Results 121-140 of 621 for at speaker:Fintan Warfield

Seanad: Work Life Balance and Miscellaneous Provisions Bill 2022: Committee Stage (31 Jan 2023)

Fintan Warfield: I thank the Minister. I apologise for my confusion there for a hot second. I raised this issue with the Taoiseach at the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Gender Equality. We have consistently made the point that many companies provide more than five days' leave. In the North, there is more than five days' leave. We thought the Government should go further. I will press the amendment. I...

Seanad: Work Life Balance and Miscellaneous Provisions Bill 2022: Committee Stage (31 Jan 2023)

Fintan Warfield: I risk being slightly repetitive. As Women's Aid noted, during the Second Stage debate in the Seanad, the Minister stated the Government is looking at parity of pay for domestic violence leave with sick pay. As my Labour Party colleague just pointed out, the proposal is modelled on the Sick Leave Act 2022 among others and is in line with the proposal by the Minister's Department. The...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: General Scheme of the Sale of Alcohol Bill 2022: Discussion (Resumed) (31 Jan 2023)

Fintan Warfield: What I see as important regarding having venues open later from a health perspective is that pubs and nightclubs are regulated environments. In my experience, people are not going home at 12.30 a.m. or 2.30 a.m. They are going to illegal, unregulated parties all across the city and to house parties as well. It is anecdotal, in fairness, but I feel that people are drinking more in house...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: General Scheme of the Sale of Alcohol Bill 2022: Discussion (Resumed) (31 Jan 2023)

Fintan Warfield: I want to make the point that we are talking about a very small number of venues that will open and serve alcohol until 5 a.m. I would say that only a handful of venues in this city will avail of this. I have spoken to some promoters who cannot see how it would even be financially viable to open until that hour at the current time. For nightclubs, this is their best opportunity to put...

Seanad: National Cultural Institutions (National Concert Hall) (Amendment) Bill 2022: Second Stage (24 Jan 2023)

Fintan Warfield: The best gig I was ever at in the National Concert Hall was Frances Black - I am serious about that. I welcome the Minister to the House. It was a pleasure recently to visit Robert Read and the team in the National Concert Hall and to get a tour of the site. There is so much potential there, particularly for the secondary venue in addition to the main auditorium. It is the type of size...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: General Scheme of the Sale of Alcohol Bill 2022: Discussion (24 Jan 2023)

Fintan Warfield: How many theatre licences were there at that time?

Seanad: Planning and Development and Foreshore (Amendment) Bill 2022: [Seanad Bill amended by the Dáil] Report and Final Stages (15 Dec 2022)

Fintan Warfield: I commend my colleague on her marathon speech on a marathon grouping of amendments. We only get one shot at Committee Stage and Senator Higgins took a pretty good shot. The last-minute amendments on social and affordable housing propose the suspension of the Part 8 process for up to two years. That option has been presented as a mechanism to speed up the delivery of social and affordable...

Seanad: Work Life Balance and Miscellaneous Provisions Bill 2022: Second Stage (14 Dec 2022)

Fintan Warfield: .... These hard-earned lessons should and must be part of our future approach to the issues around caring, disability, inclusivity, equality and workers rights and this Bill is a welcome step in that regard. While the Bill includes a number of important provisions for family carers, there are several aspects of this legislation which are of concern. I refer specifically to the list of...

Seanad: Tailte Éireann Bill 2022: Committee and Remaining Stages (14 Dec 2022)

Fintan Warfield: ...In page 8, between lines 22 and 23, to insert the following: “(8) Within six months of the passing of this Act, the Minister shall lay before the Houses of the Oireachtas a report on the creation of a real time land transaction register similar to the Residential Property Price Register.”. I urge the Minister of State to support this amendment. At the moment, there is...

Seanad: Animal Health and Welfare (Dogs) Bill 2022: Second Stage (14 Dec 2022)

Fintan Warfield: I commend my party colleague Senator Boylan on her work on this issue and welcome the Minister of State to the debate. Overcrowding in Ireland’s dog pounds and shelters is the worst we have seen in a decade. In recent weeks, more than a dozen shelters have announced they have no space for new dogs. On one day alone, five shelters closed their doors. This surge can, in part, be...

