Results 7,401-7,420 of 9,894 for speaker:Thomas Byrne
- Seanad: Order of Business (24 Sep 2013)
Thomas Byrne: I echo the comments of my colleagues with regard to the appointment of the new bishop of Meath and Kildare. Church of Ireland parishioners in County Meath were very anxious that a bishop be appointed. It is a first step and is quite welcome. I will take this brief opportunity to be ecumenical; during the summer my parish priest was ordained a bishop and I congratulate Bishop Nulty. He...
- Seanad: Order of Business (24 Sep 2013)
Thomas Byrne: Never.
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Business of Joint Committee (11 Sep 2013)
Thomas Byrne: I welcome the fact that the committee has passed the motion. As Deputy Dooley stated, his intention was not to engage in partisan politics. In fact, he used quotes that members of all parties had given over the summer on this matter. The motion is about the relevance of Parliament and how relevant we are as against the Executive.
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Business of Joint Committee (11 Sep 2013)
Thomas Byrne: That is an important factor here.
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Business of Joint Committee (11 Sep 2013)
Thomas Byrne: I endorse Deputy Dooley's comments and I hope for unanimity at the committee today. We are talking about political reform and making the Oireachtas more independent. Members of this committee echoed those sentiments at various summer schools this summer. I urge them to put that into action here today. The motion is not controversial. It is something for which Members from all sides have...
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Regulation of Lobbying Bill 2013: Discussion with OECD (5 Sep 2013)
Thomas Byrne: Thank you. The Chairman has dealt with some of the important issues, but I wish to raise a few further points. The first point relates to law firms, and perhaps accountancy firms, and the possibility of invoking professional privilege. Is that an issue that arises? The second point refers to what might be called intra-government lobbying, such as lobbying by a local authority of central...
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Overview of Financial Sector: Discussion with Permanent TSB (5 Sep 2013)
Thomas Byrne: I do not. The targets involve throwing people out of their homes so I do not wish the bank success and I do not want to be joined with the Chairman's comment.
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Overview of Financial Sector: Discussion with Permanent TSB (5 Sep 2013)
Thomas Byrne: To clarify, the Central Bank return is in respect of the target the Government and the Minister for Finance, Deputy Michael Noonan, set for the bank. The bank has exceeded that target and, in doing so, it has asked 36% of the 6,650 to leave their home or they are subject to legal proceedings to leave their home. By doing that, the bank is doing better than the Government asked it to do, as...
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Overview of Financial Sector: Discussion with Permanent TSB (5 Sep 2013)
Thomas Byrne: -----should be the Minister, Deputy Michael Noonan, who set these targets for the banks and allowed them to throw people out of their homes and offer that up as a sustainable solution to mortgage difficulties.
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Overview of Financial Sector: Discussion with Permanent TSB (5 Sep 2013)
Thomas Byrne: It is a fact.
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Overview of Financial Sector: Discussion with Bank of Ireland (4 Sep 2013)
Thomas Byrne: Were these borrowers not on trackers for almost a decade effectively?
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Overview of Financial Sector: Discussion with Bank of Ireland (4 Sep 2013)
Thomas Byrne: Mr. Boucher has not yet assured me that this will not happen in Ireland or that there is not similar small print in Irish tracker mortgages of which Bank of Ireland could avail.
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Overview of Financial Sector: Discussion with Bank of Ireland (4 Sep 2013)
Thomas Byrne: Can Mr. Boucher give me an assurance that there are no plans?
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Overview of Financial Sector: Discussion with Bank of Ireland (4 Sep 2013)
Thomas Byrne: Are all the contractual arrangements for people with tracker mortgages sufficiently strong to keep those trackers in place as far as Bank of Ireland is concerned?
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Overview of Financial Sector: Discussion with Bank of Ireland (4 Sep 2013)
Thomas Byrne: So there is no danger to Irish tracker mortgages from Bank of Ireland's perspective.
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Overview of Financial Sector: Discussion with Bank of Ireland (4 Sep 2013)
Thomas Byrne: Yes, I know. However, the bank observed the contract in England but there was small print in that contract about which people were not aware. Is there small print in Irish contracts that may be used by the bank?
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Overview of Financial Sector: Discussion with Bank of Ireland (4 Sep 2013)
Thomas Byrne: It is not going to happen. While it is not the most important issue today, I seek clarification on the College Green branch. I had the perception that the Government, through the Minister for the Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, Deputy Deenihan, had asked Bank of Ireland to hand it over. Mr. Boucher has said he has had no contact from the Government.
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Overview of Financial Sector: Discussion with Bank of Ireland (4 Sep 2013)
Thomas Byrne: Mr. Boucher said earlier there was no request from the Government.
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Overview of Financial Sector: Discussion with Bank of Ireland (4 Sep 2013)
Thomas Byrne: There has been a lot of fluff here this morning on all sides. We are here to talk about the arrears and the targets the Government set when the Minister for Finance announced this strategy on 13 March. Clearly, the strategy has failed. It is arguable that Bank of Ireland, in the little it has done, has gone beyond what the Government set out for it. It is time we, as the Legislature, took...
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Overview of Financial Sector: Discussion with Bank of Ireland (4 Sep 2013)
Thomas Byrne: If they were not on trackers, why did everyone but Bank of Ireland consider them to be on trackers?