Results 141-160 of 446 for speaker:Niall Blaney

Joint Oireachtas Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement: Architects of the Good Friday Agreement (Resumed): Mr. John Bruton (8 Dec 2022)

Niall Blaney: Mr. Bruton made a reference to the legislation going through Westminster and referenced the protocol Bill. This committee had a deputation over there a number of weeks ago and I was part of a deputation in Brussels last week. I certainly share Mr. Bruton's concerns. Moreover, I also share the concerns about the legacy Bill. It was very evident during our trip to London that the Tories are...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement: Architects of the Good Friday Agreement (Resumed): Mr. John Bruton (8 Dec 2022)

Niall Blaney: I thank our former Taoiseach, Mr. Bruton, for coming today. People like him give fantastic insight and remind us what happened over many years in Northern Ireland, as well as an insight into the Troubles and the difficulties and complexities of Northern Ireland. Getting cross-party agreement is not easily achieved and will not be easily achieved in the future. Mr. Bruton's contribution...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (6 Dec 2022)

Niall Blaney: I raise an undesired situation in Donegal. The chief executive of Donegal County Council yesterday had to write to some of the protesters who attended the chambers in Lifford last week in respect of the mica scheme to raise the intimidation of his staff by certain individuals both online and at the protest that day. What is going on is completely undesirable. It is not on and a stop must...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement: Northern Ireland Troubles (Legacy and Reconciliation) Bill and the UK Government's Plans around the Human Rights Act: Amnesty International UK (10 Nov 2022)

Niall Blaney: I thank Ms Teggart for her presentation. I assure her, from a Fianna Fáil perspective, that everyone is very much behind what she said earlier and what she is trying to achieve. As the Chairman said, we are actively working to put an end to this Bill. It is reckless and it must come to an end. Mr. O'Hare and Mr. Reavey outlined how victims across Northern Ireland are being...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement: Northern Ireland Troubles (Legacy and Reconciliation) Bill and the UK Government's Plans around the Human Rights Act: Amnesty International UK (10 Nov 2022)

Niall Blaney: If there is active engagement, and it looks like the Minister will be coming in, it would be a better situation to have him here and-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement: Northern Ireland Troubles (Legacy and Reconciliation) Bill and the UK Government's Plans around the Human Rights Act: Amnesty International UK (10 Nov 2022)

Niall Blaney: In a week or two we should have established a date. It might be worthwhile for Deputy Tóibín to hold his proposal until then.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement: Northern Ireland Troubles (Legacy and Reconciliation) Bill and the UK Government's Plans around the Human Rights Act: Amnesty International UK (10 Nov 2022)

Niall Blaney: Maybe copy the response to the Taoiseach and the Tánaiste.

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (8 Nov 2022)

Niall Blaney: I wish to call for a debate on safety in our sporting stadia, particularly in light of events in Markets Field in Limerick last Friday night. Galway was taking on Waterford in a League of Ireland decider match. The match was held up during the first half because of structural issues. Thankfully gardaí intervened quickly and got all the Waterford supporters out. In this day and age we...

Seanad: Housing for All: Statements (Resumed) (8 Nov 2022)

Niall Blaney: I welcome the Minister of State. I thank him, the Minister of State, Deputy Peter Burke and the Minister for the work they have done since coming to office. We can talk until the cows come home about this matter. Those in opposition can criticise us and we have a go at them, but there is a reality to the discussion of Housing for All. Facts speak louder than anything else. It is very...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement: Architects of the Good Friday Agreement (Resumed): Mr. Bertie Ahern (20 Oct 2022)

Niall Blaney: Mr. Ahern is most welcome. We are delighted to have him before us as part of the work the committee is doing. Senator Currie and I were adamant that we get stuck into this piece of work during our programme year. From my perspective, I have a strong sense that if we do not learn the lessons of the past, particularly around the Good Friday Agreement and the working up towards that...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement: Architects of the Good Friday Agreement (Resumed): Mr. Bertie Ahern (20 Oct 2022)

