Results 41-60 of 280 for at speaker:Vincent P Martin

Committee on Key Issues affecting the Traveller Community: Election of Cathaoirleach (21 Jun 2023)

Vincent P Martin: I would also like to convey congratulations to the Cathaoirleach and state, especially on behalf of the Green Party grouping, how pleased we are to see her accede and to have her elevated to this role today. I was privileged to have as a lecturer in third level education the late Reverend Micheál Mac Gréil, a famous campaigning sociologist. He said on record many times that the...

Seanad: 25th Anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement: Motion (30 May 2023)

Vincent P Martin: ...;ilte roimh an Tánaiste. Along with the paralysis of the ongoing suspension of Stormont, the other main issue of deep concern to citizens on the island of Ireland and further afield is, as other Senators said, the Northern Ireland Troubles (Legacy and Reconciliation) Bill the Westminster government seems to be persisting in progressing through its legislative process. This Bill...

Seanad: Regulated Professions (Health and Social Care) (Amendment) Bill 2022: Second Stage (25 May 2023)

Vincent P Martin: The Minister, Deputy Donnelly, is very welcome to the Chamber as always and I realise that many of my points have been covered by previous speakers. I confirm that the Green Party grouping will support this legislative initiative. The Bill is fundamentally about health practitioners. It contains a welcome development in response to Brexit in respect of UK medical graduates because since...

Seanad: Civil Defence Bill 2023: Second Stage (18 May 2023)

Vincent P Martin: Cuirim fáilte roimh an Aire Stáit. Civil Defence is a fantastic voluntary organisation with a proud history of more than 70 years. It plays a vital role in protecting and safeguarding the lives of people throughout Ireland. It is responsible for providing emergency response and relief services during times of crisis such as floods, storms, fires, landslides and other disasters....

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (17 May 2023)

Vincent P Martin: It was widely reported in the media yesterday that the Ulster Volunteer Force, UVF, provided answers to a family concerning a 1974 murder in Belfast. The late John Crawford, a father of nine, was shot dead in west Belfast in January 1974. Almost 50 years later, the family of the late Mr. Crawford was given a report by loyalist paramilitaries setting out the circumstances of the killing....

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Medicinal Products (16 May 2023)

Vincent P Martin: I thank the Minister of State. Are we at the ready? Will things change? Sufferers want assurances. We have a track record of being in the Vauxhall non-league conference in terms of speed, when it comes to approving and funding such drugs. What is stopping Ireland being in the premier division? Then again, should we not all be equal in the context of the EU, as we are equal members of...

Seanad: Courts Bill 2023: Second Stage (10 May 2023)

Vincent P Martin: ...Law Library. To see a Bill come before the House is a positive step in the right direction. I also commend the Department on listening and on accepting my Bill last month. It has given an undertaking that it will adopt it. When it is enacted or becomes part of a larger Bill, it will quite properly, I maintain, restrict and curtail the entitlement of an accused to cross-examine in person...

Seanad: Regulation of Lobbying (Amendment) Bill 2022: Committee Stage (Resumed) (10 May 2023)

Vincent P Martin: I welcome the Minister of State to the Chamber. I thank her and the Department officials for engaging with me in respect of concerns which I have flagged but are not fully allayed. I would like to raise three issues under section 13. I have not tabled an amendment, but I am discussing it now to ensure it is kept alive on Report Stage. I hope the Government will deal with this as it would...

Seanad: Public Water Connection Charges: Motion (26 Apr 2023)

Vincent P Martin: Gabhaim buíochas leis an gCathaoirleach Gníomhach. I begin by welcoming the Minister of State to the Chamber and by commending Senator Garvey for leading out on this issue. It is enthusiastically supported, as one might imagine, by Senators Pauline O'Reilly, the Minister of State, Senator Hackett, and myself. We have been campaigning to seek positive inroads for many a long year...

