Results 10,261-10,280 of 12,035 for speaker:Colm Burke

Seanad: Commencement Matters: Disabled Drivers Grant Eligibility (21 Oct 2015)

Colm Burke: I welcome the Minister of State. I am raising this issue as a result of a family coming to me about their 52 year old daughter who has an intellectual disability. The family is the main carer for their daughter. Every morning, for the past 35 years, the family has been driving her to a Cope Foundation facility in Cork, and collecting her every evening. The family applied for the disabled...

Seanad: Commencement Matters: Disabled Drivers Grant Eligibility (21 Oct 2015)

Colm Burke: I thank the Minister of State for the reply. I am not sure whether I agree with its contents fully. However, on the issue I have raised about intellectual disability, where there is huge discrimination, I referred to a case in which the parents are elderly but still are on the road each day to look after their daughter and were the State to provide full-time care, there would be a huge cost...

Seanad: Commencement Matters: Disabled Drivers Grant Eligibility (21 Oct 2015)

Colm Burke: I thank the Minister of State.

Seanad: United Nations Principles for Older Persons: Motion (21 Oct 2015)

Colm Burke: I welcome the Minister of State to the House. I thank my colleagues for bringing forward this Private Members' motion. We face a major challenge in this country over the next number of years to how we develop policy in this area. Just because someone reaches a certain age does not mean that there is suddenly a dependency. One lady who lives in my area is 99 years of age and still drives a...

Seanad: United Nations Principles for Older Persons: Motion (21 Oct 2015)

Colm Burke: That is an important issue that needs to be looked at.I do not in any way criticise what has occurred, but in fairness, in recent years we have more debates and discussions on the matter and many positive things have been done. For example, we had the national positive ageing strategy, which was a plan for an ageing society from 2011 to 2016. The strategy is now up for review. Other plans...

Seanad: United Nations Principles for Older Persons: Motion (21 Oct 2015)

Colm Burke: At 10.30 tomorrow morning.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health and Children: Health and Social Care Professionals Act Regulations: Minister for Health (20 Oct 2015)

Colm Burke: I welcome the Minister and thank him for his presentation. I agree with Deputy Kelleher's point and while it does not relate directly to the regulation, and while it is always very important that regulations are properly scrutinised and implemented, an issue has been brought to our attention by the Irish Association of Physical Therapists. It is concerned that physical therapists do not...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health and Children: Leopardstown Park Hospital: Chairperson Designate (20 Oct 2015)

Colm Burke: I thank the witness for the work he has done in the past six and a half years. It has not been an period for anybody in the health care sector. As a person who has been involved in the elderly care area for the past ten years, I am very much aware of the particular difficulties the witness would have experienced. How many beds are currently occupied under the fail deal scheme?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health and Children: Leopardstown Park Hospital: Chairperson Designate (20 Oct 2015)

Colm Burke: So that is over 170 beds that are occupied under fair deal.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health and Children: Leopardstown Park Hospital: Chairperson Designate (20 Oct 2015)

Colm Burke: I thank the witness for that clarification. In the context of a future development cost of €20 million, is it envisaged that capacity would increase? Given that the number of people over the age of 65 will increase by 20,000 every year, for argument's sake, by the time those who enter government in 2016 serve out their term of office, there will be an additional 100,000 people over...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health and Children: Leopardstown Park Hospital: Chairperson Designate (20 Oct 2015)

Colm Burke: I wish Mr. Magee every success in the next five years.

Seanad: Order of Business (20 Oct 2015)

Colm Burke: An article in today's edition of The Irish Timesregarding drink driving convictions states that in some parts of the country the conviction rate is below 20% and in others the average conviction rate is higher than 68%. This raises very serious questions about how summonses are prosecuted, including whether there is a defect in the manner in which they are presented by the Garda, whether...

Seanad: Order of Business (14 Oct 2015)

Colm Burke: I need to reply to Senator Cullinane on the budget.

Seanad: Order of Business (14 Oct 2015)

Colm Burke: Incorrect information is being furnished and it is part of the debate we are having. A married couple with two children on one income of €25,000 will be €1,000 better off as a result of the budget. That is over €21 per week. A married couple with two children earning €55,000 will be €30 per week better off, or €1,500 per annum. That is the reality...

Seanad: Order of Business (14 Oct 2015)

Colm Burke: The Senator said we were giving medical cards.

Seanad: Order of Business (14 Oct 2015)

Colm Burke: It is GP cards we are talking about.

Seanad: Order of Business (14 Oct 2015)

Colm Burke: What I am saying to the Senator is that it is an important step in providing health care for our young people and it is all part of our programme to move eventually towards GP cards for people up to 18 years of age. It is important to note that the budget is a balanced one. I was talking to one person yesterday who is on an old-age pension, as is his wife. He is caring for her because she...

Seanad: Order of Business (13 Oct 2015)

Colm Burke: I, too, wish to join in the expressions of sympathy. Garda Golden was the 88th garda to die on duty in 93 years. It is one death too many. Like the late Garda Golden, every one of the gardaí who have died over the years served the force well. It is extremely sad. It is important that we convey our sympathies to his wife, Nicola, and to his immediate family. I also would like to...

Seanad: Order of Business (8 Oct 2015)

Colm Burke: I agree with what Senator Rónán Mullen said about the fair deal scheme. As someone who was involved more than ten years ago in forcing the setting up of the scheme, it is one of the difficulties with it where there is total discrimination against those with farmland. I came across one case where a substantial amount of money was required to be paid every month for someone who was...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health and Children: General Scheme of Adoption (Information and Tracing) Bill 2015: Department of Children and Youth Affairs (8 Oct 2015)

Colm Burke: I thank the witnesses for a comprehensive presentation. Has the information campaign been planned already and what form will it take? One of the major contacts in healthcare is the GP service. Is there a format set out for how the information will be disseminated? I was surprised, a number of years ago, to learn that maternity hospitals do not seek identification from their patients. A...