Results 1,861-1,880 of 3,757 for speaker:Michael Collins

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Regulation of Sale and Supply of Pets and Animal Welfare: Discussion (1 Jun 2021)

Michael Collins: I thank the Chair. If not for his co-operation this debate might never have taken place so that is much appreciated. I welcome the witnesses from Horse Care Ireland. I have a few questions for them but appreciate that they might not be able to explain the whole system to us. It looks like a good proposal but I need to get it into my head. The opening statement states: The online...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Regulation of Sale and Supply of Pets and Animal Welfare: Discussion (1 Jun 2021)

Michael Collins: The farming community has seen, at first hand, the shocking attacks on sheep and the worrying of other farm animals by dogs that are not controlled. Mr. Collins stated that in discussions in respect of these problems, the concept of an online passport emerged. Perhaps Mr. Collins can explain that further and how its introduction might eradicate the attacks on sheep by dogs.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Regulation of Sale and Supply of Pets and Animal Welfare: Discussion (1 Jun 2021)

Michael Collins: My next question concerns the annual spend on animal welfare of €6 million, the issue of unidentified animals and responsible ownership. The taxpayer is being exposed. Does Mr. Collins see a solution here?

Health (Amendment) Act 2021: Motion (27 May 2021)

Michael Collins: In theory, mandatory hotel quarantine was a smart measure to slow and stop the introduction of new variants. In practice, our system quickly accelerated from being problematic to being dangerous. Ireland’s version of quarantine exacerbates the difficulties involved, distinguishes between the between the rich and poor, ignores science and puts front-line workers and their communities...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (27 May 2021)

Michael Collins: I thank the fishing organisations for the peaceful protest in Cork yesterday. I was disappointed to think we have two senior Ministers, Deputies Coveney and McGrath, and our Taoiseach, who I found out afterwards was canvassing around Dublin Bay North, did not bother to meet with the peaceful protesters in Dublin. No Fine Gael politician turned up, which is a disappointment, but remember,...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (27 May 2021)

Michael Collins: Let us take a closer look at the grants that have been given out over recent years. West Cork and Cork county were continuously overlooked in recent years. Look at the rural regeneration funds. West Cork had a shovel-ready project which ticked all the boxes for two years, namely, the Schull Harbour development project, which could have created 100 jobs in a rural peninsula. I pleaded with...

Covid-19 Vaccine Roll-out: Statements (27 May 2021)

Michael Collins: I intend to use my time for questions and answers. Elderly people in my constituency of Cork South-West, especially the housebound, are concerned. I have always known that the ambulance service is flat out to the mat in the normal daily work it has to do, and it is the ambulance service that must administer vaccinations to the housebound. Has the Government looked at another mechanism for...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Forestry Issues: Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (27 May 2021)

Michael Collins: I thank the witnesses for coming before us today. This issue is exasperating, to say the least, and we are under severe pressure to resolve it, as politicians on the ground. It does not look like it is being resolved and it is costing the industry and costing many people jobs. The pressure is unbelievable. I have a number of questions. I hope I do not read them too quickly but I would...

Health and Criminal Justice (Covid-19) (Amendment) Bill 2021 [Seanad]: Second Stage (26 May 2021)

Michael Collins: At the outset, I wish to thank the Minister. I have often spoken in the House about Vera Twomey's situation during the Covid-19 crisis. I often asked the Minister to liaise with her. His staff have done so and they had a successful discussion. I wish to put that on the record and to thank the Minister for it. It is very important for Ms Twomey and for other people who are in that...

Annexation of Palestine: Motion [Private Members] (25 May 2021)

Michael Collins: We have all seen across our news channels and social media the images of children, women and men who are being left distraught at what has happened between Israel and Palestine. In the past nine days or so, 66 children have been killed. That is 66 children too many. Nearly 450 buildings in the Gaza Strip have been destroyed or badly damaged, including six hospitals and nine primary care...

International Travel and Aviation: Statements (25 May 2021)

Michael Collins: I thank my colleagues, Deputies Mattie McGrath, O'Donoghue and Michael Healy-Rae for giving me time to speak to this very important matter. It has been well flagged for months now that thousands of aviation workers are facing permanent unemployment if the Government keeps dragging its heels. There is a further complication with Cork Airport because there are plans to close it for a few...

An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (25 May 2021)

Michael Collins: I raise the same matter that was mentioned some moments ago. The Minister must be aware of the comprehensive report published yesterday by the All-Island Research Observatory at Maynooth University, which states that Cork County Council had the lowest levels of funding over the past number of decades, including the lowest CLÁR funding per capitadespite having the highest population...

An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (25 May 2021)

Michael Collins: I am calling for a task force to deal with the matter. Will the Minister support me in requesting the establishment of a task force for Cork county and west Cork?

An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (25 May 2021)

Michael Collins: The Minister is well aware that tomorrow, the biggest crisis in the fishing industry will lead to protests throughout the country. It will probably be the biggest fishing industry protest for decades. We have had a disastrous term with regard to fishing and Brexit, in which the Minister and the Government have been caught asleep at the wheel.

An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (25 May 2021)

Michael Collins: Now we have been led into a catch weighing crisis that is out of all proportion, as the Sea-Fisheries Protection Authority, SFPA, and the Minister now accept. They knew about it in December and did not acknowledge it to the industry until April. I am asking for a debate on this issue today. It is a serious issue. The fishermen of Ireland will protest tomorrow in massive numbers. This can...

Nursing Homes Support Scheme (Amendment) Bill 2021: Second Stage (Resumed) (19 May 2021)

Michael Collins: I thank the Minister of State for bringing this Bill before us today. It has been a long time in the offing. There was a lot of discussion on this issue with the previous Government since I was elected in 2016 but it led to little or nothing. Perhaps there was some work going on behind the scenes but it was certainly not being addressed in the manner in which it should have been, so we...

Water and Wastewater Treatment Services: Motion [Private Members] (19 May 2021)

Michael Collins: First, I thank the Regional Group for tabling this important motion. It states that 35 towns and villages across the State continue to discharge raw sewage into nearby waters, according to a recent EPA report. That figure is far lower than I expected because many towns in my constituency of Cork South-West are suffering that sad fate. Obviously, the politicians on the ground, be they...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Forestry Sector (19 May 2021)

Michael Collins: 181. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the reason licensing targets are consistently being missed by over 50% given all the resources now available to the Forest Service and the Forestry Appeals Committee; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26758/21]

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Fishing Industry (19 May 2021)

Michael Collins: 182. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he will address matters in relation to the purchase of new fishing vessels (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26770/21]

Affordable Housing: Motion [Private Members] (18 May 2021)

Michael Collins: We have been talking about housing since I got here in 2016. Unfortunately, we have gone from one housing crisis to another. I know now why there is a crisis in housing. It is because of the Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil parties. They are backed up now by their buddies in the Greens. They are the cause of the problem and the nightmare. Young people in rural Ireland want to build on...