Results 841-860 of 3,241 for speaker:Brian Ó Domhnaill

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Indecon Report: Bord na gCon (21 Oct 2014)

Brian Ó Domhnaill: Yes. I understand that both of the available tests for stanozolol - an oil-based test and a water-based test - are undertaken in the UK but the water-based test is the only one that is undertaken here in the Republic of Ireland. It seems this is based on the Australian model that is used here. It appears that when Irish dogs are tested for this drug when they go to race in England, the...

Seanad: Forestry Bill 2013: Report and Final Stages (16 Oct 2014)

Brian Ó Domhnaill: I am trying to distinguish between the two. There are people who destroy plantations. They should be dealt with differently from someone who gets a felling licence. I spoke last evening to a forest farmer in County Cavan, Howard McCallum, who is a friend of my colleague, Senator Wilson. He wanted to raise this issue because he knows many young farmers who are interested in planting their...

Seanad: Forestry Bill 2013: Report and Final Stages (16 Oct 2014)

Brian Ó Domhnaill: I wish to comment on the section and the amendment. I can understand where Senator Barrett is coming from with this amendment. However, in reading section 26, one needs to decipher between where 26(1)(a) states "felled or otherwise removed without a licence" - that is one issue - and the other issue, which is "felled with a licence". I would fully support Senator Barrett's amendment if it...

Seanad: Order of Business (15 Oct 2014)

Brian Ó Domhnaill: We are reflecting on the budget, which was politically clever. It ticked all the boxes in respect of a pre-election budget. It contained some good measures but overall it was a missed opportunity. All the Government Members are commending small interest groups that have benefitted from the budget, whether they are families or schools or specific projects, but overall we still have a...

Seanad: Order of Business (15 Oct 2014)

Brian Ó Domhnaill: Expectations were dampened yesterday with the introduction of the €100 relief, but Irish Water could end up in the hands of a Chinese or American businessman through the equity option. Who will control the company then? It is not even included in the Estimates as providing an income to the State. The Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government needs to come to the...

Seanad: Forestry Bill 2013: Committee Stage (9 Oct 2014)

Brian Ó Domhnaill: I disagree with what my Sinn Féin colleague has just said. One need only look at what is happening in any sector of Irish society where one has individuals, such as those working in the Central Bank, who are poached into the private sector or persons who are providing information externally. When one reads back over some of what happened in the lead up to the bank guarantee, one must...

Seanad: Forestry Bill 2013: Committee Stage (9 Oct 2014)

Brian Ó Domhnaill: I welcome the Minister of State back again. I shall talk generally about the section. It confers the current responsibilities on the Minister and reinforces them. During the Second Stage debate we spoke about some of those responsibilities and the need to promote afforestation, forestry and timber production. Let us look at some of the Minister's functions. They are to promote knowledge...

Seanad: Arts and Culture Sector: Motion (8 Oct 2014)

Brian Ó Domhnaill: I wish to share my time with Senator Paschal Mooney.

Seanad: Arts and Culture Sector: Motion (8 Oct 2014)

Brian Ó Domhnaill: Ba mhaith liom comhghairdeas a dhéanamh leis an Aire. I congratulate the Minister on her appointment to high office. I did not have an opportunity to do so in the House previously. The debacle in recent weeks involving a fellow Donegal man, Mr. McNulty, was unfortunate, but we must now focus on what is really important in the lead-up to the budget. It is time to leave petty party...

Seanad: Arts and Culture Sector: Motion (8 Oct 2014)

Brian Ó Domhnaill: My own party did do it and it was wrong to do so. If we are to develop a new Ireland in the lead-up to the centenary of the 1916 Rising, it is time to do politics differently. It is time to stop playing petty party politics. If people make mistakes, they should come out and say so and provide the information requested of them. To move on to the important issue of the arts, I am glad to...

Seanad: Fluoridation of Water: Motion (1 Oct 2014)

Brian Ó Domhnaill: Hear, hear.

Seanad: Fluoridation of Water: Motion (1 Oct 2014)

Brian Ó Domhnaill: One would have to ask why. If the product is being added to prevent gum disease or mouth disease, surely it is a medicinal product being added to the public water supply. Why, therefore, is it not categorised as a medicinal product?

Seanad: Fluoridation of Water: Motion (1 Oct 2014)

Brian Ó Domhnaill: It did not review it.

Seanad: Fluoridation of Water: Motion (1 Oct 2014)

Brian Ó Domhnaill: I have a copy of a reply from the Minister for Health dated 24 October 2013 which confirms that the matter was not reviewed and that the Irish Medicines Board, which has responsibility and is designated by the Department of Health as a competent authority, believes it is not necessary to accredit fluoridation as medicinal. Why? Surely it should be accredited. I agree with my colleague,...

Seanad: Fluoridation of Water: Motion (1 Oct 2014)

Brian Ó Domhnaill: Go raibh maith agat, a Leas-Chathaoirligh. I want to begin by strongly commending Senator Mary-Ann O'Brien on putting forward tonight's motion. It is important that the people's Parliament here in the Oireachtas discusses an issue of fundamental human health. Whether one agrees with the fluoridation of water, or where there is conflicting scientific evidence as to whether the fluoridation...

Seanad: Forestry Bill 2013: Second Stage (1 Oct 2014)

Brian Ó Domhnaill: I thank the Minister of State for his comprehensive and detailed report on this important Bill. I agree with him on the importance of our afforestation programme and our publicly and privately-owned forests which play an important role in biodiversity and recreation. At one time the island of Ireland was completely covered by forests. By the turn of the 20th century, the forests had been...

Seanad: Betting (Amendment) Bill 2013: Second Stage (24 Sep 2014)

Brian Ó Domhnaill: I welcome the important legislation before the House, which closes an effective tax avoidance loophole used by the offshore and online gambling sectors. Those sectors currently account for a large proportion of all gambling revenues within the State. The horse racing and greyhound sectors are very important for the economy, jobs, inward investment and our reputation abroad. This year the...

Seanad: Adjournment Matters: Schools Building Projects Status (18 Sep 2014)

Brian Ó Domhnaill: I thank the Minister of State, Deputy Tom Hayes, for coming in to take the Adjournment. This matter concerns one of the largest primary schools in County Donegal which has an enrolment of more than 440 children. The school was placed on the capital building programme prior to the 2011 general election but the then Minister for Education and Skills, Deputy Ruairí Quinn, for reasons...

Seanad: Order of Business (3 Jul 2014)

Brian Ó Domhnaill: I raise the issue of the consultation by the Commission for Energy Regulation, ComReg, regarding the public service obligation, PSO, levy on every electricity customer in the country, domestic and non-domestic, whose closing date for submissions is tomorrow at 5 p.m. ComReg proposes an increase of 56% in the PSO levy, which would bring the total collected from customers to approximately...

Seanad: Order of Business (2 Jul 2014)

Brian Ó Domhnaill: It is part of the history of the nation.