Results 5,601-5,620 of 7,583 for speaker:Rónán Mullen

Seanad: Electoral (Amendment)(Political Funding) Bill 2011: Committee Stage (Resumed) (21 Feb 2012)

Rónán Mullen: A majority has not voted for this.

Seanad: Order of Business (21 Feb 2012)

Rónán Mullen: We looked it up after it was announced.

Seanad: Order of Business (21 Feb 2012)

Rónán Mullen: I heard with interest the references to the classical world from other Senators. As I listened to Senator John Crown refer to Leonidas I was glad neither Senator Mary White nor Senator Mary Ann O'Brien were present to hear the rival produce placement. Horatius at the Bridge did not spring to mind as I contemplated the meekness with which the Tánaiste discussed Ireland's concern about human...

Seanad: Electoral (Amendment)(Political Funding) Bill 2011: Committee Stage (15 Feb 2012)

Rónán Mullen: Yes. I move amendment No 9: In page 8, line 22, before "shall" to insert "and subsection (2)". Amendment put and declared lost.

Seanad: Electoral (Amendment)(Political Funding) Bill 2011: Committee Stage (15 Feb 2012)

Rónán Mullen: I compliment Senator Cullinane because he has done very well in fighting off his detractors. I have a little rant coming up in a moment, but I would like to add to what has been said. Senator Bradford has rightly opened up an important question. What happens when people receive income and claim not to take all of it themselves, but do not return it to the State or to a recognised charity?...

Seanad: Electoral (Amendment)(Political Funding) Bill 2011: Committee Stage (15 Feb 2012)

Rónán Mullen: -----but for which it was not given.

Seanad: Electoral (Amendment)(Political Funding) Bill 2011: Committee Stage (15 Feb 2012)

Rónán Mullen: I have already said that expenses and allowances should be vouched, and it is correct to say that if political parties receive public funding and they do not have to present vouchers, then the requirement should be that any public funding has to be vouched. In other words, independent politicians should be treated the same as political parties. Sauce for the flock of geese must be sauce for...

Seanad: Electoral (Amendment)(Political Funding) Bill 2011: Committee Stage (15 Feb 2012)

Rónán Mullen: There is an Irish variant of a certain mental condition where people forget everything except the grudges. I disagree with Senator Bradford in one respect. He seeks to contrast public funding of parties and individuals on the one hand and private or corporate donations on the other hand. He is wrong in lumping in private and corporate donations. Notwithstanding what Senator Hayden has...

Seanad: Electoral (Amendment)(Political Funding) Bill 2011: Committee Stage (15 Feb 2012)

Rónán Mullen: Yes. There are examples of this in Britain and in America, some of which I would regard as quite controversial, such as EMILY's List, which stands for Early Money Is Like Yeast. This is where certain women politicians were induced to take up pro-abortion political positions in exchange for certain donations.

Seanad: Electoral (Amendment)(Political Funding) Bill 2011: Committee Stage (15 Feb 2012)

Rónán Mullen: We cannot prohibit people from making donations if it is lawful, but transparency is important in that instance. I am on record as supporting the closing down of such corporate donations. If the Women's Political Association rightly wants to see more women in politics, it should have the capacity to approach individuals and ask them to donate to female candidates in different...

Seanad: Electoral (Amendment)(Political Funding) Bill 2011: Committee Stage (15 Feb 2012)

Rónán Mullen: I agree with what Senator Hayden has said in that a trust does not have those selfish commercial or self-interested motives from the point of view of commerce but nonetheless a trust gathers money for the accomplishment of a particular purpose. In the same way that I have opposed the hijacking of the system of public funding of politics for the purpose of securing the laudable objective of...

Seanad: Electoral (Amendment)(Political Funding) Bill 2011: Committee Stage (15 Feb 2012)

Rónán Mullen: What is the female for gander?

Seanad: Electoral (Amendment)(Political Funding) Bill 2011: Committee Stage (15 Feb 2012)

Rónán Mullen: I think she took a more charitable view of our difficulties.

Seanad: Electoral (Amendment)(Political Funding) Bill 2011: Committee Stage (15 Feb 2012)

Rónán Mullen: We are all goosed anyway.

Seanad: Electoral (Amendment)(Political Funding) Bill 2011: Committee Stage (15 Feb 2012)

Rónán Mullen: We would be banning all that if we banned corporate donations.

Seanad: Electoral (Amendment)(Political Funding) Bill 2011: Committee Stage (15 Feb 2012)

Rónán Mullen: He could win.

Seanad: Electoral (Amendment)(Political Funding) Bill 2011: Committee Stage (15 Feb 2012)

Rónán Mullen: No, my point was much more benign than the Minister thinks.

Seanad: Electoral (Amendment)(Political Funding) Bill 2011: Committee Stage (15 Feb 2012)

Rónán Mullen: I came down in favour of it.

Seanad: Electoral (Amendment)(Political Funding) Bill 2011: Committee Stage (15 Feb 2012)

Rónán Mullen: It seems Senator van Turnhout has done us a great service in drawing attention to the situation in other EU countries. While the Minister talks about dealing with these issues in the round, if the law of the European Union and the convention, which does not refer specifically to the Union, cannot place an obstacle to Portugal or France having such bans, it cannot be invoked as an argument in...

Seanad: Electoral (Amendment)(Political Funding) Bill 2011: Committee Stage (15 Feb 2012)

Rónán Mullen: Test it.