Results 61-80 of 5,746 for speaker:Gerard Craughwell

Seanad: Amendment to Seanad Standing Orders: Motion (23 Oct 2024)

Gerard Craughwell: I second the motion. I will speak shortly.

Seanad: Amendment to Seanad Standing Orders: Motion (23 Oct 2024)

Gerard Craughwell: This House is notoriously known for cronyism. I know because I was elected in 2014 and I believe I was one of the first people to break the pattern of cronyism in this House. Members might recall that my election hit all the headlines at the time. The Government wanted to put in one of its favoured sons and at the end of the day it failed to do that. What is wrong with democracy? Many...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (22 Oct 2024)

Gerard Craughwell: Over the past week or two I watched a video from the Leader’s home town made by a family that was quite disgruntled. We are in the middle of an electoral cycle now and I have to say, for social media to publish such videos to attempt to damage politicians in their home towns is outrageous. It is something that the regulator or whoever needs to act on. It is grossly unfair to follow...

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2024: Second Stage (22 Oct 2024)

Gerard Craughwell: The Minister is welcome to the House. My first encounter with the Minister was watching her on the "Six One News" being hammered in this House over the by-election that saw me elected to the House. She behaved herself with dignity on that occasion. She took everything that was thrown at her in style. I have always admired her way of handling these things.

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2024: Second Stage (22 Oct 2024)

Gerard Craughwell: I am disappointed we are running all Stages of the Bill through the House. I would like to see amendments. There are things in the Bill about which I would like to talk. The Minister has delivered a great deal for a lot of people not just in this budget but in the five budgets she delivered in my time here. It is not good enough to start throwing things at the Minister just for the hell...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (2 Oct 2024)

Gerard Craughwell: I second-----

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (2 Oct 2024)

Gerard Craughwell: I am glad the clock was stopped. I second Senator Martin's very worthy Bill and move my motion for a by-election to the Seanad.

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (2 Oct 2024)

Gerard Craughwell: Do I need to move an amendment to the Order of Business?

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (2 Oct 2024)

Gerard Craughwell: I move that No. 160(3) be taken before No. 1. Why am I doing so? As the Taoiseach and Tánaiste have said, there will be no election in the near future. This House cannot be allowed to operate without its full complement of Senators, so I am moving this amendment. I hope the Leader will accept it. The attack on Israel by Iran is bringing us one step closer to a repeat of 1914. All...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (2 Oct 2024)

Gerard Craughwell: Sure it is just to give you a dirty look for Sunday.

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (2 Oct 2024)

Gerard Craughwell: They should have put €5 on them.

Seanad: Vacancy in Membership of Seanad Éireann: Motion (2 Oct 2024)

Gerard Craughwell: I move: That the Clerk of Seanad Éireann do send to the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage notice of a vacancy in the membership of Seanad Éireann occasioned by the election to the European Parliament of Senator Lynn Boylan, a member elected from the Oireachtas Sub-Panel of the Agricultural Panel at the General Election for Seanad Éireann, April, 2020.

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (1 Oct 2024)

Gerard Craughwell: I join with my colleague, Senator O'Loughlin. Andrew was a very fine soldier and his wife, Deirdre, was a very fine soldier. It was very sad being in Kildare on Sunday and seeing a number of people outside his house. It was a massive gathering. I could not make it to the funeral yesterday. Ar dheis Dé go raibh a hanam. Iran looks like it is about to make an attack on Israel. It...

Seanad: Budget 2025 (Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform): Statements (1 Oct 2024)

Gerard Craughwell: I welcome the Minister of State to the House. It is a happy day for people in the Government because there is something for everybody in the audience and we should all be cheering. However, it would be remiss of me to stand here today and not find something wrong. From that point of view, budget 2025 has proved to me that Ireland is not a poor country by any measure. Indeed, our economy...

Seanad: Budget 2025 (Finance): Statements (1 Oct 2024)

Gerard Craughwell: This is the first time I have addressed the Minister of State, Deputy Richmond, since he was elevated to the role of Minister of State. He must be delighted with this budget today. I am dreading his Instagram account. He will be standing in front of housing estates all over south County Dublin talking about the great job he has done. In fairness, the budget is a good one. It would be...

Seanad: Budget 2025 (Finance): Statements (1 Oct 2024)

Gerard Craughwell: Better yet, instead of doing 1%, why did we not just take a whole tranche of people - the lower paid - out of that altogether? Lower-paid people are struggling. We need the people who work in jobs in the catering industry or in various support roles in hospitals and places like that. Why did we not just take them out of the USC altogether instead of benefiting people who can well afford to...

Seanad: Budget 2025 (Finance): Statements (1 Oct 2024)

Gerard Craughwell: I cannot help it if Fianna Fáil members were briefed on that last night. That is another day’s work, however. The bottom line is that the 2013 pension reform has to find its way into the manifestos of parties going forward for election because it is detrimental to the public service and absolutely detrimental to front-line services. I ask for the Minister of State’s...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (25 Sep 2024)

Gerard Craughwell: Hear, hear.

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (25 Sep 2024)

Gerard Craughwell: My colleague, Senator Higgins, referred to the movement of weapons through Irish airspace. When asked about policing our airspace in a recent RTÉ radio interview, the Tánaiste replied that it would not be feasible in the Irish context. Will the Leader bring the Tánaiste to this Chamber to explain why he, as Minister for Defence, does not believe it is feasible for a sovereign...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (25 Sep 2024)

Gerard Craughwell: He needs to explain what he meant by-----