Results 6,761-6,780 of 7,359 for speaker:Katherine Zappone

Seanad: Order of Business (12 Feb 2015)

Katherine Zappone: I have just come from a conference sponsored by Christian Aid on the human rights impact of tax and fiscal policies. The Minister of State, Deputy Simon Harris, gave the opening address and was followed by Professor Philip Alston, the UN special rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights. It is a very significant conference, especially in the light of the fact that all political parties...

Seanad: Gender Recognition Bill 2014: Committee Stage (Resumed) (10 Feb 2015)

Katherine Zappone: With respect, does the Minister of State have a comment on amendment No. 35? I do not see how it falls outside the remit of the Bill.

Seanad: Gender Recognition Bill 2014: Committee Stage (Resumed) (10 Feb 2015)

Katherine Zappone: I thank the Minister of State for his response. The Equal Status Act has been referenced. Does that mean the State will not protect transgender people to use the public bathroom facilities of their preferred gender?

Seanad: Gender Recognition Bill 2014: Committee Stage (Resumed) (10 Feb 2015)

Katherine Zappone: I move amendment No. 35: In page 29, after line 28, to insert the following:“Use of public bathroom facilities 38. (1) Without prejudice to the generality of section 17 or to the provisions of the Equal Status Acts 2000 to 2011, where public bathroom facilities are assigned based on gender, a person to whom this section applies may use the public bathroom facilities allocated to the...

Seanad: Gender Recognition Bill 2014: Committee Stage (Resumed) (10 Feb 2015)

Katherine Zappone: I welcome the Minister of State back to the House and thank him for meeting with some trans people and Senators since. I have spoken about this particular issue, which these amendments cover, for the past several years. It was one of the first issues I spoke about with the excellent civil servants in the Minister of State's Department. I also gave evidence to the committee on social...

Seanad: Commencement Matters: Social Welfare Code (5 Feb 2015)

Katherine Zappone: I thank the Minister of State, from woman to woman.

Seanad: Commencement Matters: Social Welfare Code (5 Feb 2015)

Katherine Zappone: If I had a disappointment that the Tánaiste or the Minister of State at the Department of Social Protection was not here to take this motion, it has dissipated because I have never had the opportunity to have an exchange with the Minister of State, Deputy Ann Phelan. I am asking the Minister to outline her view on whether the three-day rule to calculate availability for work under the...

Seanad: Commencement Matters: Social Welfare Code (5 Feb 2015)

Katherine Zappone: What a disappointment. I hear what the Minister of State has said on behalf of the Tánaiste. There are no plans to alter the schemes. I think I put my case well. Others have also put the case well. The issue is that it will cost to make a change. Yes, it probably will cost, but on the other hand, it is currently costing the State, particularly for women who are moving from the...

Seanad: Gender Recognition Bill 2014: Committee Stage (3 Feb 2015)

Katherine Zappone: I move amendment No. 4: In page 6, between lines 2 and 3, to insert the following:“ “general medical practitioner” means a medical practitioner who is registered in the Specialist Division of the register of medical practitioners under the medical speciality of “General Practice” or in the General Division of the register of medical practitioners;”.I...

Seanad: Gender Recognition Bill 2014: Committee Stage (3 Feb 2015)

Katherine Zappone: I support both speakers and Senator van Turnhout in particular, who has laid out many reasons and has provided a number of pieces of evidence in order that the Minister of State might consider accepting the different amendments she has tabled, as well as her powerful, elegant and eloquent argument for ensuring that Members are attentive to the best interests of the child. In addition, she...

Seanad: Gender Recognition Bill 2014: Committee Stage (3 Feb 2015)

Katherine Zappone: I thank the Minister.

Seanad: Gender Recognition Bill 2014: Committee Stage (3 Feb 2015)

Katherine Zappone: In light of what the Minister said, I will withdraw the amendment. I look forward to what the Minister will bring forward on Report Stage. I acknowledge that the Minister's response is the result of careful listening by him and those in his Department. As the Minister said, that included many Senators, which was very impressive. There was also the work of our colleagues in the Visitors'...

Seanad: Gender Recognition Bill 2014: Committee Stage (3 Feb 2015)

Katherine Zappone: I move amendment No. 1: In page 5, between lines 16 and 17, to insert the following:"(3) The Minister shall, not later than 2 years after the date on which the Act is enacted, and again not later than 5 years after that date, carry out a review of the operation of this Act assessing, in particular, its consistency with international best practice in the field of gender recognition and its...

Seanad: Order of Business (3 Feb 2015)

Katherine Zappone: It is good to hear all the good news. Unfortunately, there is some bad news. More than 1,000 children became homeless in Dublin last year, according to Focus Ireland. This indicates that the housing crisis has escalated to a homelessness crisis and a child welfare emergency. A total of 90% of these families had never experienced homelessness previously. These are families that have been...

Seanad: Order of Business (27 Jan 2015)

Katherine Zappone: Then we can find solutions for this generation and those that follow.

Seanad: Order of Business (27 Jan 2015)

Katherine Zappone: I echo Senator Bacik's call for a debate on quantitative easing, which I also raised last week. The Greek election of the Syriza party into government is another prime marker of the surge of people power in democracies and its resulting impact on the exercise of politics and the use of power. These are shifting dramatically and creativity is being unleashed. As Irish people and as...

Seanad: Appointments to State Boards: Statements (22 Jan 2015)

Katherine Zappone: Did he get it?

Seanad: Appointments to State Boards: Statements (22 Jan 2015)

Katherine Zappone: I welcome the Minister. I welcome the opportunity to discuss the system of appointing members of State boards. The practice of appointments made with a nod and wink to State boards has no place in our open modern democracy and could damage our economic recovery. We all are in agreement that it is time to end the parish pump system of appointments once and for all and to ensure that the...

Seanad: Improving the Quality of Early Years Education: Statements (21 Jan 2015)

Katherine Zappone: This is an extremely important debate. We need the Minister's leadership. We need significantly more ambitious change in this sector, so it is really great to have the time to discuss this and to hear the Minister's plans and the things she has already put in place. As the Minister knows, when early-years education is of high quality it benefits children from all socioeconomic classes, and...

Seanad: Gender Recognition Bill 2014: Second Stage (21 Jan 2015)

Katherine Zappone: Is that all?