Results 6,401-6,420 of 7,604 for speaker:James Bannon

Seanad: Decentralisation Programme: Motion. (2 Jun 2004)

James Bannon: It was done for free.

Seanad: Decentralisation Programme: Motion. (2 Jun 2004)

James Bannon: Get the message.

Seanad: Report on Seanad Reform: Statements (Resumed). (2 Jun 2004)

James Bannon: I join other Senators in complimenting the sub-committee and the secretariat and the many individuals and bodies who made submissions on Seanad reform. I welcome the Minister who has exercised patience during this debate. The Leader referred to groupings of individuals and petitioners. I hope she was not referring to little groupings of councillors organising votes during her presentation.

Seanad: Report on Seanad Reform: Statements (Resumed). (2 Jun 2004)

James Bannon: That did not happen among elected local public representatives. Reading the report on the first Seanad and the list of Members, including such well known figures as William Butler Yeats, poet and dramatist, and Oliver St. John Gogarty, surgeon, wit and author, one has a sense of history. I am proud to be part of the system, as laid down in the 1922 Constitution of the Irish Free State. One...

Seanad: Report on Seanad Reform: Statements (Resumed). (2 Jun 2004)

James Bannon: As a result, 43 of the 60 seats were filled from vocational panels, a position we now propose to change, bringing us nearer to the original concept of 1922. Change is important for growth and the Seanad is not immune to the need for such change. However, it could be said that for any meaningful change to take place, Seanad reform should follow what many see as necessary change in the Dáil....

Seanad: Report on Seanad Reform: Statements (Resumed). (2 Jun 2004)

James Bannon: It is interesting to see that Fianna Fáil's arguments against giving ordinary citizens a Seanad vote were of a politically pragmatic nature. Why would Fianna Fáil be concerned with the practical consequences of such actions? The Seanad is to be retained despite reservations by the Progressive Democrats about its effectiveness, but in a very overhauled form with a view to making it a...

Seanad: Report on Seanad Reform: Statements (Resumed). (2 Jun 2004)

James Bannon: The remaining six seats would be elected on the same day to a higher education constituency. This independence from Dáil elections would underpin the unique nature of the Seanad as a deliberative body that takes a different perspective from the Dáil, while at the same time complementing it. There should be no attempt to reform the Seanad at the expense of bringing it into confrontation with...

Seanad: Report on Seanad Reform: Statements (Resumed). (2 Jun 2004)

James Bannon: However, the arrogant Minister whipped them into line in order to push the Bill through both Houses. In any consideration of the Seanad, it is essential to consider gender balance. Any representative body should be composed of equal numbers of male and female members. Looking around the Chamber today, one can see that such equality does not exist but I am sure the Leader would be happy to see...

Seanad: Order of Business. (27 May 2004)

James Bannon: Will the Senator call on the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government to resign?

Seanad: Order of Business. (27 May 2004)

James Bannon: That is naming and shaming all right.

Seanad: Order of Business. (27 May 2004)

James Bannon: Did the Senator not vote for the ban?

Seanad: Order of Business. (27 May 2004)

James Bannon: The latest increase in the price of oil brings the cost to more than €1 per litre. This has the capacity to bankrupt individuals and small and medium-sized businesses. People from the midlands travel up to 160 miles per day to and from their place of work. For a medium-sized car, this costs around €16,000 per year. It is like having a second mortgage and puts a major dent in people's...

Seanad: Housing Provisions: Motion. (26 May 2004)

James Bannon: Was that under Jack Lynch or Charles J. Haughey?

Seanad: Housing Provisions: Motion. (26 May 2004)

James Bannon: Charles J., I think.

Seanad: Housing Provisions: Motion. (26 May 2004)

James Bannon: The Government has cut the disabled person's grant.

Seanad: Housing Provisions: Motion. (26 May 2004)

James Bannon: Cuts, cuts and more cuts.

Seanad: Housing Provisions: Motion. (26 May 2004)

James Bannon: Hear, hear.

Seanad: Housing Provisions: Motion. (26 May 2004)

James Bannon: They even open cow sheds down the country.

Seanad: Housing Provisions: Motion. (26 May 2004)

James Bannon: Are they admitting it now?

Seanad: Housing Provisions: Motion. (26 May 2004)

James Bannon: Hear, hear.