Results 981-1,000 of 1,760 for speaker:Aideen Hayden

Seanad: Address to Seanad Éireann by the Pope: Motion (19 Feb 2014)

Aideen Hayden: I would like to place on the record a point of information relating to the Pope Francis's connection with Ireland. I will be very brief and read from an interview he gave where he spoke about his favourite books. He said that he had read The Betrothed by Alessandro Manzoni three times, that it was on his table because he liked to read it again and again and because Manzoni had given him so...

Seanad: Address to Seanad Éireann by the Pope: Motion (19 Feb 2014)

Aideen Hayden: He believes that every one of us has a personal responsibility.

Seanad: Address to Seanad Éireann by the Pope: Motion (19 Feb 2014)

Aideen Hayden: I very rarely stand on ceremony, but I will do so on this occasion. Senator Norris first circulated this motion at a meeting of the Committee on Procedure and Privileges, and I was the second person to sign it. Today, however, I find my name is No. 23 on the list. I take this opportunity to remind Senator Norris that I was second to put my name to the proposal.

Seanad: Address to Seanad Éireann by the Pope: Motion (19 Feb 2014)

Aideen Hayden: The main question to consider in debating this motion is whether the invitation should be issued to Pope Francis as a distinguished visitor to the House. The invitation would, of course, have to be issued on behalf of the State. I very much support such an invitation for several reasons. First, Pope Francis is the leader of one of the largest religious denominations in the world, with 770...

Seanad: Order of Business (19 Feb 2014)

Aideen Hayden: I welcome the Chathaoirleach back from his trip. I echo some of the concerns related to the trip and not because he was on it because we all know that he is an eminent representative of the House.

Seanad: Order of Business (19 Feb 2014)

Aideen Hayden: I am concerned that there was not one single woman in the delegation.

Seanad: Order of Business (19 Feb 2014)

Aideen Hayden: I do not think a single gender delegation is the right message to send any nation. I do not think that we should ever send a delegation anywhere in the world without including a female Senator.

Seanad: Order of Business (19 Feb 2014)

Aideen Hayden: On foot of some of the comments that have been made here today, I reiterate my request to the Leader to arrange a debate with the Minister for Finance on the banking sector because a number of issues have been raised in the House. There has also been a lot of transactions in the public domain. For example, Hibernia REIT has announced that it will buy part of the Ulster Bank's portfolio, at...

Seanad: Political Reform: Motion (12 Feb 2014)

Aideen Hayden: I welcome the Chief Whip back to the House and thank him for his generosity in giving his time to us. I am sometimes reminded of Groundhog Day when sitting in this Chamber. I would remind Senator Daly that we had 13 years of Fianna Fáil rule with very little in the line of political reform.

Seanad: Political Reform: Motion (12 Feb 2014)

Aideen Hayden: It is incumbent upon me to speak to some extent in defence of the Whip system as I am the Labour Party Whip in this House. We can criticise the Whip system as much as we like but it is the Whips' duty to deliver the Government's programme. That is the bottom line. It is up to individual members of political parties to decide, on balance, whether they think there is more good or bad in the...

Seanad: Political Reform: Motion (12 Feb 2014)

Aideen Hayden: We should allow the Constitutional Convention to finish its business, make its proposals, produce its report and have that report debated in this Chamber in a proper and lengthy fashion. The motion before us concerns the broader political system and not just the Seanad. That is why I am emphasising that the Constitutional Convention has debated many issues that relate to the Irish political...

Seanad: Political Reform: Motion (12 Feb 2014)

Aideen Hayden: I do not think I have exhausted my six minutes.

Seanad: Political Reform: Motion (12 Feb 2014)

Aideen Hayden: The proposals which focus on the Seanad's selection of vocational Bills are very much to be welcomed.

Seanad: Homelessness Strategy: Motion (5 Feb 2014)

Aideen Hayden: I thank the Minister of State for coming to the House. I welcome Mr. Cathal Morgan, director of the Dublin Regional Homeless Executive, Mr. Pat Doyle of the Peter McVerry Trust and Bob Jordan of Threshold who are in the Visitors Gallery. Councillor Dermot Lacey from Dublin City Council was also present earlier. I would like to make a correction to the amendment, which relates to the...

Seanad: Homelessness Strategy: Motion (5 Feb 2014)

Aideen Hayden: The homeless numbers grew to such a level while Senator Ó Domhnaill's party was in government. The numbers have gone down since this Government took office.

Seanad: Homelessness Strategy: Motion (5 Feb 2014)

Aideen Hayden: I move: That Seanad Éireann – - welcomes the commitment of this Government to end long-term homelessness by 2016 and recognises that significant challenges are now emerging in relation to housing supply; - welcomes the ring-fencing of funding for homeless services by the Government in budget 2013 and 2014; - further welcomes the adoption of a housing-led approach to tackling...

Seanad: European Union Affairs: Statements (5 Feb 2014)

Aideen Hayden: I welcome the Minister of State and congratulate him and the Government on the highly productive and successful way in which we are currently managing our relationship with the European Union. Not only have we successfully exited the bailout programme but we have achieved critical concessions along the way, such as the terms under which we were able to deal with the vast liabilities of Anglo...

Seanad: Order of Business (5 Feb 2014)

Aideen Hayden: I welcome the landmark decision taken by the Scottish Parliament yesterday to pass legislation permitting same-sex marriage. I raise a case that arose yesterday in the Dublin Circuit Family Law Court involving a mother of three children who made an application to the father of one of her children for an increase in her maintenance payment on the basis that she had obtained two loans in the...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on European Union Affairs: Review of Foreign Policy and External Relations: Discussion (Resumed) (4 Feb 2014)

Aideen Hayden: I thank all the witnesses for their presentations. I too apologise for my late arrival. I have a range of questions. As I understand the brief it is not necessary to look at EU policy in detail but rather to look specifically at the promotion of Ireland's interest in the European Union and to ensure Europe's voice is strong at a global level. I have already raised this question with Ms...

Seanad: Order of Business (30 Jan 2014)

Aideen Hayden: It was wrong of Senator Barrett to say what he said about Members on this side of the House. The fact of the matter is that we did not vote to abolish the Seanad but to put the matter to the people. The record of contributions made by Members on this side of the House will show that they not only supported the reform agenda but also supported the reform Bills put forward by Members on the...