Results 10,901-10,920 of 11,433 for speaker:Michael Kitt

Seanad: Social Welfare Law Reform and Pensions Bill 2006: Second Stage. (21 Mar 2006)

Michael Kitt: It was cold for the people who travelled from Galway to Croke Park. The increase is very welcome and I compliment the Minister. The package for care of older persons amounting to €150 million is also very welcome. Home help should be promoted, as should the nursing home subvention which I mentioned, improvements to palliative care and sheltered housing. Housing aid for the elderly,...

Seanad: Order of Business. (21 Mar 2006)

Michael Kitt: Senator Ulick Burke has stolen my thunder because I also want to congratulate the Portumna and Salthill-Knocknacarra teams. Many people are disappointed when they do not get to see the full presentation of trophies in Croke Park on St. Patrick's Day. I support the calls made for a debate on the sugar beet industry. Many years ago, a political decision was made to open a sugar factory in Tuam....

Seanad: Telecommunications Services. (9 Mar 2006)

Michael Kitt: I thank the Cathaoirleach for allowing me to raise this matter and the Minister of State at the Department of Communications, Marine and Natural Resources, Deputy John Browne, for attending. Broadband is very much in the news following the recent publication of a report on its provision by the Joint Committee on Communications, Marine and Natural Resources. Tuam, County Galway, was...

Seanad: Telecommunications Services. (9 Mar 2006)

Michael Kitt: Galway County Council has submitted a strong case for a MAN to be rolled out in Tuam. Will the Minister of State give any indication when a decision will be taken on that?

Seanad: Order of Business. (9 Mar 2006)

Michael Kitt: I support calls for a debate on the health report, and in particular accident and emergency services. Regarding the west of Ireland, University College Hospital in Galway has the very high bed occupancy that Senator Norris raised with reference to a consultant from the city interviewed on the radio. For that hospital, as for all others, this is a very busy time of the year, with winter...

Seanad: Order of Business. (9 Mar 2006)

Michael Kitt: The Tánaiste and the HSE will act on the situation in Galway, which is just one example of where beds are urgently needed, having been removed from the system many years ago.

Seanad: Decentralisation Programme: Statements. (8 Mar 2006)

Michael Kitt: I welcome the Minister of State to the House and I compliment him on his contribution. I refer to the speech by the Minister for Finance in November 2004 when two reports of the decentralisation implementation group were published. The recommendations of both reports were accepted by the Government and I very much welcome the decentralisation programme. Every Member supports the programme. It...

Seanad: Decentralisation Programme: Statements. (8 Mar 2006)

Michael Kitt: The Senator is on his own.

Seanad: Planning and Development (Strategic Infrastructure) Bill 2006: Second Stage. (7 Mar 2006)

Michael Kitt: I welcome the Minister to the House and I welcome the Bill. The Minister is correct in talking about the bottlenecks in the economy and his efforts to tackle them. He continued to say that we do not just have financial costs but also cost associated with lost time and opportunities. Although I live in rural Ireland and used to know little about bottlenecks even travelling to Dublin in the...

Seanad: Planning and Development (Strategic Infrastructure) Bill 2006: Second Stage. (7 Mar 2006)

Michael Kitt: Many of us in the west have been fighting for the corridor for years. We have pursued the issue since 1982 with the help of Fr. Micheál MacGréil and the former Deputy and Senator, Martin Joe O'Toole. We met the Leader, Senator O'Rourke, when she was Minister and she gave us great support. Successive Ministers gave us the opportunity to leave the line as it was. On many occasions the line...

Seanad: Planning and Development (Strategic Infrastructure) Bill 2006: Second Stage. (7 Mar 2006)

Michael Kitt: I heard that Senator Quinn spoke very well in Galway.

Seanad: Order of Business. (7 Mar 2006)

Michael Kitt: I condemn the horrific killing on Saturday and I commend the work of the Garda, especially in the area of drug confiscation. I hope that the Garda also acts on the gun culture, which is linked to drugs culture. I welcome the suggested amnesty on guns. With an election due next year, it is important that we compile the register of electors accurately. I have been told by local authority staff...

Seanad: Order of Business. (2 Mar 2006)

Michael Kitt: I agree with what Senator Brian Hayes said about the St. Patrick's Day arrangements and perhaps the question of legislation to deal with off-licences and the availability of alcohol. Senator Hayes mentioned freshers week. We could also examine other issues in the licensing trade. It was rag week in Galway last week. I understand it was entertaining and there was a good programme of events,...

Seanad: Nitrates Directive: Motion. (1 Mar 2006)

Michael Kitt: I move amendment No. 1: To delete all words after "Seanad Éireann" and substitute the following: —recognises that Ireland, as with all EU Member States, is required to adopt a nitrates action programme, including appropriate mandatory regulatory provisions, in order to give effect to the 1991 EU nitrates directive; —notes that 20% of groundwater in Ireland has nitrate concentrations...

Seanad: Nitrates Directive: Motion. (1 Mar 2006)

Michael Kitt: I also remind Senator Bannon that former Fine Gael Deputy, Ivan Yates, was Minister for Agriculture, Food and Forestry from 1994 to 1997 and had the opportunity to do something about this. The simple fact is that this matter was left hanging until the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government had the courage to grasp the issue. The Government must address it because Ireland...

Seanad: Water and Sewerage Schemes. (23 Feb 2006)

Michael Kitt: I thank the Minister for coming before the House. The village of Milltown near Tuam in County Galway lies on the N17 close to the County Mayo border. As one of the tidiest towns in the county it has won many Tidy Towns awards. It is a source of frustration and disappointment that construction of a sewerage scheme planned to commence in Milltown some years ago has been postponed until 2007. I...

Seanad: Water and Sewerage Schemes. (23 Feb 2006)

Michael Kitt: I thank the Minister of State for her comprehensive reply which clarifies several of the matters I raised.

Seanad: Order of Business. (23 Feb 2006)

Michael Kitt: Some 12 years ago I was my party's spokesman on emigration and I would support a debate in this House rather than a meeting of party leaders on the question of emigrants. It should not just be a question of representation in this House. As Senator O'Toole knows, the debate began with votes for emigrants, some 12 years ago. We stood on our heads looking for a way to allow emigrants to vote,...

Seanad: Order of Business. (23 Feb 2006)

Michael Kitt: This is particularly with regard to helping returning emigrants with issues such as housing and other welfare needs. I join Senator Norris in calling for a debate on Iraq. What is happening there is appalling, and it is heading towards a civil war. There are other issues also with regard to Palestine, and Iran's potential involvement there. Iran has many questions to answer. I would support a...

Seanad: Third Level Education: Statements (Resumed). (22 Feb 2006)

Michael Kitt: I welcome the Minister of State to the House and I am pleased to have an opportunity to speak on the Fottrell report. I discussed undergraduate medical education with Professor Fottrell, who has produced an excellent report, many years ago when he was president of University College Galway. We are all aware of the difficulties arising from the high points required to gain entry to medicine...