Results 681-700 of 3,356 for speaker:Feargal Quinn

Seanad: Road Traffic (No. 2) Bill 2013: Committee Stage (5 Feb 2014)

Feargal Quinn: Yes. I got it early in January.

Seanad: Road Traffic (No. 2) Bill 2013: Committee Stage (5 Feb 2014)

Feargal Quinn: I move amendment No. 1: In page 7, lines 1 and 2, to delete all words from and including “as” in line 1 down to and including line 2 and substitute the following: “up to three years old from the date of the request by the vehicle insurer, and (c) in the case of request by the vehicle insurer, the vehicle insurer is obliged to notify the insured person that they are...

Seanad: Order of Business (5 Feb 2014)

Feargal Quinn: I support Senator Crown's call for a debate on the Government move for Seanad reform - the supposed reform. The suggestion is also supported by Senator O'Donovan. This is the opportunity for the Taoiseach to come to the House and to say that as the Taoiseach he can make the difference by doing what has not been done before.

Seanad: Order of Business (5 Feb 2014)

Feargal Quinn: However, all he is doing is putting into operation something that we, the people of Ireland, agreed to in 1979. Therefore, much more could be done. One person, one vote, should be the future for Seanad elections. It can be done easily. Senators Crown and Zappone have proposed Bills which allow for this change. We must urge the Taoiseach to proceed in this area and this is the ideal...

Seanad: Charities Sector: Statements (4 Feb 2014)

Feargal Quinn: I welcome the Minister to the House. I am delighted he is here because I know he is a good listener. He has had the opportunity to listen to some very pertinent points, particularly by Senator Mary Ann O'Brien, whose experience is very useful. I have been a Member for 21 years. When I first came in here, I said to the people in charge of salaries that I would like to consider donating my...

Seanad: Order of Business (4 Feb 2014)

Feargal Quinn: We had a good debate last week - perhaps not long enough - on the floods although these do not seem to have improved after it, I do not know whether the debate caused even more flooding. We must ask whether the responsibility for the floods lies with ourselves when one considers the planning permissions given over the past 20 years to enable development to take place on land that was...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Research and Development Landscape: Minister of State (4 Feb 2014)

Feargal Quinn: I welcome the Minister and his team and thank him for all the information he has supplied. I am very interested in the position that Ireland has managed to attain. However, have we identified the competition and what they are doing differently? I visited Singapore, Panama and New Zealand in comparatively recent years and all three countries seem to have done things differently from us....

Seanad: Humanitarian Situation in Syria, South Sudan and Central African Republic: Statements (30 Jan 2014)

Feargal Quinn: I welcome the Minister of State and thank him for his explanation of what he is doing and what we, as a country, are doing. I remember when the first Irish troops went to Africa in 1960 and I took my then girlfriend - now my wife of over 50 years - out to Baldonnel Airport to see the troops leaving. There was an enormous sense of pride in Ireland that we were, as a nation, taking a role in...

Seanad: Order of Business (30 Jan 2014)

Feargal Quinn: On the comments of Senators Sean D. Barrett and Catherine Noone, last night's debate was useful. One part that disappointed me was that Senator Sean D. Barrett did not get a chance to contribute, although he was present all the time. I hope he made up for it this morning in some way.

Seanad: Order of Business (30 Jan 2014)

Feargal Quinn: The aspect I found useful was that Members covered a much wider range of topics than they might otherwise have. In respect of the Leader's contribution, some good ideas came from it. My real difficulty is the length of time it takes to get anything done and, in this case, urgency is required. Something must be done because, as Senator Katherine Zappone mentioned last night, unless there is...

Seanad: Seanad Reform: Motion (29 Jan 2014)

Feargal Quinn: The Minister is very welcome and I am glad to see him in the House for this valuable debate. On 4 October over 634,000 people voted to ensure that the Seanad would not be abolished. I suspect that for many citizens, 4 October was the first time they had the chance to cast any type of vote relating to the Seanad. The question now is how long they will have to wait before they can have a say...

Seanad: Youth Justice Policy: Statements (28 Jan 2014)

Feargal Quinn: The Minister, Deputy Fitzgerald, is very welcome. It is always a joy to listen to her. I always find myself educated. The work being discussed today has educated me once again. I congratulate her on what has been achieved. I know she is not there yet and that she has a long way to go but some of the figures provided today, such as that youth crime has fallen each year for the past three...

Seanad: Order of Business (28 Jan 2014)

Feargal Quinn: Recently the Minister for Education and Skills referred to the amount of time allocated to teaching religion in schools. I believe, however, he has been misquoted in many cases because he did not suggest the solution was to reduce the amount of hours allocated for the teaching of religion. We have a real problem in that over many years we have developed a shorter school time period than any...

Seanad: Order of Business (23 Jan 2014)

Feargal Quinn: Having listened to the speakers, I am reminded of the anniversary of that terrible tragedy which took place last year and the fact that we are the worst users of cash and cheques in Europe. We do not use modern technology in regard to financial transactions of various kinds. No other country in Europe still uses cheques to the extent that we use them or require the same amount of protection...

Seanad: Recognition of Irish Sign Language for the Deaf Community Bill 2013: Second Stage (22 Jan 2014)

Feargal Quinn: The Minister of State is very welcome, as is this Bill. It is an admirable step in the right direction. It was interesting that Senator O'Sullivan spoke about his business experience. I had business experience as well. For about 50 years, I ran supermarkets and, in trying to look for extra customers, we taught as many people as we could basic French so they could put "Je parle...

Seanad: Common Agricultural Policy and Rural Development Programme: Statements (22 Jan 2014)

Feargal Quinn: I welcome the Minister and his achievements on the CAP negotiations. He has obviously done well as it was an extremely tough job and not an easy task. I could commend the efforts of the agriculture sector, of which everybody is well aware, but instead I would like to raise a couple of issues which do not often get enough attention. I agree some farmers rely on the payments to survive but...

Seanad: Irish Water: Statements (22 Jan 2014)

Feargal Quinn: I welcome the Minister of State. I am concerned about the impact inflation may have on the cost of water in the future. The price of water in Canada has increased by 58% since it made the move we are making. In Denmark, between 1993 and 2004 the price increased by 54%. Is there any guarantee that the same sort of thing will not happen here? I am fully in favour of the concept of charging...

Seanad: Order of Business (22 Jan 2014)

Feargal Quinn: Would it be possible to engage in a debate on the charities regulator who is due to be appointed? Major distrust has developed among people who are used to giving money to charities but who are now stepping back because they are not sure if the money is going to the charities themselves. Would it be possible to develop a system whereby we could put in place a charity headquarters? This...

Seanad: Road Traffic (No. 2) Bill 2013: Second Stage (21 Jan 2014)

Feargal Quinn: The Minister is most welcome, as is the Bill. I am pleased to see how much good stuff there is in it. I had the pleasure of working for some time on the club awards system of the road safety committee which gave awards for good behaviour. I wish to throw that in as well. There is a good deal in this Bill which corresponds to the stick but let us ensure that the carrot is present as well....

Seanad: Order of Business (21 Jan 2014)

Feargal Quinn: We should be very happy to see that the Government has decided not to be so determined and fixed in its views that it is willing to reconsider decisions it has made. The decision on the Vatican embassy that Senator Bacik touched on is one such example.