Results 9,681-9,700 of 12,596 for speaker:Willie O'Dea

Written Answers — EU Funding: EU Funding (5 Feb 2008)

Willie O'Dea: My Department has been in receipt of funding from the EU since 1979 in the form of a financial contribution towards expenditure incurred on fishery protection measures. The amount of funding received each year since 1979 is as follows: Year Amount in €m 1972-1978 0.0 1979 9.9 1980 5.7 1981 7.1 1982 0.0 1983 16.2 1984 0.0 1985 1.8 1986-1989 0.0 1990 1.0 1991 4.6 1992 4.8 1993...

Written Answers — Departmental Expenditure: Departmental Expenditure (5 Feb 2008)

Willie O'Dea: In reply to the Deputy's question it has not been possible to quantify the cost of answering parliamentary questions within my Department. However, I will communicate with the Deputy as soon as I have any more information.

Written Answers — Departmental Expenditure: Departmental Expenditure (31 Jan 2008)

Willie O'Dea: I am satisfied that appropriate budgeting, financial and reporting systems are in place in my Department and bodies under its aegis. These systems are reviewed on an ongoing basis by management and are also subject to review by the internal audit unit of my Department and by the Comptroller and Auditor General. No formal reviews of the kind referred to in the Deputy's Question have been...

Tribunals of Inquiry: Motion (30 Jan 2008)

Willie O'Dea: It is over ten years since this House resolved, on 7 October 1997, to establish a tribunal to inquire urgently into and to make findings and recommendations on definite matters of urgent public importance. If a week is a long time in politics, ten years is a lifetime. Over the course of that decade the tribunal has published four interim reports. It has conducted countless hours in public...

Tribunals of Inquiry: Motion (30 Jan 2008)

Willie O'Dea: ——the tribunal itself is also not without blame. Fortunately for public life in this country, the Government did not sit back awaiting the final report of the tribunal and proceeded to take action by introducing a number of significant reforms in the areas where the tribunal will make further recommendations. The purpose and terms of reference, as set out by Dáil Éireann, were clear...

Tribunals of Inquiry: Motion (30 Jan 2008)

Willie O'Dea: Perhaps the Members opposite imagine that those who have dared to criticise the tribunal, including Cabinet Ministers, Supreme Court judges, High Court judges, political commentators and legal experts, are involved in a gigantic conspiracy. However, I do not think they would accuse the tribunal of trying to undermine itself.

Tribunals of Inquiry: Motion (30 Jan 2008)

Willie O'Dea: According to Mr. Justice Hardiman, the tribunal accepted, in a classic piece of self-criticism, that "the approach which it took to the disclosure of documents prior to the decision in O'Callaghan v. Mahon Tribunal was incorrect". That approach was maintained for seven years. The distinguished jurist, former Fine Gael Minister and former Attorney General, the late Professor John M. Kelly,...

Tribunals of Inquiry: Motion (30 Jan 2008)

Willie O'Dea: If it is permissible to criticise the courts without undermining their authority, then it is certainly permissible to make fair and reasoned observations on the work of a tribunal, even though a tribunal is not a court, which is a point that is often lost on Opposition Deputies.

Tribunals of Inquiry: Motion (30 Jan 2008)

Willie O'Dea: While it is rare that I find myself agreeing with Vincent Browne, I believe he analysed the Opposition's tactics correctly when he wrote in The Sunday Business Post on 20 January last: Fine Gael has no idea whether the Tribunal deserves a vote of confidence or not, and doesn't care. The whole point of its motion is to embarrass Fianna Fáil.

Tribunals of Inquiry: Motion (30 Jan 2008)

Willie O'Dea: The Opposition is mounting a charade. It tabled a motion endorsing the tribunal in an attempt to convince the public of the fiction that they and they alone fully support the tribunal and want it to complete its work. I submit that the Opposition's show of support tonight is a sham. This motion is motivated by the Opposition's sole ambition, which is to damage the Government.

Tribunals of Inquiry: Motion (30 Jan 2008)

Willie O'Dea: Nothing uttered by me or any of my colleagues over the past weeks and months has had the intent or the effect of hampering the work of the tribunal in any way. We have raised valid questions and tried to reflect fairly what the courts have said. Our observations have been largely concerned with a number of specific areas — the costs, the discovery of material, the nature of some...

Tribunals of Inquiry: Motion (30 Jan 2008)

Willie O'Dea: The motive for many of Fine Gael's more lurid statements is to reinforce such an impression. Fine Gael is seeking to portray the questions posed by the tribunal's counsel, which are based on allegations made by Mr. Gilmartin, as evidence in themselves. When the tribunal's counsel asks a question, Fine Gael quotes it as a tribunal finding. The exhaustive and repetitive nature of some of the...

Tribunals of Inquiry: Motion (30 Jan 2008)

Willie O'Dea: In his interim report, Mr. Justice Flood observed that he was "unable to resolve conflicts of evidence". He acknowledged the need for urgency. When he formed the opinion that continued questioning would not resolve conflicts of evidence, he said so and moved on.

Tribunals of Inquiry: Motion (30 Jan 2008)

Willie O'Dea: It is curious to note that despite his many hours of testimony, the Taoiseach has yet to be asked a direct question about whether he received money from Mr. Owen O'Callaghan, as alleged by Mr. Gilmartin.

Tribunals of Inquiry: Motion (30 Jan 2008)

Willie O'Dea: Another aspect of this matter that should concern all of us is the constant leaking of tribunal information. The tribunal pointed out in a statement earlier this month that the "unauthorised disclosure of confidential information in advance of public hearings . . . . . may also be perceived . . . . . as potentially damaging the reputation and integrity of the tribunal". These are the...

Tribunals of Inquiry: Motion (30 Jan 2008)

Willie O'Dea: There is a considerable volume of jurisprudence, in Ireland and overseas, on how tribunals should conduct their business. As Mr. Justice Moriarty, who knows something about such matters, said in a recent judgment: It cannot be emphasised too often that tribunal proceedings are not adversarial but inquisitorial. They are not a means of establishing criminal or civil liability. He went on to...

Tribunals of Inquiry: Motion (30 Jan 2008)

Willie O'Dea: A number of official Fine Gael spokespeople have asserted——

Tribunals of Inquiry: Motion (30 Jan 2008)

Willie O'Dea: ——that the Taoiseach has lied and perjured himself at the tribunal.

Tribunals of Inquiry: Motion (30 Jan 2008)

Willie O'Dea: These attempts to disrupt the tribunal process are not random acts by errant members. They are part of a concerted and co-ordinated effort endorsed and now fronted by the Fine Gael leadership.

Tribunals of Inquiry: Motion (30 Jan 2008)

Willie O'Dea: That was not always the case.