Results 18,261-18,280 of 19,173 for speaker:Shane Ross

Seanad: Order of Business (25 Oct 2006)

Shane Ross: It is a prime example of political activities by parties taking precedence over public interests.

Seanad: Order of Business (18 Oct 2006)

Shane Ross: I thank Senator Brian Hayes for raising the issue of Tallaght Hospital and I add my voice to those who believe there should be a full debate on the matter in this House. I am astonished that the matter has not been fully debated. The issue at stake is not so much denominational as it is political, with the location of the hospital ending up in the Taoiseach's constituency. That does not...

Seanad: Order of Business (18 Oct 2006)

Shane Ross: We will not debate it.

Seanad: Order of Business (18 Oct 2006)

Shane Ross: I will ask a question to the Acting Leader and then finish. It is not only a Dublin issue. More than anybody, it affects the people of Tallaght, which has the fastest-growing population in Ireland. However, the Mater Hospital is inaccessible to a large number of people who may need treatment extremely quickly. Will the Acting Leader tell the House why we cannot have a children's hospital...

Seanad: Order of Business (Resumed) (11 Oct 2006)

Shane Ross: I thank Senator Leyden for the cue. I was going to call on the Minister for Transport to come to the House to apologise for the Aer Lingus flotation but, as Senator Leyden said, resignation would probably be more appropriate in these circumstances. There is an unanswerable case for the Leader to talk to her less salubrious successor and ask him to come to the House, not just to apologise...

Seanad: Order of Business (Resumed) (11 Oct 2006)

Shane Ross: Will the Leader ask the Minister for Transport why he is employing the same advisers who got him into this mess to advise him out of this mess?

Seanad: Order of Business (Resumed) (11 Oct 2006)

Shane Ross: Why does he not sack them and at least employ someone else who will give him proper advice?

Seanad: Postal Services (4 Oct 2006)

Shane Ross: I raise this issue as a result of the appalling state of An Post and its delivery services. The Government should give an immediate commitment to the date for the liberalisation of postal services. It has come to my attention that at least one company is staying out of the postal services market because of the situation with An Post and its lack of confidence in the ability of the Minister...

Seanad: Postal Services (4 Oct 2006)

Shane Ross: I would like to ask a supplementary question. By way of remark I would say that the Minister of State's reply is not satisfactory. It does not answer any of the questions which I posed. This is, by its very nature, the form of this debate when the Minister comes here with a script. The script is preordained and it means he never addresses the issues raised by Senators on the Adjournment....

Seanad: Postal Services (4 Oct 2006)

Shane Ross: I would like to compliment the Minister of State — when he read the speech that was written for the senior Minister at least he paid some attention to it.

Seanad: Telecommunications Services: Motion (27 Sep 2006)

Shane Ross: The Minister of State will agree the sting is always in the tail. I am disappointed by the Government's response to this motion. I am disappointed in the Minister of State's reply but I am also disappointed in the amendment to the motion. I cannot understand why the Government has taken this somewhat hands-off attitude in its amendment, as though this was somebody else's responsibility. In...

Seanad: Telecommunications Services: Motion (27 Sep 2006)

Shane Ross: Do I have five minutes left?

Seanad: Telecommunications Services: Motion (27 Sep 2006)

Shane Ross: I am just finished. I was encouraged by one statement made by the Minister of State, when he said he was looking at the possibilities of introducing broadband in outlying areas. That is encouraging. We should take it much further and make it an imperative rather than just a matter of discussion. Every household and small business should have broadband available to it. We must look upon...

Seanad: Telecommunications Services: Motion (27 Sep 2006)

Shane Ross: I move: That Seanad Éireann condemns the failure of the Government to ensure that broadband is available to every business and household in Ireland and calls on it to take immediate measures to remove us from the bottom of the European broadband league. Do I have 12 minutes?

Seanad: Telecommunications Services: Motion (27 Sep 2006)

Shane Ross: I move this motion on broadband in the full knowledge and with certain surprise that the number of column inches and the number of minutes devoted to broadband in this and the other House is painfully small. In his reply I would like the Minister of State to outline why broadband has had so little prominence in Irish political life in recent years. It seems to be one of the crying problems...

Seanad: Order of Business (27 Sep 2006)

Shane Ross: I endorse some of the words of Senators O'Toole, Ó Murchú and others on the restraint being shown on all sides of this House with regard to the political events of the past few days. It is extremely easy to sit in judgment on other people's integrity and exploit misfortunes for political advantage. I applaud that nobody in this House has done that. It is easy to convert the difficulties...

Seanad: Hospital Services. (6 Jul 2006)

Shane Ross: I am raising the issue of the run-down of the capital investment and the Government's commitment to the Adelaide and Meath Hospital in Tallaght. Concerns have been expressed by the hospital as the result of recent decisions. It is not just the recent decision on the location of the proposed national children's hospital. While the Adelaide may be losing its children's hospital, for some time...

Seanad: Hospital Services. (6 Jul 2006)

Shane Ross: I wish to ask a supplementary question as I believe I am entitled to do. I thank the Minister of State for departing from that particularly irrelevant brief, for which I do not blame him. I appreciate that he took the trouble to answer some of the questions and undertook to report my inquiry on the children's hospital and the dangers attached to taking that to the Mater Hospital alone, to the...

Seanad: Hospital Services. (6 Jul 2006)

Shane Ross: With the Minister of State's brother?

Seanad: Building Societies (Amendment) Bill 2006: Second Stage. (6 Jul 2006)

Shane Ross: I share Senator O'Toole's rather romantic view of a perfect world and how it would be very nice if we could all support each other in buying houses. I was a great believer in mutual societies for a long time because I thought that they were doing that. The evidence now is that this does not happen any more. None of the building societies remaining does this and would not survive in the market...