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Hospital Services (25 Apr 2023)

Vincent P Martin: The Minister of State is very welcome to Seanad Éireann. While it is good to see him in the Chamber, many people in Kildare will be disappointed that the Minister for Health is not available to answer this question today. It has been reported that about 200 women from County Kildare are unnecessarily compelled to travel to the Coombe hospital every month for antenatal maternity care...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (25 Apr 2023)

Vincent P Martin: It is most appropriate the Seanad has set aside time later to discuss the crucially important report of the independent review group on dignity and equality issues in the Defence Forces. I thank the Women of Honour for speaking out about their experience in the Defence Forces. Their courage and bravery in sharing their stories has brought to light the urgent need for change within our...

Seanad: Regulation of Lobbying (Amendment) Bill 2022: Second Stage (20 Apr 2023)

Vincent P Martin: The Minister of State is, as always, very welcome to the Chamber. He stated that the Bill is a further strengthening of the existing laws. He also stated that transparency is key and, with frank candour, accepted that lobbying is a part of the greater workings of the democratic system. Lobbying can sometimes be misunderstood and misrepresented as something untoward but, of course, once it...

Seanad: Gnó an tSeanaid - Business of Seanad (20 Apr 2023)

Vincent P Martin: I propose that notwithstanding the order of the House agreed today, Second Stage of the Health (Assisted Human Reproduction) Bill 2023 be taken at 12.45 p.m. and that the sitting now be suspended until the said 12.45 p.m.

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: School Transport (28 Mar 2023)

Vincent P Martin: Cuirim fáilte roimh an Aire Stáit go dtí an Seanad. The announcement by the Minister for Education, Deputy Foley, of free school transport for all was initially greeted by many with great fanfare. The reality on the ground for some communities is entirely different.It has turned the lives of people living in the communities of Rathcoffey and Straffan upside down. It has...

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: School Transport (28 Mar 2023)

Vincent P Martin: I thank the Minister of State for outlining the facts. A number of parents are tuned in live to this at home. They will be putting all their hopes in the review but they have not heard anything new. They feel they are running around in circles. They are losing hope. They simply want an adequate bus service of sufficient capacity to bring all their children to the school. I know that...

Seanad: Good Friday Agreement and Windsor Framework: Motion (8 Mar 2023)

Vincent P Martin: I welcome the Minister of State.I commend Sinn Féin on tabling this motion and for the tone, tenor and language of its Members' opening contributions. As no doubt proud republicans, it demonstrated a generosity that was so needed in the past. For the future, including the current big challenge but even looking beyond that, we can take great strength from the past. Then UK Prime...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (7 Mar 2023)

Vincent P Martin: On 28 February, Ireland lost a very valued friend when former Congressman Brian Donnelly passed in Massachusetts. He was a renowned Democrat with strong west of Ireland connections. He came on board to support the John Hume school of thinking and the consent principle, which was very important at a moment in time when Irish America needed leaders. Probably most significantly, along with...

Seanad: Domestic Violence (Amendment) Bill 2023: Second Stage (15 Feb 2023)

Vincent P Martin: I move: "That the Bill be now read a Second Time." Cuirim fáilte roimh an Aire Stáit. I thank all of the Senators who co-sponsored this legislative initiative, along with my own Green Party grouping and Senator Garvey, the Green Party leader, for ensuring this Bill received the priority listing I believe it deserves and merits in our rare Private Members' business slot. I know...

Seanad: Central Bank (Individual Accountability Framework) Bill 2022: Second Stage (8 Feb 2023)

Vincent P Martin: Cuirim fáilte roimh an Aire Stáit. Improving individual accountability in decision-making at all levels, especially at senior level, is to be welcomed. However, I do not see transparency and accountability for the so-called vulture funds. The services of those loans are regulated. The history of the great recession is well-known to us all. Banks over-lent to the residential...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on European Union Affairs: Fiftieth Anniversary of Ireland’s Accession to the European Community: Discussion (8 Feb 2023)

Vincent P Martin: I thank the Vice Chairperson and our guest expert speakers. It has been a long but most invigorating session and much ground has been covered. I will conclude by asking two Brexit-related questions because our guests' viewpoints are truly valued. With the true expertise they have comes, it goes without saying, inherent objectivity, impartiality and independence. I am concerned about the...