Seanad: Planning and Development and Foreshore (Amendment) Bill 2022: Committee and Remaining Stages (8 Dec 2022)

Fintan Warfield: ...lines 21 and 22, to insert the following: “(a) in subsection (1), by the insertion of the following paragraph after paragraph (d): “(dd) 5 members shall be appointed from among persons nominated for such appointment by such— (i) organisations that, in the Minister’s opinion, are representative of persons concerned with the protection and preservation of...

Seanad: Planning and Development and Foreshore (Amendment) Bill 2022: Committee and Remaining Stages (8 Dec 2022)

Fintan Warfield: ...to delete lines 22 to 32 and substitute the following: “(a) by the substitution of the following subsection for subsection (1): “(1) The Minister in appointing ordinary members of the Board at all times under this Part, shall ensure, in so far as is practicable, that— (a) the ordinary members of the Board are persons who, have satisfactory and demonstrable...

Seanad: Finance Bill 2022: Committee Stage (7 Dec 2022)

Fintan Warfield: I had intended to oppose section 6. However, I will make a few points about the help-to-buy scheme, which we are discussing in this recommendation. The extension of the scheme will have a full-year cost in 2023 of €175 million. In its current guise, the scheme has certain requirements of applicants.One must take out a mortgage of at least 70% of the cost to buy a newly built home or...

Seanad: Finance Bill 2022: Committee Stage (7 Dec 2022)

Fintan Warfield: I move recommendation No. 9: In page 66, between lines 8 and 9, to insert the following: “Report on income tax relief 25.The Minister shall, within six months of the passing of this Act, prepare and lay before Dáil Éireann a report on an income tax relief equivalent in value to 8.3 per cent of annual rent to all private rental tenants not already in receipt of any State...

Seanad: Finance Bill 2022: Committee Stage (7 Dec 2022)

Fintan Warfield: All housing markets are different but the tax treatment of investment vehicles in our housing market must be scrutinised. We welcome the review and I suggest that it be followed by action. We have already seen Department of Finance reports from 2019 stating there is a risk that at sufficient scale, an institutional investor group could, over time, develop monopolistic or oligopolistic...

Seanad: Finance Bill 2022: Committee Stage (7 Dec 2022)

Fintan Warfield: I move recommendation No. 15: In page 103, between lines 30 and 31, to insert the following: “Report on Deferred Tax Assets 44.The Minister shall, within six months of the passing of this Act, lay before both Houses of the Oireachtas a report on the potential for restricting banks from utilising the deferred tax assets scheme.” My colleague, Senator Higgins, is at the...

Seanad: Childcare Services: Motion [Private Members] (7 Dec 2022)

Fintan Warfield: I thank the Labour Party Senators for tabling the motion, which Sinn Féin will support. We see childcare as a public service for children and parents. When it works a State childcare system can be a huge employer and help with the mental health development and health development of our smallest children and young people. It can facilitate parents, especially women, to access the...

Seanad: Planning and Development and Foreshore (Amendment) Bill 2022: Second Stage (6 Dec 2022)

Fintan Warfield: ...officials. I also thank the officials for the briefing they provided yesterday. I begin by expressing again my deep concern and unease, as many others have done, about the introduction of legislation in this last-minute fashion. Like others, I wish to place on record the fact that is not a good way to make law. There have been far too many instances of last-minute rushed legislation...

Seanad: National Tourism Development Authority (Amendment) Bill 2022: Second Stage (6 Dec 2022)

Fintan Warfield: I welcome the Minister. This short and technical Bill will provide the statutory basis to allow the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform to increase the aggregate level of funding that will be made available to Fáilte Ireland. As has been said, the current ceiling is €300 million and the Bill will see it increase to €500 million. Sinn Féin will support the...

Seanad: Online Safety and Media Regulation Bill 2022: [Seanad Bill amended by the Dáil] Report and Final Stages (6 Dec 2022)

Fintan Warfield: Aertel is a symbol of a simpler time. The number for the Premier League scores was 221, and at 3 o'clock on Saturday afternoons we wore down those buttons on the remote refreshing the scores. It was where we got the League of Ireland fixtures as well. Goodbye, Aertel.