Results 1,741-1,760 of 1,966 for speaker:Mary Henry

Seanad: Employment Permits Bill 2003: Second Stage. (27 Mar 2003)

Mary Henry: I wish to share my time with Senator O'Toole. I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Michael Ahern, to the House and I welcome the Bill. I am glad the Government has decided to take a generous attitude towards the granting of work permits immediately to people from the EU accession countries. It is the right thing to do. After the comprehensive and useful speech by Senator Hanafin I will...

Seanad: Order of Business. (26 Mar 2003)

Mary Henry: I too, ask the Leader if we could have a debate this week on the situation in Iraq. It is important to remember that the civilian casualties are not only people who are hit by bombs, shrapnel, bullets or even collapsing buildings. The hospitals there have pointed out the huge increase in the number of people attending with stress related conditions such as strokes and coronaries, and the...

Seanad: Social Welfare (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2003: Committee and Remaining Stages. (26 Mar 2003)

Mary Henry: This seems to be another case of a lack of co-ordination between Departments. Other Senators have pointed out that the Minister for Education and Science, Deputy Noel Dempsey, is encouraging people to go back to education in order they can be usefully employed in the highly technical areas we want to promote, yet the Department of Social and Family Affairs is severely cutting the...

Seanad: Health Services: Motion. (26 Mar 2003)

Mary Henry: I thank the Minister for an interesting contribution. I am sure he was as disappointed as Members when the other 200,000 medical cards did not materialise after the last election. I take seriously what Senator Feeney said about the improvement in our economic situation. However, Senator Feighan was right when he mentioned the incredibly low cut-off point for medical cards. It is €138 gross...

Seanad: Finance Bill 2003 [ Certified Money Bill ] : Second Stage. (25 Mar 2003)

Mary Henry: Is that agreed? Agreed.

Seanad: Order of Business. (21 Mar 2003)

Mary Henry: I am glad Senator Feeney mentioned the Medical Practitioners Act 1978. Every year for the past five years we have been promised an updated version of the Act. Amending legislation was introduced hastily last July, which provided for regulations affecting doctors temporarily registered in Ireland. Nine months later the regulations have still not been implemented. What is the point in...

Seanad: Foreign Conflicts: Motion. (21 Mar 2003)

Mary Henry: I thank Fine Gael Members for allowing me to share their slot. I welcome the Minister of State. It is quite a challenge to follow Senator Ó Murchú's contribution, for which I salute him.

Seanad: Freedom of Information (Amendment) Bill 2003: Report and Final Stages. (20 Mar 2003)

Mary Henry: I regret that we got off to such a bad start with Report Stage. I fully expected to come in this morning and find that the Government had put down amendments to the Bill. The Minister was not in a position to hear the views of the high-level review group or the commissioner who addressed the Joint Committee on Finance and the Public Service, although I am sure he has read what they said. I...

Seanad: Freedom of Information (Amendment) Bill 2003: Report and Final Stages. (20 Mar 2003)

Mary Henry: I second the amendment.

Seanad: Freedom of Information (Amendment) Bill 2003: Report and Final Stages. (20 Mar 2003)

Mary Henry: I move amendment No. 5: In page 5 between lines 14 and 15, to insert the following: "(d) in the definition of 'request to which section 29 applies,' by substituting '28(5)(a)' for '28(5)'.". I must refer to my new best friend, the Information Commissioner, for this recommendation.

Seanad: Freedom of Information (Amendment) Bill 2003: Report and Final Stages. (20 Mar 2003)

Mary Henry: I second the amendment.

Seanad: Freedom of Information (Amendment) Bill 2003: Report and Final Stages. (20 Mar 2003)

Mary Henry: I second the amendment.

Seanad: Freedom of Information (Amendment) Bill 2003: Report and Final Stages. (20 Mar 2003)

Mary Henry: I hear all the explanations about looking up the freedom of information officer in the telephone book but that is not necessarily the person who correlated the information. In a big organisation some of this work will have to be farmed out to others. I cannot understand the reason the Minister cannot accept this for the sake of transparency and accountability. The head of any public body...

Seanad: Freedom of Information (Amendment) Bill 2003: Report and Final Stages. (20 Mar 2003)

Mary Henry: I second Senator McDowell's amendment. This is an important matter. Like Senator McDowell, I read what the Taoiseach said about this Bill not affecting individuals. I am sure the Minister has heard from those who were victims of abuse within various institutions. As we spoke at great length about this on Committee Stage, I will not delay the House but there is a huge difference between files...

Seanad: Order of Business. (12 Mar 2003)

Mary Henry: I second Senator O'Toole's proposal that we take the report of the Information Commissioner first on the Order of Business. I am sure the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform is a fine lawyer, but this report was incredibly useful to me as a legislator. We are legislators, but we are also citizens and we are curtailing our own rights in the legislation that is being put through the...

Seanad: Freedom of Information (Amendment) Bill 2003: Committee Stage (Resumed). (12 Mar 2003)

Mary Henry: I regret the inclusion of this provision, particularly as I have seen the Taoiseach's comments in the Dáil. He said changes in the Bill would not reflect on the individual but I do not see how that can be with this amending provision. The Taoiseach would not want such an amendment introduced.

Seanad: Freedom of Information (Amendment) Bill 2003: Committee Stage (Resumed). (12 Mar 2003)

Mary Henry: I support the amendment. A case has not been made to show the current provision is causing disruption.

Seanad: Freedom of Information (Amendment) Bill 2003: Committee Stage (Resumed). (12 Mar 2003)

Mary Henry: I do not believe we have been given evidence that the original Act is causing problems in this area. The Information Commissioner's report, which we received yesterday, outlines ways in which a persistent requester can be dealt with. No one wants to make some sort of charter for people who make frivolous or vexatious claims, but that is already in the Act. Legislation that has been working...

Seanad: Freedom of Information (Amendment) Bill 2003: Committee Stage (Resumed). (12 Mar 2003)

Mary Henry: This is an amendment the Minister of State can accept without phoning Cheltenham.

Seanad: Freedom of Information (Amendment) Bill 2003: Committee Stage (Resumed). (12 Mar 2003)

Mary Henry: This is a practical amendment that would enhance the Bill because otherwise people who made requests ten years earlier will be covered by the amended Act. This is an innocuous addition.