Results 621-640 of 873 for speaker:Averil Power

Seanad: Order of Business: Motion (5 Feb 2013)

Averil Power: There is cross-party agreement.

Seanad: Order of Business: Motion (5 Feb 2013)

Averil Power: When is it proposed to sit again?

Seanad: Order of Business: Motion (5 Feb 2013)

Averil Power: I remind the Senator that he has exceeded six minutes.

Seanad: Order of Business: Motion (5 Feb 2013)

Averil Power: I call Senator Norris to move the motion. The contributions from all Senators are limited to five minutes each.

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Spent Convictions) Bill 2012: Fifth Stage (5 Feb 2013)

Averil Power: I thank the Minister but I acknowledge the work that was done by his predecessor, Dermot Ahern, who initiated work on the legislation. It is the Minister who brought it through the House today. This is important legislation. It will make a big difference to people who have made mistakes but have worked hard to turn their lives around and deserve a second chance. It is great to pass...

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Spent Convictions) Bill 2012: Report Stage (5 Feb 2013)

Averil Power: I welcome the Minister to the House. I support the general comments by Senators van Turnhout and Ó Clochartaigh. The Bill is a major step forward and a positive initiative to give people a second chance. It will ensure that people are not left for a lifetime with a minor offence hanging over them, making it difficult for them to access employment. Some very good points have been raised...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Education and Social Protection: National Council for Special Education: Discussion with Chairman Designate (19 Dec 2012)

Averil Power: I congratulate Mr. Stack on his appointment. It is great to have someone of his calibre in an unpaid post. He is giving very generously of his time to take on what is not an easy task. I wish him well. He is a man of integrity and very smart and diplomatic and will be very good at bringing people together on the board to deal with sensitive issues. Hopefully, a great deal of progress...

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2012: Second Stage (Resumed) (18 Dec 2012)

Averil Power: There is no doubt that the Government needs to close the gap between income and expenditure and I do not believe anybody in this House disagrees with that assertion. However, as Senator Marc MacSharry said, the Minister does have choices. The choices made in the Social Welfare Bill are wrong. It is wrong to target low income families for cuts. It is wrong to abolish the back to education...

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2012: Second Stage (Resumed) (18 Dec 2012)

Averil Power: If you take comfort from shouting at me-----

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2012: Second Stage (Resumed) (18 Dec 2012)

Averil Power: I will. This House has a very important job to do this week. I wish that Members would focus on the Bill. If Senator Denis Landy takes comfort from shouting at the Opposition side and making political points and if that makes him feel better about the e-mails from parents of autistic children who e-mailed every Member over the weekend asking us to do the right thing in conscience, that is...

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2012: Second Stage (Resumed) (18 Dec 2012)

Averil Power: The bottom line will still be the same, with which I have no issue. It will still be that the same overall level of cuts must be achieved, but they can be fairer. Alternatives have been mentioned such as an increase in the universal social charge. I know they appeal to Members on the other side of the House and that, in all honesty, if they think about them, they know they are right. I...

Seanad: National Vetting Bureau (Children and Vulnerable Persons) Bill 2012: Report and Final Stages (12 Dec 2012)

Averil Power: I am disappointed by the Minister's response because I genuinely believe that the amendment, as rephrased, is clear in its intent, in that it only covers professional childminders. I do not accept the Minister's differentiation from a child protection perspective. The Bill will cover people working as professional childminders through an agency, but it will not cover non-agency professional...

Seanad: National Vetting Bureau (Children and Vulnerable Persons) Bill 2012: Report and Final Stages (12 Dec 2012)

Averil Power: I move amendment No. 1: In page 8, between lines 4 and 5, to insert the following:"(v) in their capacity, engages in the provision of child-minding services for reward for any period of time".I will be brief as we are short on time, so I will not repeat the points I made on Committee Stage. Senator Ó Clochartaigh and I have co-authored an amendment for this Stage to address the concerns the...

Seanad: National Vetting Bureau (Children and Vulnerable Persons) Bill 2012: Committee Stage (12 Dec 2012)

Averil Power: As I stated in my opening contribution, it was never our intention for this to cover informal family or neighbour relationships. I thought I had made that clear. The Minister stated that he accepts the spirit but not the wording. I indicated that I would like to get guidance from him as to how we could improve the wording. Senator Ó Clochartaigh has provided an excellent alternative which...

Seanad: National Vetting Bureau (Children and Vulnerable Persons) Bill 2012: Committee Stage (12 Dec 2012)

Averil Power: I move amendment No. 1: In page 8, paragraph (a), between lines 4 and 5, to insert the following:?(v) in their individual capacity, engages in the provision of child-minding services for reward for any period of time, to include persons who engage in the provision of a nanny and/or au pair service or similar such service whether in their own home or in the home of their employer,?.I welcome...

Seanad: National Vetting Bureau (Children and Vulnerable Persons) Bill 2012: Committee Stage (12 Dec 2012)

Averil Power: I am disappointed by the Minister's response. I accept his point about casual arrangements which is why I referred in my opening contribution to local teenagers or family members. It was never our intention to include such arrangements. There is, however, a world of difference between that and someone who works as a nanny or an au pair. There have been high profile cases, in this country...

Seanad: National Vetting Bureau (Children and Vulnerable Persons) Bill 2012: Committee Stage (12 Dec 2012)

Averil Power: I move amendment No. 1: In page 8, paragraph (a), between lines 4 and 5, to insert the following:?(v) in their individual capacity, engages in the provision of child-minding services for reward for any period of time, to include persons who engage in the provision of a nanny and/or au pair service or similar such service whether in their own home or in the home of their employer,?.I welcome...

Seanad: National Vetting Bureau (Children and Vulnerable Persons) Bill 2012: Committee Stage (12 Dec 2012)

Averil Power: I am disappointed by the Minister's response. I accept his point about casual arrangements which is why I referred in my opening contribution to local teenagers or family members. It was never our intention to include such arrangements. There is, however, a world of difference between that and someone who works as a nanny or an au pair. There have been high profile cases, in this country...

Seanad: Order of Business (12 Dec 2012)

Averil Power: That might need to be connected in a Government context to the introduction of regulation to cover particular people working in the child care sector. Proper regulation and a registration system for nannies and au pairs, for example, has been called for. Perhaps it needs to be connected with that. I had hoped that, at least if the Minister rejected the amendments on the basis of their lack...

Seanad: Report of the Expert Group on the Judgment in the A, B and C v. Ireland Case: Statements (6 Dec 2012)

Averil Power: As an adopted person, I have always been deeply conflicted on the issue of abortion. When people speak about unwanted pregnancies, I cannot help but to reflect on the fact that I was the unplanned daughter of a single woman. When she became pregnant in 1978, she did not have the option of keeping me such that I could grow up as part of her family. I am grateful that through adoption I was...