Results 5,741-5,760 of 7,648 for speaker:Rónán Mullen

Seanad: Order of Business. (7 Feb 2012)

Rónán Mullen: Mr. Alan Crosbie, chairman of Thomas Crosbie Holdings, said something very interesting at a conference on media diversity in Dublin yesterday.

Seanad: Order of Business. (7 Feb 2012)

Rónán Mullen: I think we may have to revisit this.

Seanad: Order of Business. (7 Feb 2012)

Rónán Mullen: Okay. Try this one, a Chathaoirligh, as Churchill once said-----

Seanad: Order of Business. (7 Feb 2012)

Rónán Mullen: I was not about to criticise Mr. Crosbie. I was-----

Seanad: Priorities in Foreign Affairs: Statements (2 Feb 2012)

Rónán Mullen: I welcome the Tánaiste to the House. He should come here more often. Senator Walsh mentioned the plight of persecuted Christians. International evidence indicates that Christians are among the most persecuted minorities in the world, be it in Orissa in India, Sri Lanka, North Korea, China and so on. What specific steps does the Tánaiste propose to take in this regard? If successful in...

Seanad: Priorities in Foreign Affairs: Statements (2 Feb 2012)

Rónán Mullen: It was a bad call.

Seanad: Priorities in Foreign Affairs: Statements (2 Feb 2012)

Rónán Mullen: The Tánaiste should not be a stranger to the House.

Seanad: Priorities in Foreign Affairs: Statements (2 Feb 2012)

Rónán Mullen: Did the Senator say "fortunate" or "unfortunate"?

Seanad: Priorities in Foreign Affairs: Statements (2 Feb 2012)

Rónán Mullen: On a point of order, some of us cannot quite hear the Minister. I am very sorry. The headphones are not working.

Seanad: Electoral (Amendment)(Political Funding) Bill 2011: Second Stage (2 Feb 2012)

Rónán Mullen: ----is with regard to corporate donations. If we are serious about making politics better, then we should be having a much more courageous look at corporate donations. Merely providing for registration is not the way to go. When it comes to the question of public funding of political parties, there are questions to be answered there as well. I welcome what Senator Mac Conghail had to say....

Seanad: Electoral (Amendment)(Political Funding) Bill 2011: Second Stage (2 Feb 2012)

Rónán Mullen: That is a serious point, Senator Keane.

Seanad: Electoral (Amendment)(Political Funding) Bill 2011: Second Stage (2 Feb 2012)

Rónán Mullen: Mr. McDowell has asked whether it is open constitutionally for a majority in Dáil Éireann, even with the support of a majority at the last election, to introduce discriminatory funding into the political process in pursuit of their particular policy as to the type or types of people whom they feel people should elect or who should be nominated at the next election to the Dáil. He asked us...

Seanad: Electoral (Amendment)(Political Funding) Bill 2011: Second Stage (2 Feb 2012)

Rónán Mullen: That is hardly a mortal sin. She has pointed out also that in France they have only managed, with the change in the law- - - - -

Seanad: Electoral (Amendment)(Political Funding) Bill 2011: Second Stage (2 Feb 2012)

Rónán Mullen: It may very well be, she will have to go before Bishop Gilmore perhaps. In France they have only managed with the change in the law to achieve a 19% representation of women in their Parliament. She has pointed out that the countries that are frequently cited for having achieved greater participation of women in parliament, Sweden for example, have not done so with the aid of gender quotas....

Seanad: Electoral (Amendment)(Political Funding) Bill 2011: Second Stage (2 Feb 2012)

Rónán Mullen: -----and we will not do this for any longer than we have to and look forward to the day when we can remove these quotas. What will happen if the situation starts to slip? It is very revealing that at some level Members feel the need to apologise for this. That in itself should prompt a reconsideration. This is an issue where change should be allowed to happen organically. I repeat the...

Seanad: Electoral (Amendment)(Political Funding) Bill 2011: Second Stage (2 Feb 2012)

Rónán Mullen: That is the fault of political parties in particular for not changing their internal culture. In a recent letter to the newspaper----

Seanad: Electoral (Amendment)(Political Funding) Bill 2011: Second Stage (2 Feb 2012)

Rónán Mullen: I am not up for dining on red herrings today, Senator Norris. It was pointed out that the State should be ideologically and politically neutral. This changes the goalposts. This goes against the spirit of things like the McKenna judgment, which were designed to get the apparatus of State out of dictating to people what way they should go on particular issues. This is the antithesis of what...

Seanad: Electoral (Amendment)(Political Funding) Bill 2011: Second Stage (2 Feb 2012)

Rónán Mullen: On a point of order, are copies of the Minister's speech available? Perhaps the Deputy Leader might take action in respect of this matter. It would be appreciated if something could be done to ensure that there will be no repeat of this occurrence. It is a discourtesy - I accept that it is unintended - to Members of the Seanad that copies of the Minister's script are not available. It is...

Seanad: Electoral (Amendment)(Political Funding) Bill 2011: Second Stage (2 Feb 2012)

Rónán Mullen: That is fine as long as the students involved use the donations for political purposes.

Seanad: Electoral (Amendment)(Political Funding) Bill 2011: Second Stage (2 Feb 2012)

Rónán Mullen: No other formula would work.