Results 9,421-9,440 of 11,864 for speaker:Ivana Bacik

Seanad: Electoral (Amendment)(Political Funding) Bill 2011: Second Stage (2 Feb 2012)

Ivana Bacik: I thank Senator Norris. This is as a result of positive action as regards the nominees of the Taoiseach and the Tánaiste. In any case, international rankings are based on the lower house in parliaments or on those parliaments which are unicameral. We know that the Seanad has not increased representation organically and we know that the Dáil will not do so unless positive action is taken....

Seanad: Electoral (Amendment)(Political Funding) Bill 2011: Second Stage (2 Feb 2012)

Ivana Bacik: This sends out a very important message. Other speakers, including the Minister, have referred to the report of which I was an author and with which I was ably assisted by Aoife O'Driscoll of my office. The report was adopted unanimously by the justice committee in 2009. The report deals with women's participation in politics. I am happy to say that instead of gathering dust, it has indeed...

Seanad: Electoral (Amendment)(Political Funding) Bill 2011: Second Stage (2 Feb 2012)

Ivana Bacik: Hopefully we will see something similar as part of the public awareness programme designed to encourage more women to enter politics-----

Seanad: Electoral (Amendment)(Political Funding) Bill 2011: Second Stage (2 Feb 2012)

Ivana Bacik: It is all about transgressing boundaries. In Norway, a national databank of potential women candidates was established in order to get over the perceived difficulty that women do not put themselves forward for election. The most significant recommendation was the need for the sort of legislation we are discussing today. We recommended the model of an opportunity quota which is quite a...

Seanad: Order of Business (1 Feb 2012)

Ivana Bacik: It is his testosterone.

Seanad: Order of Business (1 Feb 2012)

Ivana Bacik: I am reminded of the Skibbereen Eagle when I hear Senator O'Brien suggest that this treaty, an international agreement among 25 member states in the EU aimed at trying to save the economic system pertaining within the EU, has been drafted to subvert Irish democracy.

Seanad: Order of Business (1 Feb 2012)

Ivana Bacik: I think-----

Seanad: Order of Business (1 Feb 2012)

Ivana Bacik: -----we must rein in a sense of our own self-importance in this matter.

Seanad: Order of Business (1 Feb 2012)

Ivana Bacik: It is preposterous to suggest this treaty is being drafted to subvert the Irish people.

Seanad: Order of Business (1 Feb 2012)

Ivana Bacik: It is a report based on comments from an unnamed senior European official.

Seanad: Order of Business (1 Feb 2012)

Ivana Bacik: Yes. I will not place-----

Seanad: Order of Business (1 Feb 2012)

Ivana Bacik: We must be wary of stressing too much the reports of unnamed senior European officials.

Seanad: Order of Business (1 Feb 2012)

Ivana Bacik: I call for a debate in this House with the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government on waste management, following the excellent "Prime Time" report last night on the fiasco concerning the incinerator at Poolbeg and the decision making by the executive of Dublin City Council against the wishes of the elected representatives on a number of matters to do with waste...

Seanad: Order of Business (1 Feb 2012)

Ivana Bacik: I call for a debate on blasphemy law. There was an excellent briefing yesterday from Professor David Nash of Oxford Brookes University, a leading expert on blasphemy, who spoke about the international impact of the passage of the 2009 Defamation Act in Ireland, particularly section 36, which created a new statutory offence of blasphemy. There was an excellent debate on it in this House, and...

Seanad: Order of Business (1 Feb 2012)

Ivana Bacik: -----that if there is too much testosterone in a meeting, co-operation goes out the window. As it happens, tomorrow we will debate the Electoral (Amendment) Bill with the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government, which will for the first time introduce enforceable targets for political parties to adopt in selecting more women candidates. I hope that will lead to better...

Seanad: Order of Business (31 Jan 2012)

Ivana Bacik: Like Senator Darragh O'Brien, I welcome the fact that we now have a text for the intergovernmental treaty, the so-called fiscal compact. I agree that we should have a public information campaign on the treaty and I look forward to debating it in the House. We need to reserve our position on a referendum until we hear what the Attorney General has to say. There is only one reason to hold a...

Seanad: Order of Business (31 Jan 2012)

Ivana Bacik: I call for a debate on public procurement and professional fees. In the context of the forthcoming debate on the Legal Services Regulation Bill 2011, I am interested in the issue of the State's role in setting professional fees and the distribution of professional work. We must consider this issue in respect of other professionals as well as lawyers. I am conscious that the Bill envisages...

Seanad: Order of Business (31 Jan 2012)

Ivana Bacik: Hear, hear.

Seanad: Order of Business (26 Jan 2012)

Ivana Bacik: I welcome the Government's debt and bankruptcy relief plan and the publication of the draft general scheme of the personal insolvency Bill. I have the draft scheme here. It is a very lengthy scheme. It was circulated yesterday to the members of the Joint Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality. We will be conducting public hearings on the Bill. To follow what Senator O'Brien said, the...

Seanad: Order of Business (26 Jan 2012)

Ivana Bacik: It is subject to legal advice from the Office of the Attorney General, to a report by the joint committee and to submissions from anyone who has an interest in the area. The Minister has let that be known. Changes may still be made. From my first reading it is not my understanding that it gives powers to the banks. Rather, it will assist the 30,000 home owners who are in arrears and...