Results 121-140 of 2,156 for speaker:Tom Parlon

Seanad: Houses of the Oireachtas Commission Bill 2002: Committee Stage. (1 Jul 2003)

Tom Parlon: I am amused and fascinated by Senator Mansergh struggling with his loyalty to this House or loyalty to his party. He is clearly having difficulty.

Seanad: Houses of the Oireachtas Commission Bill 2002: Committee Stage. (1 Jul 2003)

Tom Parlon: I understand fully the reason Members of this House would want their own head of staff to be a member of the commission. It is very laudable.

Seanad: Houses of the Oireachtas Commission Bill 2002: Committee Stage. (1 Jul 2003)

Tom Parlon: It is laudable, I will go no further than that. It reminds me of situations in the GAA where people want their own team member on the team, regardless of the job.

Seanad: Houses of the Oireachtas Commission Bill 2002: Committee Stage. (1 Jul 2003)

Tom Parlon: I did not get a chance to respond when the Leader of the House was taking great affront at the deliberate attempts to downgrade the House. As a spokesman for the Government I would not dream for a minute of attempting—

Seanad: Houses of the Oireachtas Commission Bill 2002: Committee Stage. (1 Jul 2003)

Tom Parlon: Whoever who comes in here in a wearisome manner, it is not I. I have never felt under an obligation to come. I have always been fascinated and delighted with the opportunity to come to this House. The Clerk of the Dáil will act as Secretary General of the Houses of the Oireachtas Commission and I am sure the Leader of the House will accept that one person in that capacity is quite...

Seanad: Houses of the Oireachtas Commission Bill 2002: Committee Stage. (1 Jul 2003)

Tom Parlon: In terms of the experiment suggested, it would not suit the case here. We could keep on adding to the commission until it was bigger than this House or the Dáil, under the proposals that have been made. As far as partnership is concerned, the staff in this House work very long hours depending on the legislation that is going through. This week is an example. There is a suggestion that as...

Seanad: Houses of the Oireachtas Commission Bill 2002: Committee Stage. (1 Jul 2003)

Tom Parlon: The word "furnished" may be missing, possibly after the words "shall be" on line 26.

Seanad: Houses of the Oireachtas Commission Bill 2002: Committee Stage. (1 Jul 2003)

Tom Parlon: However, as I am not certain, I wish to check with my officials.

Seanad: Houses of the Oireachtas Commission Bill 2002: Committee Stage. (1 Jul 2003)

Tom Parlon: To clarify, the subsection makes sense if one omits paragraph (a) as well as paragraph (b) up to and including the words paragraph (a) on line 33. It then reads: (3) In each year a statement of estimates of the Commission shall be– . furnished by the Secretary General to the Minister not later than 30 days before the presentation by the Minister to Dáil Éireann of the Estimates of the...

Seanad: Houses of the Oireachtas Commission Bill 2002: Committee Stage. (1 Jul 2003)

Tom Parlon: The word is required in paragraph (b) to explain the timing of the furnishing of the statement of Estimates to the Minister, in other words, when Dáil Éireann has taken note of the statement in accordance with paragraph (a).

Seanad: Houses of the Oireachtas Commission Bill 2002: Committee Stage. (1 Jul 2003)

Tom Parlon: Yes.

Seanad: Houses of the Oireachtas Commission Bill 2002: Committee Stage. (1 Jul 2003)

Tom Parlon: No. Question put and agreed to. Section 14 agreed to.

Seanad: Houses of the Oireachtas Commission Bill 2002: Report and Final Stages. (2 Jul 2003)

Tom Parlon: We have ploughed much of this ground before. It is necessary to set out the formal process for the appointment of the deputy chairperson, and the Bill simply states the appointment is to be made in writing by the chairperson of the commission. We know who that will be. I know it has been and surely will be for a while the subject of much debate as to who the deputy chairperson should be and...

Seanad: Houses of the Oireachtas Commission Bill 2002: Report and Final Stages. (2 Jul 2003)

Tom Parlon: It was with some trepidation that I entered the House today, having been reminded yesterday by the Leader of my privileged, guest status here. The Leader and other Senators made strong overtures to me on this proposal and sought an instant and positive response. I came to the House with one hand as long as the other which exacerbated my trepidation as did calls from Senators to do the right...

Seanad: Houses of the Oireachtas Commission Bill 2002: Report and Final Stages. (2 Jul 2003)

Tom Parlon: Neither the Minister nor I could dismiss the case put to us without giving it serious consideration and nor did we feel comfortable about some of the charges implicitly made during yesterday's proceedings, when we were alleged to have either demeaned or affronted a House of the Oireachtas. This accusation left me uneasy and I chose not to respond to it immediately. It was also suggested that...

Seanad: Houses of the Oireachtas Commission Bill 2002: Report and Final Stages. (2 Jul 2003)

Tom Parlon: It was implied that senior civil servants have a negative influence on the Minister and me. The suggestion that we are being led blinkered into taking a dangerous position has upset both of us. When asked yesterday to consider this proposal, I did not commit to giving it serious thought. Nevertheless, both the Minister and I considered the matter overnight. Whereas the Minister has had a long...

Seanad: Houses of the Oireachtas Commission Bill 2002: Report and Final Stages. (2 Jul 2003)

Tom Parlon: It would be most tragic— (Interruptions).

Seanad: Houses of the Oireachtas Commission Bill 2002: Report and Final Stages. (2 Jul 2003)

Tom Parlon: The office will serve two Houses but will have more than three prongs. Each House has a Clerk and assistant Clerk and the joint staff has its own tribe of heads of functions dealing with different aspects of the service it provides. This group also has its chief, who does not have a related title, but also happens to be the Clerk of the Dáil. It is the work already undertaken by the Clerk...

Seanad: Houses of the Oireachtas Commission Bill 2002: Report and Final Stages. (2 Jul 2003)

Tom Parlon: The elected representatives on the commission will make decisions on behalf of the elected Members of the Houses. The decision makers will include Members of the Seanad, the Cathaoirleach and the three ordinary members. The main decisions will be taken by the commission, not the Civil Service backup. My previous job, in the course of which I crossed paths with Senator Mansergh, involved...

Seanad: Adjournment Matters. - Landslide Relief. (15 Oct 2003)

Tom Parlon: I thank the Senator for raising this matter on the Adjournment. On my behalf and on behalf of the Government I express sympathy to everyone affected by the recent landslides in north Mayo, as articulated by the Senator. I have had firsthand reports from a number of people there. It was a traumatic experience for everyone and my heart goes out to them. The impact and extent of the damage...