profession. From time to time people who are...

Seanad: Public Service Pay and Pensions Bill 2017: Committee and Remaining Stages (14 Dec 2017)

Patrick O'Donovan: We do have a race to the bottom. As Senator Norris quite rightly said, if we turned up for work here and were not paid at all, we would still be paid too much for some people. We have to have a very honest discussion in Ireland if we are to attract younger people into politics, which young people in many cases are leaving professions and are coming into a precarious situation where, as...

Seanad: Public Service Pay and Pensions Bill 2017: Committee and Remaining Stages (14 Dec 2017)

Patrick O'Donovan: We have former Ministers, Deputies and Senators who would do great work for Ireland overseas. I welcome the comments because I would have been a kind of a citizen of Siberia in the other House for having the audacity to suggest it. We need to start talking honestly about politics, politicians, the cost of it, the number of us and the size of our constituencies, what is expected of us, what...

Seanad: Public Service Pay and Pensions Bill 2017: Committee and Remaining Stages (14 Dec 2017)

Patrick O'Donovan: In the free restaurant.

Seanad: Public Service Pay and Pensions Bill 2017: Committee and Remaining Stages (14 Dec 2017)

Patrick O'Donovan: Nobody is suggesting in this agreement or in the legislation that this is to take on or break up unions. This goes back to 1987 and beyond, during which there has a long tradition of governments of all political colours negotiating with representatives of public servants in a calm fashion within the confines of what is and is not available and putting a trajectory in place to resolve...

Seanad: Public Service Pay and Pensions Bill 2017: Committee and Remaining Stages (14 Dec 2017)

Patrick O'Donovan: No, it is not a new contribution.

Seanad: Public Service Pay and Pensions Bill 2017: Committee and Remaining Stages (14 Dec 2017)

Patrick O'Donovan: I have just clarified that with the officials, Senator. That figure refers to the pensionable amount.

Seanad: Public Service Pay and Pensions Bill 2017: Committee and Remaining Stages (14 Dec 2017)

Patrick O'Donovan: I thank Senator Ruane for her contribution. I have addressed points relating to covered and non-covered public servants, the confines of the agreement and the historical background. I do not propose to repeat myself. I note the Senator's comments but I do not agree with them. I will leave it at that.

Seanad: Public Service Pay and Pensions Bill 2017: Committee and Remaining Stages (14 Dec 2017)

Patrick O'Donovan: I thank the Senator, but will not be accepting the amendment for a number of reasons. First, it presupposes that there will be people who are outside the agreement but, as I have already said, we hope everyone will be covered by it. Further, the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform engages with the Workplace Relations Commission and all of the bodies established under statute, not to...

Seanad: Public Service Pay and Pensions Bill 2017: Committee and Remaining Stages (14 Dec 2017)

Patrick O'Donovan: I meant to say that the number of people who have voted for the agreement would disprove that argument. The union membership see that the merit in the agreement far outweighs any potential negative. At no stage was there an attempt by the Government to usurp the role of the unions. We respect them and the mandate of the public services committee, which is overwhelmingly in favour of the...

Seanad: Public Service Pay and Pensions Bill 2017: Committee and Remaining Stages (14 Dec 2017)

Patrick O'Donovan: I thank the Senators and officials for facilitating the swift passage of the Bill. As I said on a previous day, it is important as we are trying to get this done before 1 January 2018 so people can get paid. I request the co-operation of the Seanad, pursuant to Article 25.2.2° of the Constitution, in requesting the President to sign the Public Service Pay and Pensions Bill 2017 on a...

Seanad: Public Service Pay and Pensions Bill 2017: Committee and Remaining Stages (14 Dec 2017)

Patrick O'Donovan: I acknowledge the contributions made, particularly by Senators with a genuine concern, as we all have. Nobody has a monopoly on this. The matters mentioned have been raised with all Members of the Oireachtas but we must act within the confines of the amount of money available to us. I acknowledge the role of the public servants who drafted the Bill and the lead Minister, Deputy Donohoe,...

Seanad: Public Service Pay and Pensions Bill 2017: Second Stage (12 Dec 2017)

Patrick O'Donovan: I thank the Members for facilitating the Bill. This Bill seeks to implement the provisions agreed in the Public Service Stability Agreement, PSSA, 2018-2020, of earlier this year. As such, it continues the pay restoration that began two years ago with the Lansdowne Road agreement and with the Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest, FEMPI, Act 2015. This Bill provides a roadmap...

Seanad: Public Service Pay and Pensions Bill 2017: Second Stage (12 Dec 2017)

Patrick O'Donovan: I welcome the comments of the Senators present. It is worth noting the small number of Senators who showed an interest in this significant Bill. The unwinding of the financial emergency measures in the public interest legislation, FEMPI, in such an orderly way affects every parish, community and public servant. I thank the Senators who have stayed for the debate. Senator Michael McDowell...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: GLAS Administration (12 Dec 2017)

Patrick O'Donovan: 392. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the status of a payment to agricultural advisers and consultants (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [52802/17]

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: CLÁR Programme (12 Dec 2017)

Patrick O'Donovan: 489. To ask the Minister for Rural and Community Development if funding will be made available under the CLÁR capital investment programme in 2018; if so, when it will be announced; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [52758/17]

Public Services Pay and Pensions Bill 2017: Committee Stage (Resumed) and Remaining Stages (7 Dec 2017)

Patrick O'Donovan: And people like Deputy Paul Murphy.

Public Services Pay and Pensions Bill 2017: Committee Stage (Resumed) and Remaining Stages (7 Dec 2017)

Patrick O'Donovan: I move amendment No. 7:In page 13, between lines 8 and 9, to insert the following:“(2) In the case of a public servant who is an employee or officer of the Central Bank of Ireland, a reference in subsection (1)to the “Minister” shall be construed as a reference to the “Central Bank Commission”.”. This is a technical amendment. It grants the Minister...