Results 1,061-1,080 of 1,350 for speaker:Mary Fitzpatrick

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Land Development Agency Bill: Discussion (11 May 2021)

Mary Fitzpatrick: Great. I just did not want to cut the AILG out. I thank Councillors Hoade, Colgan, Sheahan, Fennelly and Anglim. It has been invaluable to have the AILG and LAMA before the committee. It was long overdue. The two Bills are very important. Local authorities were initially established essentially to be housing authorities. The biggest social housing project in a decade is under way and...

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

Mary Fitzpatrick: This week, the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Deputy Darragh O'Brien, proposed to Cabinet the most comprehensive affordable housing legislation in the history of the State. It proposes to change the direction of the State's role in the provision of housing in Ireland. This is an important development, not just for Government, but for society at large. We are coming...

Seanad: Education (Leaving Certificate Examinations) (Accredited Grades) Bill 2021: Second Stage (7 May 2021)

Mary Fitzpatrick: I thank the Minister for joining us. I also thank her for the tremendous work she has done as Minister since taking office. She has brought new energy, creativity, resilience and professionalism to the role and to her Department. It has certainly been noticed by the schools and the education community in the Dublin Central constituency in which I live and across the country. I commend the...

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Covid-19 Pandemic Supports (30 Apr 2021)

Mary Fitzpatrick: I welcome the Minister of State to the House. I thank him for coming here to respond to my Commencement matter, which speaks to the need for the Government to provide financial and other supports to the taxi service industry. I congratulate the Minister of State and the Government. Today is a hopeful day. The announcement yesterday was very welcome to all sectors of industry and community...

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Covid-19 Pandemic Supports (30 Apr 2021)

Mary Fitzpatrick: I thank the Minister of State for his response. I welcome his clarification of the situation with regard to the bus lanes. That is an operational matter and it is important that there is clarity around that issue. I also welcome the supports the Minister of State mentioned and the fact that taxi drivers can earn up to €120 a week. However, they cannot do so because there is no...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Act 2000 (Exempted Development) (No. 3) Regulations 2021 and Planning and Development (Street Furniture Fees) Regulations 2021: Discussion (27 Apr 2021)

Mary Fitzpatrick: I welcome the Minister and thank him for coming in. I apologise for being late. I was in my office and thought we were having this meeting on Teams. I would have hated to miss the party. I pay tribute to the former Minister, Eoghan Murphy. I served with him on Dublin City Council and while I disagreed with his politics, I always admired his energy, commitment and enthusiasm for the...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Affordable Housing Bill 2020: Discussion (Resumed) (27 Apr 2021)

Mary Fitzpatrick: The Fianna Fáil group is happy to have only one speaker on each amendment.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Affordable Housing Bill 2020: Discussion (Resumed) (27 Apr 2021)

Mary Fitzpatrick: We just want to get through it.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Affordable Housing Bill 2020: Discussion (Resumed) (27 Apr 2021)

Mary Fitzpatrick: On behalf of the Fianna Fáil group, I advise the committee that we will not support this amendment. We are very anxious to conclude our business today. We are trying to facilitate the completion of the report on the affordable housing Bill so that legislation can be introduced to start to address the housing crisis in a meaningful way, with the provision of affordable housing to rent...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Affordable Housing Bill 2020: Discussion (Resumed) (27 Apr 2021)

Mary Fitzpatrick: He should vote for the Bill then.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Affordable Housing Bill 2020: Discussion (Resumed) (27 Apr 2021)

Mary Fitzpatrick: Fianna Fáil will be opposing this proposal. It is similar to the first one brought forward by Sinn Féin and is political virtue signalling. We all understand that cost rental means affordable rental accommodation. As with the serviced sites fund, funding can only be applied to affordable homes that are provided for purchase or rent. The funding cannot be applied to for-profit...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Affordable Housing Bill 2020: Discussion (Resumed) (27 Apr 2021)

Mary Fitzpatrick: It is not.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Affordable Housing Bill 2020: Discussion (Resumed) (27 Apr 2021)

Mary Fitzpatrick: There is consensus on that.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Affordable Housing Bill 2020: Discussion (Resumed) (27 Apr 2021)

Mary Fitzpatrick: The motion calls for the removal of the provision in the legislation to create a shared equity loan scheme. The details of the scheme are not actually going to be in the legislation and we all know that. Therefore what Deputy Ó Broin and others are opposing here is the principle of the State providing financial support to people who are paying more in rent than they would on a mortgage...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Affordable Housing Bill 2020: Discussion (Resumed) (27 Apr 2021)

Mary Fitzpatrick: That is not true.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Affordable Housing Bill 2020: Discussion (Resumed) (27 Apr 2021)

Mary Fitzpatrick: It is not true.

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Public Transport (23 Apr 2021)

Mary Fitzpatrick: I thank the Minister of State, Deputy Joe O'Brien, for coming to the House to deal with this matter, which relates to the proposed MetroLink service. An underground, integrated rail service for Dublin was first proposed in 2001. Twenty years later, we are still talking about putting in some sort of frequent underground service.MetroLink is progressing. I understand Transport Infrastructure...

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Public Transport (23 Apr 2021)

Mary Fitzpatrick: Gabhaim buíochas leis an Aire Stáit. I appreciate his response. It is important that we note that, as the Minister of State said, this is going to be the biggest infrastructure project in the history of the State. Metro systems were built in London back in 1863, in Paris in 1900 and in New York in 1904. They are more than 100 years old. We are building infrastructure that is...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (19 Apr 2021)

Mary Fitzpatrick: I extend my sympathies to the family of Jennifer Poole. It is a terrible reminder to all of us of the increase in domestic violence during the pandemic. I urge anybody living in fear or under threat to contact the Garda immediately. As we commence this new term in the Seanad, I want to turn to another casualty of Covid, which is the housing crisis. It has not gone away and has been...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Children and Youth Affairs: General Scheme of a Certain Institutional Burials (Authorised Interventions) Bill: Discussion (14 Apr 2021)

Mary Fitzpatrick: I thank the witnesses for giving us their time today and for all of the work they have done on this very important issue. I want to use my time to gain from their knowledge and get their guidance. Our job is to try to frame legislation that will in some way begin to bring about justice for these human rights atrocities. I listened closely to the witnesses and I have read all of the...