Results 41-60 of 658 for in 'Dáil debates' speaker:Emer Higgins

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (29 Feb 2024)

Emer Higgins: One of the few positives that we got from Covid-19 lockdowns is the rise in the ability to work from home. When I am out canvassing on a Monday and a Friday, I am continually amazed by how many people I meet who are working from home. We know that it has many benefits in terms of flexibility, better work-life integration and increased productivity but there is also a downside. It can make...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Social Welfare Schemes (20 Feb 2024)

Emer Higgins: 77. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection if the expanded child benefit payments up to the age of 19 years includes those in third level education. [7785/24]

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (15 Feb 2024)

Emer Higgins: I am not sure if the Tánaiste is aware but there is disruption to our postal service in Dublin. It is due to what An Post calls a new operational plan for Fonthill and Blanchardstown delivery offices. The result is that residents in Lucan and Clondalkin are badly affected, with many deliveries significantly delayed. I have constituents and businesses experiencing delays with important...

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate: Schools Building Projects (1 Feb 2024)

Emer Higgins: I thank the Minister of State for that update. It is welcome news that they will be delivered as quickly as possible but I would still like to know what "as quickly as possible" means. What kind of a timeframe are we looking at? I would like to take this opportunity to ensure that the Minister of State, the Minister for Education and her Department are aware of the primary schools that...

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate: Schools Building Projects (1 Feb 2024)

Emer Higgins: I thank the Minister of State for taking this matter, which is on the urgent need for approved school building projects in Dublin Mid-West to begin construction. This is something I have raised consistently in this Chamber in my tenure as a TD. As the Minister of State may be aware, we are facing a school places crisis in my constituency. As I said in the Dáil both this week and last...

Research and Innovation Bill 2023: Second Stage (31 Jan 2024)

Emer Higgins: I welcome the Research and Innovation Bill and what it represents for the future of Ireland, and I commend the Minister, Deputy Harris, for introducing it. Ireland has always been a land of research, of innovation and of scholars. This Bill is about bringing those values to the fore. Taighde Éireann will be an amalgamation of the Irish Research Council and Science Foundation Ireland...

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (31 Jan 2024)

Emer Higgins: Today, I raise again school places in my constituency. We are facing a school places crisis in Dublin Mid-West. As I said in the Dáil last week, we have school buildings waiting for the go-ahead for new builds and extensions and there are students who do not know where they will go to post-primary in September. This morning I received a reply from the Department of Education on the...

Post-European Council Meeting: Statements (24 Jan 2024)

Emer Higgins: Supporting the people of Palestine is something I am really passionate about. Last week I organised a meeting for the Fine Gael parliamentarians with Sadaka, the Ireland Palestine Alliance, to discuss what is the absolute horror that is happening in Gaza. I brought this and Ireland's participation in the South African International Court of Justice, ICJ, case up on the floor of the...

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (24 Jan 2024)

Emer Higgins: The Department of Education has spent over €10 million in six years posting payslips. This figure does not even account for printing. Optional digital payslips were introduced last year but there has not been a really high take-up, and that is because it is on an opt-in rather than an opt-out basis. Posting payslips is totally out of touch with society and out of kilter with how...

Conflict in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territory: Motion (23 Jan 2024)

Emer Higgins: I start by thanking the Tánaiste, his team and his officials for putting this motion together and giving us the opportunity to have a cross-party debate. Sadly, we are in a much darker place than we were when last we were here condemning what is happening in Gaza. No matter what side of the House we sit on, we are watching horror unfold before our eyes. This is true not just of all...

Conflict in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territory: Motion (23 Jan 2024)

Emer Higgins: Ireland did so.

Conflict in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territory: Motion (23 Jan 2024)

Emer Higgins: Hear, hear.

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (18 Jan 2024)

Emer Higgins: We all watch in absolute horror as the horrific scenes from Gaza get more and more devastating. More than 23,000 people in Gaza have been killed since the Hamas attack, 70% of whom were women and children. Yesterday, I convened a meeting with my Fine Gael colleagues and Sadaka – The Ireland Palestine Alliance. That group's biggest concern right now is Gaza's newest deadly threat,...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Apprenticeship Programmes (18 Jan 2024)

Emer Higgins: There is a supplementary question from Deputy Mairéad Farrell.

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Apprenticeship Programmes (18 Jan 2024)

Emer Higgins: There is another supplementary question from Deputy Gould.

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Apprenticeship Programmes (18 Jan 2024)

Emer Higgins: The Minister without interruption, please.

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Apprenticeship Programmes (18 Jan 2024)

Emer Higgins: I thank the Minister. That is very helpful.

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Further and Higher Education (18 Jan 2024)

Emer Higgins: We have a slight alteration to the schedule. There was a request to swap Questions Nos. 82 and 79 and I have agreed to that, so we will now move to Question No. 82 in the name of Deputy Colm Burke.

An Bille up an Daicheadú Leasú ar an mBunreacht (Cúram), 2023: An Dara Céim - Fortieth Amendment of the Constitution (Care) Bill 2023: Second Stage (14 Dec 2023)

Emer Higgins: In less than three months from now, the people of Ireland will go to vote in polls on the 40th amendment to our Constitution. This is a very significant moment because it reflects another crucial step towards advancing women's rights across Ireland. The proposed amendment seeks to eliminate archaic and stereotypical language referring to women in the home. It proposes a modern alternative...

An Bille um an Naoú Leasú is Tríocha ar an mBunreacht (An Teaghlach), 2023: An Dara Céim - Thirty-ninth Amendment of the Constitution (The Family) Bill 2023: Second Stage (14 Dec 2023)

Emer Higgins: When I look around my local area, and even when I look around this Chamber, I can see clearly that the family of 1937, when the Constitution was originally written, has changed and that the Ireland of 1937 is no more. We have come a really long way in those recent years. Our small island has become increasingly more tolerant and more welcoming of all sexualities, gender identities and...