Results 5,621-5,640 of 8,600 for speaker:Seán Crowe

Joint Oireachtas Committee on European Union Affairs: European Semester - Draft National Reform Programme 2015: Discussion (23 Apr 2015)

Seán Crowe: I welcome the Minister of State. That was a long and detailed speech, so I will try to keep my contribution fairly short. The Minister of State said that some 30,000 recipients of the one-parent family payment with children over the age of seven years will transition from the payment in 2015 and that tailored child care schemes, including after-school care, have been introduced to support...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on European Union Affairs: European Semester - Draft National Reform Programme 2015: Discussion (23 Apr 2015)

Seán Crowe: I welcome the delegates to the meeting. I will be brief in my contribution. I refer to references in the presentation to regional disparities. I agree with my colleagues that parts of Dublin have not seen the so-called growth and development in the region. Many of those areas were left behind during the boom times. They are still being left behind and another cycle begins. The...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement: Food Safety and Health Eating Initiatives: Safefood (23 Apr 2015)

Seán Crowe: Maidin mhaith agus cuirim fáilte don cruinniú. I apologise to the friends and family I have poisoned over the years with chicken and turkey - I am one of those individuals who has been guilty of that, so the witnesses' information is welcome, although I do not want any claims coming in. As committee members, we do not have many powers but we can make recommendations. What is...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement: Food Safety and Health Eating Initiatives: Safefood (23 Apr 2015)

Seán Crowe: Edible.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade: Security Situation in Kenya: Ambassador of Federal Republic of Kenya (22 Apr 2015)

Seán Crowe: I welcome the ambassador and extend to him a céad míle fáilte on behalf of myself and my party, Sinn Féin. I understand he took up his post in January 2015. We were all horrified by some of the attacks mentioned here this morning, including the Westgate Mall in Nairobi and the Garissa University attacks. There were also some 140 or 150 other attacks by al-Shabaab in...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade: Foreign Conflicts: Motion (22 Apr 2015)

Seán Crowe: My colleague, Deputy Ó Snodaigh, had a question down for the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade yesterday. The reply from the Minister stated: "The Irish government has never taken a position on this issue, believing that it is not in a position to adjudicate on this contentious matter, involving the consideration of a number of legal issues and an assessment of the actions and...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade: Foreign Conflicts: Motion (22 Apr 2015)

Seán Crowe: Are we saying the reply given yesterday was not an up-to-date report?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade: Foreign Conflicts: Motion (22 Apr 2015)

Seán Crowe: Anyone can Google it if they do not believe what was said in the reply, Chairman.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade: Migration to Europe: Discussion (22 Apr 2015)

Seán Crowe: It is welcome that we are having this discussion. When the committee met with the EU High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Federica Mogherini, I raised with her this issue of migrants and the impact it was having on the EU. There is no surprise at the lack of solidarity coming from Europe. We would argue that there was a lack of solidarity on the Irish...

Other Questions: Foreign Conflicts (21 Apr 2015)

Seán Crowe: The Minister might give me a more detailed written response on the matter at some stage. The Yarmouk camp has been described as hell on earth. Has there been additional funding from the Government for this particular situation? One of the difficulties in the Syrian war relates to people trying to flee Syria. We have seen several occurrences recently of boats sinking in the Mediterranean...

Other Questions: Foreign Conflicts (21 Apr 2015)

Seán Crowe: 179. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if his attention has been drawn to the United Nations crisis conference on Syria which took place on 31 March 2015; whether he is aware that it is over four years since the war started and that the humanitarian crisis is deepening, that the situation in the Yarmouk refugee camp has seriously deteriorated, and that donors committed...

Other Questions: Foreign Conflicts (21 Apr 2015)

Seán Crowe: The refugee crisis in Syria involves 4 million people, and between 200,000 and 300,000 have died. There are a couple of matters. There was a UN conference on 31 March on the issue. Can the Minister detail whether his Department has pledged money to this appeal and what provisions are in place to ensure that countries that pledge money pay up?

Other Questions: Middle East Issues (21 Apr 2015)

Seán Crowe: People want some action. According to a recent report from the UN Office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs, the number of Palestinians killed in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip in 2014 was the highest since 1967. The death toll in the occupied territories - some 2,314 Palestinians were killed in 2014, compared to 39 in 2013 - has been described by the UN co-ordinator as...

Other Questions: Middle East Issues (21 Apr 2015)

Seán Crowe: 175. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if his attention has been drawn to the comments of the Israeli Prime Minister, Mr. Benjamin Netanyahu, in the run up to the recent elections, in which he stated that a Palestinian state would not be created during his time in office; that he also criticised Arab voters for their high polling turnout and that his Likud party won the...

Other Questions: Middle East Issues (21 Apr 2015)

Seán Crowe: The inflammatory comments of the Israeli Prime Minister during the recent election campaign were racist and whipped up hate, fear and negativity. He also highlighted that he has no intention of ensuring that a democratic two-state solution is ever established. In the face of this, I once again call on the Minister to respect the wishes of the vast majority of Irish people and of both Houses...

Other Questions: Middle East Issues (21 Apr 2015)

Seán Crowe: If we are waiting for positive actions from Mr. Netanyahu, we will be waiting a long time. However, I welcome the fact that the Minister signed a letter with other Foreign Ministers calling for the labelling of Israeli settlement goods. It is a welcome first step, but it does not go nearly far enough. Just last week the Israeli Supreme Court ruled that an Israeli Government can legally...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Egyptian Conflict (21 Apr 2015)

Seán Crowe: I welcome the Minister's involvement in the case. I do not believe the individual will get a fair trial. He is being held in appalling conditions. He is not safe, he is vulnerable and his human rights have been violated. He was 17 when he was arrested, and he has been detained for the past two years. His health and mental condition are clearly deteriorating. We saw the release of...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Egyptian Conflict (21 Apr 2015)

Seán Crowe: My colleague Lynn Boylan has formally brought this case to the office of the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Ms Federica Mogherini. I raised this personally with her. Ms Boylan raised the point that Egypt is in breach of Article 2 of its Euro-Mediterranean trade agreement, which states that relations between the parties "shall be based on respect of...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Egyptian Conflict (21 Apr 2015)

Seán Crowe: 170. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if he is concerned that the trial of a person (details supplied) has now been postponed until 26 April 2015, that this person has been in jail in Egypt for more than 600 days; and if he will provide an update on the case. [15330/15]

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Egyptian Conflict (21 Apr 2015)

Seán Crowe: Sadly, I raise the case of Ibrahim Halawi with the Minister once again. He has been in jail for the past 600 days and we all hoped he would have been released and back home in Ireland by now. We all agree he will not get a fair trial in Egypt, considering the political situation there. Up to now there have been mass show trials and no real legal proceedings. Can the Minister give an...