Niall Blaney: This nation owes Mr. Ahern a debt of gratitude for his dedication and the work he put into the Good Friday Agreement and all the years working up to it. It has served this nation very well and has laid the foundations for us all to move on from here. His dedication - even the final week leaving his mother's graveside and heading back to Northern Ireland - was a sign of his commitment to the...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement: Architects of the Good Friday Agreement (Resumed): Mr. Bertie Ahern (20 Oct 2022)

Niall Blaney: What is Mr. Ahern's view on criminality and border criminality? There is a view that much of the criminality that has taken place since the Good Friday Agreement has been given a kind of blind eye. It was part of the agreement back then, although it was not in writing, that there was an arrangement between the Governments whereby a blind eye was turned to some of the criminality that...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement: Business of Joint Committee
Architects of the Good Friday Agreement (Resumed): Lord Alderdice (6 Oct 2022)

Niall Blaney: As I young boy growing up, I saw Lord Alderdice many times on media, television, etc. Of the political leaders down through the years, he remains very fresh. He must have some secret he might share with us, maybe offline.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement: Business of Joint Committee
Architects of the Good Friday Agreement (Resumed): Lord Alderdice (6 Oct 2022)

Niall Blaney: On a more serious note, I thank Lord Alderdice for his contribution. This is fascinating work because we need to realise what was achieved in the Good Friday Agreement. Moreover, we need to get a greater understanding of how we came to that point of getting agreement across the religious divide in the final moments and, in so doing, learn the lessons from the past that might help us to move...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement: Business of Joint Committee
Architects of the Good Friday Agreement (Resumed): Lord Alderdice (6 Oct 2022)

Niall Blaney: There is some really good content in the debate. Mr. Brady and Lord Alderdice hit the nail on the head in terms of discussing the issues of the day, such as education and the health service. That is why the work of the shared island unit, led by the Taoiseach, is critically important. That is not recognised by all across the political spectrum or given the credence I feel it should be....

Joint Oireachtas Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement: Business of Joint Committee
Architects of the Good Friday Agreement (Resumed): Lord Alderdice (6 Oct 2022)

Niall Blaney: On a point of order, I do not believe anybody in Fianna Fáil has anything against citizens' assemblies proposed by Ms Gildernew but it is really important that in respect of the shared island work, we establish what the status quowith the health service North and South is because it is only when you have that information that you can sit down and decide what you want into the future....

Seanad: Passport Office: Motion (5 Oct 2022)

Niall Blaney: I thank the Minister of State for coming to the House to hear this debate. I commend Sinn Féin on putting forward the motion on passport services on the island. It complements the Fianna Fáil motion brought forward by Senators Wilson and McGreehan not long ago. That is the approach taken by the House on this issue during this term. I could be petty and say we could do with a...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement: Architects of the Good Friday Agreement (Resumed): Mr. Mark Durkan (29 Sep 2022)

Niall Blaney: I welcome Mr. Durkan. It is great to see him again. There is no element of his opening remarks one could disagree with. We could do another report on the intricacies of matters between ourselves and the British Government and what has not happened in relation to the agreement. As a committee we have a job to do on the implementation of the agreement. The idea of bringing in people like...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement: Architects of the Good Friday Agreement (Resumed): Mr. Mark Durkan (29 Sep 2022)

Niall Blaney: Taking it all in context, what are the lessons from the whole process? We have lots of talk and articles these days about census results, constitutional change and so on. What are the take-away lessons for us? If we have an election in the UK at some point and there is a change of government and the environment happened to be right, what would we need to do? What are the lessons from the...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement: Architects of the Good Friday Agreement (Resumed): Mr. Mark Durkan (29 Sep 2022)

Niall Blaney: We are moving on to the Fianna Fáil slot. I will take seven minutes and give Deputy Lawless the last eight. Mr. Durkan referenced Mr. John Hume and relations. From my perspective, the Irish Government is leading in this area through the work and research being done by the shared island unit. What is Mr. Durkan's opinion on that? It is investigating 62 relevant aspects. One of the...