Results 1,781-1,800 of 3,356 for speaker:Feargal Quinn

Seanad: Death of Former Member: Expressions of Sympathy (22 Oct 2009)

Feargal Quinn: When Tony Kett entered the House in 1997, I got to know him early on. We had something in common, namely, that we were both north siders and felt a little outside the south side background. We ended up with a community feeling. Tony's main achievement was that he was a doer. He wanted to get things done. He was not the sort of person who looked for publicity or wished to see his name in...

Seanad: Order of Business (22 Oct 2009)

Feargal Quinn: Last week I referred to the question of illicit cigarettes being imported into Ireland. The figures were startling as far as I was concerned but my attention has now been drawn to new figures. Today, PJ Carroll & Company Ltd announced some job losses but did not say that this was due to a reduction in consumption. Apparently there has been an increase in consumption of cigarettes, which we...

Seanad: Public Transport Regulation Bill 2009: Report and Final Stages (15 Oct 2009)

Feargal Quinn: The Minister is very welcome. I am pleased that he is present for the debate.

Seanad: Public Transport Regulation Bill 2009: Report and Final Stages (15 Oct 2009)

Feargal Quinn: No, I am not seconding it.

Seanad: Public Transport Regulation Bill 2009: Report and Final Stages (15 Oct 2009)

Feargal Quinn: I have a problem with it. I would be happy if it were accepted, but if we do, we should also include something that states the opposite also. The amendment states one "shall have regard to the desirability of ensuring that operators of public bus services are not treated less favourably than operators of private bus services". I am happy for that to be the case. I do not have a problem...

Seanad: Public Transport Regulation Bill 2009: Report and Final Stages (15 Oct 2009)

Feargal Quinn: I move amendment No. 2: In page 8, to delete lines 33 to 38. The amendment proposes to delete the requirement under section 10 for the authority, in considering an application for the grant of a licence, to "take account of the demand or potential demand that exists for the public bus passenger services to which the application refers having regard to the needs of consumers and any existing...

Seanad: Public Transport Regulation Bill 2009: Report and Final Stages (15 Oct 2009)

Feargal Quinn: I am sure to the Minister I sound like an out-and-out capitalist who has no interest in what is happening here. I am in favour of the Bill and I am attempting to improve it. There is regulation and a need for regulation. My father told me that, many years before I was around, when there was no regulation of the bus service in Dublin, battles went on for different bus services on the same...

Seanad: Order of Business (15 Oct 2009)

Feargal Quinn: I support the call for a regular debate on the economy. Yesterday it was reported in Brussels that the Irish Government had asked EUROSTAT, the European statistical body, to relax its rules on describing government debt. I will explain this. We have seen a tripling of the public debt in recent years. The Government has reportedly asked EUROSTAT not to treat the NAMA debt of perhaps €54...

Seanad: Order of Business (8 Oct 2009)

Feargal Quinn: On Monday afternoon two truckloads of TB-infected cattle were stolen in Keady and on the Castleblayney Road, just a few hundred metres inside the Border in Northern Ireland. They were to be taken to a designated meat plant for destruction by the Northern Ireland Department of Agriculture and Rural Affairs. I mention this because it reminds us of what occurred last year in the pig industry....

Seanad: Planning and Development (Amendment) Bill 2009: Second Stage (7 Oct 2009)

Feargal Quinn: With the permission of the House, I wish to share time with Senator Norris.

Seanad: Planning and Development (Amendment) Bill 2009: Second Stage (7 Oct 2009)

Feargal Quinn: I was so impressed to hear yesterday that life expectancy in Ireland is 80 years for children born today that I raised the matter on the Order of Business. Life expectancy in other parts of the world, for example, in southern Africa and Niger, is only 50 years. We have a much longer life expectancy. We are not top of the world - the Japanese are some years ahead of us - but we are nearly...

Seanad: Order of Business (7 Oct 2009)

Feargal Quinn: As we listened to the radio and read the newspapers this morning, we were all concerned about events at Aer Lingus. According to the airline, it needs to employ fewer staff, is running short of cash and needs to eat into its cash reserves. The similarity between Aer Lingus and the nation is such that the same words could be used. We have a serious problem. Yesterday Senator Alex White...

Seanad: Public Transport Regulation Bill 2009: Committee Stage (6 Oct 2009)

Feargal Quinn: I have difficulty with paragraph 10(1)(a). I could agree to the passage of the section only if we deleted that paragraph. It requires the authority to consider the likely level of demand when licensing a new commercial transport service. I see no reason for a regulator of commercial services to consider whether or not there is sufficient demand for a service. This goes against the whole...

Seanad: Public Transport Regulation Bill 2009: Committee Stage (6 Oct 2009)

Feargal Quinn: I will not repeat the remarks of Senators Cannon and O'Malley, but the spirit of the sections is not the correct thinking. It almost looks like we are trying to protect bus operators from one another. The essence of competition is to encourage new people into the market. While I understand the Minister of State's point, the wording of the section is over the top. I urge him to reconsider...

Seanad: Public Transport Regulation Bill 2009: Committee Stage (6 Oct 2009)

Feargal Quinn: I will not pursue the matter at this stage, but I would like to be able to report back on Report Stage.

Seanad: Public Transport Regulation Bill 2009: Committee Stage (6 Oct 2009)

Feargal Quinn: I forgot to welcome the Minister of State earlier. The amendment proposes to include the wording, "shall have regard to the desirability of ensuring that operators of public bus services are not treated less favourably than operators of private bus services". I am happy to support this on condition that it would also ensure a provision that private bus operators would not be discriminated...

Seanad: Order of Business. (6 Oct 2009)

Feargal Quinn: I will be brief. Two weeks ago I raised the issue of the illegal importation of cigarettes. The figures involved are considerable, amounting to some €500 million to €750 million a year. What jolted me the most was the number of counterfeit cigarettes being imported into or produced in the country. All cigarettes are dangerous, but counterfeits are even more so. My attention has since...

Seanad: Public Transport Regulation Bill 2009: Committee Stage (6 Oct 2009)

Feargal Quinn: I am not sure I understand exactly the point the Minister of State is making but it seems the limited reform effected by this Bill will not apply to the vast majority of the public transport services. The amendment states a road passenger transport operator's licence means a national or international road passenger transport operator's licence within the meaning of section 2 of the Road...

Seanad: Public Transport Regulation Bill 2009: Committee Stage (6 Oct 2009)

Feargal Quinn: I support the amendment. I had not quite understood the difference between the two words but I understand why the amendment, to delete "licence" and substitute "contract", has been proposed. This Bill does not apply to services which are the subject of a public transport service contract entered into under section 48 of the 2008 Act. The Minister of State might correct me on that. These...

Seanad: Order of Business (24 Sep 2009)

Feargal Quinn: There was an interesting figure in the Commission on Taxation report in regard to tobacco smuggling. What interested me was that the amount of money the nation has been getting from tobacco revenue has been coming down in recent years, but what I did not know was that tobacco consumption is going up. The only way this can happen is with counterfeit and imported illicit cigarettes. I was...