Results 7,981-8,000 of 8,768 for speaker:Alice-Mary Higgins

Seanad: Report on Lone Parents in Ireland: Statements (25 Oct 2017)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I welcome the Minister and acknowledge her indication that this is a priority issue for her, as supported by her frequent references to it. I hope we will now see intensified action to address the issues involves. I am a member of the Joint Committee on Social Protection which produced an important report on the situation of lone parents in Ireland. That document is as close as we have got...

Seanad: Report on Lone Parents in Ireland: Statements (25 Oct 2017)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I will conclude. The Indecon report shows €45 million in State savings. That is almost an indictment. The changes were introduced at a time of austerity in 2012, but that €45 million is coming from one of the most vulnerable groups in society. Will the savings of €45 million be redirected back directly to lone parents as a particularly vulnerable group? I am...

Seanad: Report on Lone Parents in Ireland: Statements (25 Oct 2017)

Alice-Mary Higgins: Perhaps the Minister could address the fact that change cannot wait for the report in 2018.

Seanad: Broadcasting Act 2009 (Designation of Major Events) Order 2017: Motion (19 Oct 2017)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I join in the welcome to the Minister. I also welcome the positivity of the designation of these new events. I commend the Minister not only on the order he has brought to the House but on the process that led to it. It is positive to have that level of public engagement and discussion around what we value as a society, what we want broadcast free-to-air and what we feel is part of our...

Seanad: Child Care: Statements (18 Oct 2017)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I welcome the Minister to the Chamber. She has shown a genuine commitment and dedication to transforming child care, and a vision of how it should and might be done. I commend her on staying consistently with this issue and for pushing it forward in recent years. I acknowledge the importance of the first year introduced by Fianna Fáil which laid the groundwork for how we might...

Seanad: Recognition of Irish Sign Language for the Deaf Community Bill 2016: Report and Final Stages (17 Oct 2017)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I join with those who have commended Senator Daly and all of the advocates who have brought the Bill to this point. While the amendment is due to be accepted, I want to add to Senator Daly's remarks and put a question to the Minister of State. There is a duty in terms of culture that is not entirely outside the role of the State. At a Council of Europe level, we have a document, In From...

Seanad: Order of Business (Resumed) (12 Oct 2017)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I did not have the opportunity to debate the budget with others when it came through for comment in these Houses on Tuesday but I wanted to highlight two particular issues related to it. I am sure the Leader will not be surprised because I have indicated this clearly before. The gender inequality-proofing of the budget which has been promised and which I was gratified to see mentioned in the...

Seanad: Future of Europe: Statements (12 Oct 2017)

Alice-Mary Higgins: Will the Chairman let me know when I have three minutes left?

Seanad: Future of Europe: Statements (12 Oct 2017)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I welcome the opportunity to have this debate. As Senator Richmond said, it is an opportunity to highlight that it is not a polarised debate which we often see, of being for or against Europe. There are many of us who are passionate about Europe. I worked for many years with the European Women's Lobby, the European Anti-Poverty Network, and with others in civil society across Europe. Now...

Seanad: Future of Europe: Statements (12 Oct 2017)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I am glad the Acting Chairman rang the bell. Lastly, I note that Europe's credibility is also being damaged internationally. When Europe is seen to have a militarised and securitised response, for example, to the migration crisis, it diminishes our capacity to step in with regard to the huge global movements of people in crisis, for example, in Myanmar or, in the past, in places such as...

Seanad: Future of Europe: Statements (12 Oct 2017)

Alice-Mary Higgins: We need to have public confidence in their ability to influence their future. This leads me to my final concern, which is trade. Far too often we have the simple narrative that a person is either for or against trade or has an open or a protectionist position. We must listen to citizens who say that they want international trade but that it needs to be done well. Some of the models put...

Seanad: Future of Europe: Statements (12 Oct 2017)

Alice-Mary Higgins: The Acting Chairman has the patience of a saint.

Seanad: Future of Europe: Statements (12 Oct 2017)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I think it was the legal perspective more than the recognition.

Seanad: Future of Europe: Statements (12 Oct 2017)

Alice-Mary Higgins: What about trade?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Irish Aid Programme Review (5 Oct 2017)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I understand that.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Irish Aid Programme Review (5 Oct 2017)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I join in the praise for Irish Aid. It makes an extraordinary contribution to the world and Ireland's reputation overseas not just in terms of the level of aid, but also the thought that goes into how that aid is provided and Ireland's championing of untied aid. I would appreciate it if the witnesses commented on the importance of the untied aid aspect of Ireland's contribution. Other...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Defence Forces Strategy Statement 2017 to 2020: Department of Defence (5 Oct 2017)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I would like to note very positively the fact that the human rights and equality duty has been highlighted in the draft strategy. That is something that all Departments and public bodies should place at the centre of their work. I will touch on some of the same concerns raised by my colleagues here, but I would like some more specific detail in the responses to some of them. Neutrality is...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Defence Forces Strategy Statement 2017 to 2020: Department of Defence (5 Oct 2017)

Alice-Mary Higgins: An observer member.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Defence Forces Strategy Statement 2017 to 2020: Department of Defence (5 Oct 2017)

Alice-Mary Higgins: It is very important to be clear that the policies of effective multilateralism and military neutrality are both in force. There is not a hierarchy placing one above the other. They are complementary policies that work very closely together. Ireland's policy on military neutrality allowed it to play a key and effective role in pressing for multilateral initiatives on disarmament and in...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Defence Forces Strategy Statement 2017 to 2020: Department of Defence (5 Oct 2017)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I asked a question.