Results 1,021-1,040 of 1,145 for speaker:Erin McGreehan

Seanad: Search and Rescue System: Motion (28 May 2021)

Erin McGreehan: Thank you Senator. It was quality rather than quantity today.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Disability Matters: United Nations Convention on Rights of Persons with Disabilities and Ratification of Optional Protocol: Discussion (27 May 2021)

Erin McGreehan: I welcome witnesses and thank them for their contributions. I have a few questions. On this committee, I feel frustrated that we have a segregation or compartmentalisation of Government functions. The Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth seems to have to have to pull extra weight. I do not see other Departments rowing in as efficiently and as properly as...

Joint Committee On Children, Equality, Disability, Integration And Youth: National Action Plan for Childminding 2021-2028: Discussion (25 May 2021)

Erin McGreehan: I am in Leinster House. I thank all our witnesses for appearing. Their presentations were interesting and informative. We all recognise childcare has been underfunded, misunderstood and insufficiently respected for far too long. To have this conversation and an action plan is, therefore, very positive. We are looking at the pitfalls. I know childminders and I have needed them. From...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement: Representatives of the Ballymurphy Families (25 May 2021)

Erin McGreehan: Many of the questions have been covered. I extend a heartfelt welcome to Mr. Teggart, Ms Quinn and Mr. Ó Muirigh and thank them for attending. I do not have any questions. I just wish to acknowledge their loved ones and families. What Ms Quinn said in her last contribution brought me to tears. The dignity, respect and love the witnesses show their loved ones, as well as the loss,...

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Road Projects (24 May 2021)

Erin McGreehan: I welcome the Minister of State to the House. I raise two of my favourite topics, County Louth's Cooley Peninsula and the connecting of the two sides of Carlingford Lough. The Narrow Water Bridge, to me, as a local, is a project that has been talked about for so long. It is a symbol of the future and of what can be. It is aspirational, but with the shared island fund, that aspiration has...

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Road Projects (24 May 2021)

Erin McGreehan: I thank the Minister of State for the reply. He mentioned the business case. It might never be achieved if the conversation is around bare economic facts. The Narrow Water bridge project is about a lot more than a bridge; it is about dreaming and looking to the future. There is so much tourism potential in terms of the creation of this product. There is already a bridge and planning for...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (24 May 2021)

Erin McGreehan: I applaud Senator O’Donovan for having spoken about epilepsy. This is national epilepsy week and there are a few things that can change the lives of people with epilepsy. The epilepsy association is calling for free travel for people with epilepsy and for reasonable accommodation during examinations. They appear to be very practical requests. We should be lobbying for the provision...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Disability Matters: Assisted Decision-Making (Capacity) Act 2015: Decision Support Service (20 May 2021)

Erin McGreehan: I thank our guests for attending and Ms Flynn for her comprehensive opening statement, which was excellent. Deputy Tully and other members asked many of the questions I had prepared. The DSS will have a great deal of co-operation with other stakeholders and many changes are coming down the road. Based on our guests' engagement with those stakeholders, how prepared are they? Might there be...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (18 May 2021)

Erin McGreehan: I, too, raise the fact that this is national biodiversity week. It is a real chance for us all to see nature and appreciate the importance and richness of our biodiversity. The hawthorn tree, for example, which is so common in Ireland, supports more than 200 species and insects. This is absolutely critical and crucial to protecting our environment and biodiversity. I call for a debate on...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Children and Youth Affairs: Pre-legislative Scrutiny of the General Scheme of the Certain Institutional Burials (Authorised Interventions) Bill (Resumed) (18 May 2021)

Erin McGreehan: The Minister is very welcome to the committee today and I thank him for his engagement. He mentioned in his speech that the discretion afforded for interventions will be exercised transparently. Will there be a detailed process for that transparency? Will people know what that process will be, for the benefit of all sides, including the Government, victims and survivors? I am concerned...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement: Shared Island Unit: Department of the Taoiseach (Resumed) (18 May 2021)

Erin McGreehan: It is great to hear there is real concerted effort and will on issues North and South on an all-Ireland basis. I cannot welcome the shared island unit enough. How do we ensure there is buy-in from all groups? Many groups have been established and are working on our future. The best group to look at it is the one established by the Taoiseach of Ireland. How do we get buy-in and...

Seanad: Young People: Motion (17 May 2021)

Erin McGreehan: The Minister is very welcome. I thank our Fine Gael colleagues, and Senator Seery Kearney in particular, for bringing this very considerate and important Private Members' motion to the House. I very much welcome this debate today which addresses how young people have suffered as a result of Covid-19 in the context of social isolation, education, employment and housing. In truth, any cohort...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (11 May 2021)

Erin McGreehan: Following the ESRI announcement this morning highlighting the difficulties being experienced by young people with respect to housing and employment, we should look towards establishing a State internship programme for young people and not so young people. It should have a proper established format where young people who come out of college or school could get an internship in a State...

Joint Committee On Children, Equality, Disability, Integration And Youth: Children's Unmet Needs: Engagement with Minister of State at the Department of Health (Resumed) (11 May 2021)

Erin McGreehan: I thank the Chairman. I am in Leinster House. It is always great to see the Minister of State coming before the committee. The change that has been made since she came into office is phenomenal. Her unapologetic attitude when it comes to advocating for people with disabilities has been incredible. I highlight the reduction of 78% in the waiting list during a global pandemic, which she...

Seanad: Carer's Allowance: Motion (10 May 2021)

Erin McGreehan: I very much welcome this Private Members' motion and I commend Senator Seery Kearney for bringing it forward. It is so important that we recognise the importance of carers in our communities. I know so many people who care for loved ones. It can be so rewarding and it can also be so incredibly difficult and isolating for so many. Family carers are the backbone of care provision in Ireland...

Seanad: Good Friday Agreement: Motion (10 May 2021)

Erin McGreehan: I am very proud to second the motion, which reconfirms Seanad Éireann's commitment to the Good Friday Agreement and welcomes the shared island unit. As somebody who was not old enough to vote for the agreement, I am particularly delighted to stand up in this House and say that I believe, as my family and I believed 23 years ago, that this is the way to a better Ireland. Growing up in a...

Seanad: Good Friday Agreement: Motion (10 May 2021)

Erin McGreehan: I thank everyone for their contributions to this debate. I cannot put into words how proud I am to stand here to speak about the Good Friday Agreement. I was 16 when that agreement was voted through. We stood so tall and proud in this country when we succeeded in that. I remember thinking it would never be possible. It is an overwhelming experience to be able to stand here with people...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (7 May 2021)

Erin McGreehan: This morning I would like to raise my concerns about the unilateral decision by the British Government to possibly grant amnesty to British soldiers. Yet again, we are standing here in the House speaking about the British Government reneging on agreements and on what we have tried to deliver. We have tried to deliver some justice for people across this island, particularly in the North. It...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement: The Northern Ireland Economy: Discussion (Resumed) (4 May 2021)

Erin McGreehan: I welcome the witnesses. As a student of Professor FitzGerald for many years, it is great to see him at this committee. For me, as an Irish republican, this is not about the costs of reunification. This topic is like deciding when is the right time to have children in that we will say it is never the right time. In this case, we must work towards that goal and create the best possible...