Results 8,821-8,840 of 9,393 for speaker:Alex White

Seanad: Intoxicating Liquor Bill 2008: Committee Stage (10 Jul 2008)

Alex White: I cannot take the matter much further than my colleagues. I do not intend to rise to debate or over-react to some statements in the same way as some colleagues, usually from the opposite side. I take exception to any suggestion on the part of the Minister of State or anybody on his behalf, when he gave the long list of problems and social ills attempted to be addressed in this Bill, that...

Seanad: Intoxicating Liquor Bill 2008: Committee Stage (10 Jul 2008)

Alex White: At this early stage, the Minister of State has extended the debate into other issues, despite being urged by the Leas-Chathaoirleach not to do so. In respect of amendment No. 1, I anticipate that the Minister of State will inform the House that while many of the amendments are good, the legislation is not the appropriate place in which to deal with them. I will have some difficulty with...

Seanad: Intoxicating Liquor Bill 2008: Committee Stage (10 Jul 2008)

Alex White: There is a clear logic to what Senator Quinn said and the basis of his proposal. He is left in a position where the only way he can introduce it and have it included in the Bill is to make commencement of the legislation contingent on the making of a regulatory analysis about which he spoke. I take what the Minister of State said in querying the constitutionality of such a proposal, that...

Seanad: Intoxicating Liquor Bill 2008: Committee Stage (10 Jul 2008)

Alex White: I strongly support the amendment put forward by Senator Regan, as well as the argument behind it. An element of straight thinking is required on this issue but, while I know the Minister of State to be both thoughtful and discerning, I was concerned to hear some of his earlier remarks. If we are serious about addressing the social problems that arise from alcohol abuse and binge drinking,...

Seanad: Intoxicating Liquor Bill 2008: Committee Stage (10 Jul 2008)

Alex White: From time to time.

Seanad: Order of Business (10 Jul 2008)

Alex White: I thank the Leader for rising to the bait.

Seanad: Intoxicating Liquor Bill 2008: Committee Stage (10 Jul 2008)

Alex White: I move amendment No. 1: In page 3, lines 18 to 21, to delete subsection (3) and substitute the following: "(3) The Courts of Justice Acts 1924 to 1961, the Courts (Supplemental Provisions) Acts 1961 to 2007 and section 7(a), to the extent that it amends the Courts of Justice Act 1924, may be cited together as the Courts Acts 1924 to 2008 and shall be construed together as one.". The reason...

Seanad: Intoxicating Liquor Bill 2008: Committee Stage (10 Jul 2008)

Alex White: Is the Minister of State in order to interrupt, as he has not been called?

Seanad: Order of Business (10 Jul 2008)

Alex White: I concur with Senators Fitzgerald and Quinn on the Intoxicating Liquor Bill and I will support the proposed amendment to the Order of Business. Yesterday, I asked the Leader to stand up for the integrity of the House in respect of the manner in which this Bill is being forced through but he either decided not to defend us or he failed in his attempt. I ask him not to respond by saying, as...

Seanad: Order of Business (10 Jul 2008)

Alex White: The reason I believe the Leader will not do so is that the situation obtaining in Romania is completely different. There is a suspicion there, unlike in this country, that the Bill was intended to reduce the number of unflattering stories about politicians who are notorious for corruption and incompetence and whose exploits often dominate national news broadcasts.

Seanad: Economic Policy: Statements (Resumed) (9 Jul 2008)

Alex White: My namesake, Senator Mary White, is correct when she says anybody could have seen that the construction boom could not be sustained, and that anybody could see the necessity to take other measures and plan for the future success of the Irish economy by promoting innovation. If she is correct, then her colleagues in Government are guilty of the most serious dereliction of duty to be possibly...

Seanad: Intoxicating Liquor Bill 2008: Second Stage (9 Jul 2008)

Alex White: No one can doubt the background against which we are having this debate. We discussed it on a number of occasions in this House and it was discussed elsewhere. I refer to the abuse of alcohol, the problem of binge drinking, and the knock-on effect right across a range of social and personal problems such as mental health problems. All of these issues and their impact have been documented...

Seanad: Intoxicating Liquor Bill 2008: Second Stage (9 Jul 2008)

Alex White: This would give the public an opportunity to debate it and give all the interested parties an opportunity to contribute. Let us then have a level-headed debate in the autumn. Senator O'Donovan is incorrect in that nothing will happen during the summer that this Bill would otherwise prevent. Let us leave it and debate the matter more carefully in the autumn.

Seanad: Death of Member: Expressions of Sympathy (9 Jul 2008)

Alex White: On behalf of the Labour Party, I express sympathy to the family of Séamus Brennan and the Fianna Fáil Party on the sad and untimely death of Séamus this morning. As others have pointed out — although it is an understatement — Séamus was an exceptionally successfully politician over 30 years. To die at such an early age of 60 years having achieved so much in life is extraordinary. I...

Seanad: Order of Business (9 Jul 2008)

Alex White: I will not oppose the suggestion that the motion on the European Migration Network be taken without debate, but I ask the Leader to consider having a debate when we return in the autumn on the broader issue of migration, which would encompass this proposal but also the subject matter of the European meeting recently attended by the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform at which the...

Seanad: Order of Business (9 Jul 2008)

Alex White: We have barely time to read these letters and e-mails before we must make proposals in the House on this legislation. This was dealt with yesterday and Senator Boyle said the issue of alcohol has been discussed before in the House. That may be, but we are charged constitutionally, as Members of this House, to debate, scrutinise and, ultimately, pass legislation, if we are satisfied with it....

Seanad: Order of Business (2 Jul 2008)

Alex White: The Senator must speak through the Chair.

Seanad: Order of Business (2 Jul 2008)

Alex White: I agree with Senator O'Toole about the basis on which we should have the debate on the economy, which I understand the Leader proposes to hold next Wednesday. That debate needs to be based on the facts. We can see clearly the facts. While we may differ in our opinions, we must have some level of shared understanding of the facts. I am less than hopeful in that regard when I hear some of...

Seanad: Order of Business (2 Jul 2008)

Alex White: We need carefully considered debate on the matter in that committee and if necessary in this House — I have no difficulty with a debate in this House. It is not clear to me that the only way to resolve this matter is through another constitutional amendment. There is a real doubt as to whether that would be a sensible way to proceed. My party is considering the possibility of the matter...

Seanad: Situation in Zimbabwe: Statements (Resumed) (1 Jul 2008)

Alex White: On behalf of the Labour Party in this House I join my colleagues in what has been said. I especially welcome the clarity of the Minister's address to the House when he rightly described the election as an obscene charade and stated clearly and without equivocation the Government's rejection of this sham election. He correctly stated that the Members of the Oireachtas and the Irish people...