Results 9,261-9,280 of 11,246 for speaker:Colm Burke

Seanad: Order of Business (16 Nov 2016)

Colm Burke: I enjoy being lectured by Senator Gavan. Yesterday he lectured us on the Spanish Civil War.

Seanad: Order of Business (16 Nov 2016)

Colm Burke: Today he lectured us on the Lansdowne Road agreement. I remind Senator Gavan that it is ordinary taxpayers who must pay for an increase in public sector pay. On the one hand, he cannot argue for increased public sector pay while, on the other hand, call for an increase in the take-home pay of people who work in the private sector.

Seanad: Order of Business (16 Nov 2016)

Colm Burke: No. If one raises the level of money paid to the public sector, then more taxation must be collected. There is no other way to do so. The Government has been fair about public sector pay agreements.

Seanad: Order of Business (16 Nov 2016)

Colm Burke: We need to step back. Ireland is facing major challenges in terms of its exports to the UK. The amount of exports to the UK has decreased so less income is being generated. We need to be careful how we deal with Brexit. We also need to be careful with the words we choose and not give a false sense of hope. Let us remember that public sector workers earn €200 a week more on average...

Seanad: Order of Business (15 Nov 2016)

Colm Burke: In the past four or five years, I have raised many issues related to junior doctors about which an issue has arisen in recent days. One of the concerns I raised previously was the withdrawal of education grants. A large number of junior doctors are on training programmes. It is important that they have available to them a clear career path in order that they can see where they will be in...

Seanad: Order of Business (15 Nov 2016)

Colm Burke: Could I just mention one issue?

Seanad: Order of Business (15 Nov 2016)

Colm Burke: With regard to the broadband issue, we are losing sight of an important point. The State has set out clear guidelines on planning applications for development; there must be access to roads, water and sewage services. We have not made it a planning condition that there must be access to broadband services and it is now a key ingredient in any housing development. It should now be part of...

Seanad: Statute Law Revision Bill 2016: Second Stage (15 Nov 2016)

Colm Burke: I did not think I was going to have a lecture on the Spanish Civil War when I came in here today.

Seanad: Statute Law Revision Bill 2016: Second Stage (15 Nov 2016)

Colm Burke: I welcome the Minister of State to the House. I thank the staff for the work they have done on this matter. I counted 40 Acts, passed between 1922 and 1924, to be repealed. This indicates the dedication and commitment of the people who worked in the brand new Civil Service and State who were starting from scratch. There were also many more Acts passed in that short time which are still in...

Seanad: Statute Law Revision Bill 2016: Second Stage (15 Nov 2016)

Colm Burke: That is a nice challenge.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Quarterly Update On Health Issues: Discussion (10 Nov 2016)

Colm Burke: I thank the Minister for his contribution this morning. I wish to raise a number of specific issues, particularly about the maternity and gynecological services. My understanding at the moment is that there is a substantial waiting list in Cork University Hospital for gynecological services. I understand that the HSE is aware of this. What action is proposed to deal with it? I think this...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Quarterly Update On Health Issues: Discussion (10 Nov 2016)

Colm Burke: I wanted a detailed breakdown of the number of consultant positions in each hospital and the number of vacancies. Fifteen years ago, every hospital under the old health board system planned the recruitment of a new consultant when it knew someone was retiring. We now seem to have no mechanism in place. An average of 120 or 150 consultants retire every year. There is no reason that we...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Quarterly Update On Health Issues: Discussion (10 Nov 2016)

Colm Burke: On the issue of 2014, a detailed list of all the posts in all the hospitals was given. It would have been easy to use that as a template to update the list every six months, but that does not seem to have been done. We know that employees automatically retire at 64, 65 and 66. We can take it that 125 to 150 medical consultants retire every year so each unit should be able to identify who...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Quarterly Update On Health Issues: Discussion (10 Nov 2016)

Colm Burke: President-elect of the United States, Mr. Trump, has now proved the issue in relation to retirement anyway. Returning to my own queries, the reply to Question No. 15 was inadequate. It was not dealt with and I do not understand it. The reply is confusing. It is a simple question. My understanding is that in the case of the HSE north Lee public health nurses, at any one time there were...

Seanad: Order of Business (9 Nov 2016)

Colm Burke: The Order of Business is No. 1, Heritage Bill 2016 - Committee Stage, to be taken at 2 p.m. and to adjourn not later than 4 p.m., if not previously concluded; and No. 2, Health (Amendment)(Professional Home Care) Bill 2016 - Second Stage, to be taken at 4 p.m., with the time allocated for this debate not to exceed two hours.

Seanad: Order of Business (9 Nov 2016)

Colm Burke: Yes, Second Stage.

Seanad: Order of Business (9 Nov 2016)

Colm Burke: I think a total of 18 Senators contributed this morning. I thank all of them for their contributions. The 127 million people who voted in yesterday's elections in the United States used the democratic system to decide who their leader will be for the next four years. We have to respect the decision they have made. I join others in conveying my congratulations to Donald Trump on his...

Seanad: Order of Business (9 Nov 2016)

Colm Burke: He teaches us all a lesson, in that he has to build a floor of a tower block every two days. A 70-storey building took him a total of 148 days. The O'Sullivan brothers from Castlegregory are making a contribution to the US. Senator Leyden raised an important point. A message to the President-elect that the Irish are working hard in the US and will be there to help rebuild and to do the...

Seanad: Order of Business (9 Nov 2016)

Colm Burke: The Senator also referred to the number of people CRH employs in the US and the major contribution it makes there. Senator Tim Lombard raised the US election regarding the lack of legislation Irish Coast Guard service. I will convey his concerns to the Minister. It might be appropriate to table a Commencement Matter and have the Minister come before us in order to try to expedite the...

Seanad: Order of Business (9 Nov 2016)

Colm Burke: Yes, it would be appropriate to ask the Minister to come here.