Results 1,801-1,820 of 1,880 for speaker:Sharon Keogan

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Hate Crime) Bill 2020: Second Stage (17 Nov 2020)

Sharon Keogan: "Go woke or go broke" appears to have been the strategy of Fianna Fáil in recent years. This is another example of that pathetic strategy. Devoid of any true guiding principles, languishing on an historic low of 11% in the opinion polls and registering a paltry 8% support from under 35s, it looks as if Fianna Fáil is going broke. It is being devoured by Sinn Féin on its left...

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Youth Services (11 Nov 2020)

Sharon Keogan: I thank the Minister for coming to the House to answer this question. I raised it with him at the Joint Committee on Children, Disability, Equality and Integration last week. It is very important that we acknowledge the sacrifices the youth have made at this time. The Minister has allocated moneys for youth services, but that does not deal with the many young people who have suffered as a...

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Youth Services (11 Nov 2020)

Sharon Keogan: I thank the Minister. I am not aware of any youth services that are open at level 5, certainly not in my area. I think the voucher scheme is a really good idea. I honestly believe it is achievable. If the stay and spend initiative is achievable, so too is investment in youth services or recreational vouchers that can be used with certain providers. I am a little bit disappointed to hear...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (11 Nov 2020)

Sharon Keogan: I wish to raise an issue that I have raised a number of times previously, namely, the Moorhead report and the total disrespect shown to this House by the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Deputy Darragh O'Brien, and the Minister of State at the same Department, Deputy Burke, in not coming here to discuss it with us.It should not be forgotten that 49 of the Senators in this...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (11 Nov 2020)

Sharon Keogan: That language is not called for.

Seanad: Disability Day Services: Statements (11 Nov 2020)

Sharon Keogan: I welcome the Minister of State to the House and congratulate her on her elevation. I am sure she will do this sector proud. I will begin by acknowledging the sterling work of parents and carers of people with disabilities. It truly is a labour of love and devotion. To contribute to the life of someone with special needs and to help them to achieve at least some of their potential is a...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on European Union Affairs: Conference on the Future of Europe: Discussion (11 Nov 2020)

Sharon Keogan: I thank the witnesses for their presentations. Like Deputy Howlin, I am concerned about how we will engage with the citizen in a dialogue. Many citizens in Ireland are far removed from the EU. Covid-19 has brought the EU to the forefront in their daily lives, given how it is supporting Ireland in combating Covid, but we need to do a little bit more work at local government level. We do not...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (10 Nov 2020)

Sharon Keogan: The Government-mandated lockdown restrictions are causing immeasurable harm to the most vulnerable in this country. Sadly there has been a dramatic upsurge in the incidence of domestic violence. At the height of the previous lockdown, Women's Aid responded to a 43% increase in calls from women who were trapped with abusers at home. Women's Aid expects that it will be responding to...

Seanad: Living with Covid-19 Restrictions: Statements (10 Nov 2020)

Sharon Keogan: I have been in this House for eight months and this is the first opportunity I have had to talk to the Minister regarding Covid-19. I welcome him here to listen to our submissions regarding the Government's response to Covid-19 and the level 5 restrictions. I express my heartfelt condolences to the families of those who have died of Covid-19 and as a result of Covid-19. I appreciate that...

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Enforcement Powers) (Covid-19) Act 2020: Motion (6 Nov 2020)

Sharon Keogan: I will also support the amendment to the legislation. The Criminal Justice (Enforcement Powers) (Covid-19) Act 2020 was signed into law by the President on 11 September 2020. That date of September 11 - or 9-11 - struck me as somewhat ironic. This country and its people are being ruined and reduced to ground zero by the incompetence of this Government in managing the pandemic by means of...

Seanad: Ábhair Ghnó an tSeanaid - Matters on the Business of the Seanad (5 Nov 2020)

Sharon Keogan: Considerable attention has been given recently by the Oireachtas and the media to the ways in which the State has failed the women of Ireland. From that litany of failures, two examples include the suffering of women as a result of inadequacies in the provision of healthcare, such as the continuing CervicalCheck controversy, and the failure of this State to prevent the abuse of women in...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Children and Youth Affairs: Sustainable Development Goals and Departmental Priorities: Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth (3 Nov 2020)

Sharon Keogan: The Minister is welcome and I am delighted to be able to speak to him. I would like a copy of the data protection impact assessment statement and all records that the Minister is holding and is the data controller of, if that is possible. The Minister says the final report is under review by the Department. Why is it under review? What will be published and what will be amended in that...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Children and Youth Affairs: Sustainable Development Goals and Departmental Priorities: Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth (3 Nov 2020)

Sharon Keogan: On Tusla increasing the number of residential care spaces, I wonder why the Minister promotes that method of childcare. Fostering in a family home environment, whether it is by single parents or another type of fostering, is much better for any child than residential care where the children have social workers coming in to look after them 24-7. I do not want to see the Minister promoting...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Children and Youth Affairs: Sustainable Development Goals and Departmental Priorities: Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth (3 Nov 2020)

Sharon Keogan: Yes.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Children and Youth Affairs: Sustainable Development Goals and Departmental Priorities: Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth (3 Nov 2020)

Sharon Keogan: There is an anomaly with regard to apprenticeships for children under the age of 18. An apprentice in that category cannot get any payment whatsoever. Can the Minister talk to the Minister for Social Protection? It does not matter what we give these teenagers. If they are aged between 16 and 18 years, they cannot get anything. They did not get anything during the first lockdown. Can the...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Children and Youth Affairs: Sustainable Development Goals and Departmental Priorities: Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth (3 Nov 2020)

Sharon Keogan: I have highlighted the matter with the Minister for Social Protection.

Seanad: Residential Tenancies Bill 2020: Second Stage (23 Oct 2020)

Sharon Keogan: The Minister is welcome to the House. I wish him well in his portfolio. He has taken on the role with gusto. I believe he will make changes to affordable and social housing and I have great confidence in him. I will support the Bill and a number of the proposed amendments. While it gives certainty to those who are renting and bans evictions, my main concern is the ten-day grace period,...

Seanad: Commission of Investigation (Mother and Baby Homes and certain related Matters) Records, and another Matter, Bill 2020: [Seanad Bill amended by the Dáil] Report and Final Stages (23 Oct 2020)

Sharon Keogan: I welcome the redaction part of the legislation that the Minister has taken up from Senators Boyhan and McDowell. What happens to the data of an individual who gave a testimony to the confidential committee and is now deceased? Does any individual named in that testimony have access to that data? Are such individuals contacted? How will the victims be contacted for opting in and opting...

Seanad: Health (Amendment) Bill 2020: Second Stage (23 Oct 2020)

Sharon Keogan: There is no greater tyranny than that which is perpetrated under the shield of the law and in the name of justice. I oppose this Bill, both its spirit and letter. I also oppose the way that it and other measures such as the extension of the sunset clause for Part 3 of the Health Act 2020 and other draconian legislation which underpins this Bill are being railroaded through the Oireachtas...

Seanad: Health (Amendment) Bill 2020: Committee and Remaining Stages (23 Oct 2020)

Sharon Keogan: The Dáil is still sitting.