Results 141-160 of 19,173 for speaker:Shane Ross

Seanad: Road Safety: Motion. (14 May 2003)

Shane Ross: That is not a point of order. There are no points of information in this House. I agree with Senator Wilson that the Minister is a breath of fresh air in the Government in that he has introduced measures which others feared to introduce and did not introduce when they were in power. What is going on? The penalty points system is a great success for the Government for one reason only – it...

Seanad: Road Safety: Motion. (14 May 2003)

Shane Ross: —because there are no funds available.

Seanad: Road Safety: Motion. (14 May 2003)

Shane Ross: Where are the funds?

Seanad: Road Safety: Motion. (14 May 2003)

Shane Ross: I will. If members of the Opposition wish to produce the funds and tell us from where they are coming, that is fine but to talk about funding this, that and the other in isolation is apple pie and ice cream because they made a dog's dinner of funding initiatives when they were in power. Let us be honest about it. They were put out of power because they were not so good at managing Ireland's...

Seanad: Rural Development Policy: Statements (Resumed). - Third Level Fees: Motion. (21 May 2003)

Shane Ross: I thank Senator O'Toole for sharing his time. We are speaking in a vacuum because we do not know what the Government's proposals are at this stage. However, we know it proposes to reverse the decision which was taken some time ago. Like Senator O'Toole I opposed the introduction of free third level fees. That has been a sometimes difficult and sometimes easy road to travel. To suggest now,...

Seanad: Order of Business. (22 May 2003)

Shane Ross: I also congratulate the Leader, although in a less obscure way than some Members, on her great show of independence in the House last night.

Seanad: Order of Business. (22 May 2003)

Shane Ross: It is refreshing that the Leader of the House is prepared to take a different line to the that of the Government. Long may that last. Having been flattered by that kiss of death, will the Leader arrange for a debate on autism which is being discussed this morning by the Joint Committee on Health and Children? This is a devastating problem for which Government funding is required and it is,...

Seanad: Order of Business. (22 May 2003)

Shane Ross: It cannot, therefore, be tackled by, for example, putting children into one classroom and asking them to perform the same task. There is no uniform cure or palliative for this condition. We should debate this matter in the full knowledge that it is an extremely complex problem which – because everyone who suffers from it needs individual treatment – requires vast amounts of money.

Seanad: Order of Business. (22 May 2003)

Shane Ross: The Independent Senators have tabled a motion on this issue, but it will probably not be debated for a year. In my opinion, it deserves to be debated before the end of the year.

Seanad: Order of Business. (27 May 2003)

Shane Ross: Talking of Dick Turpin, it might be appropriate to have a debate on chief executives' pay, which is becoming a significant issue in the United Kingdom and Ireland. They are paying themselves vast sums of money while their shareholders are losing vast sums. This has remained uncontested by the large fund managers for far too long. Will the Leader state if we will have the debate on autism, of...

Seanad: Sustaining Progress: Statements. (27 May 2003)

Shane Ross: I have more than doubts about this document. I recognise that when a debate of this sort happens in this House, people take the opportunity to speak about anything they feel like. It is a very wide-ranging debate with very few interruptions from the Chair regarding relevance, simply because this document is so all-embracing that one can speak virtually on any issue affecting the public...

Seanad: Sustaining Progress: Statements. (27 May 2003)

Shane Ross: It is the sixth document of its sort, and Fianna Fáil backbenchers in particular will tell one privately that they have far less access to Ministers than those who are now dubbed the social partners. They have a democratic mandate, the social partners do not. This is not the most powerful of all the documents issued over the six-document period but is a programme that will, to a certain...

Seanad: Sustaining Progress: Statements. (27 May 2003)

Shane Ross: How many outside feel very strongly that it is a bad idea? Is it just coincidence that there is some sort of unanimity in the Houses, when outside there is no such unanimity? This arises from fear of the unions and an embarrassment that we are beneficiaries of this deal, which cannot be afforded. There are two extraordinary details in the document. One is the cosmetic nature of the...

Seanad: Sustaining Progress: Statements. (27 May 2003)

Shane Ross: It also goes on to talk about performance related committees to verify the performance of various public servants in getting these pay deals. This started with the teachers who have simply refused to work the time required of them by the social partners.

Seanad: Auctioneering Profession: Motion. (28 May 2003)

Shane Ross: I move: Seanad Éireann, seeking to ensure trust and confidence in the process of auctioneering, calls on the Government to establish a group, predominantly comprising non-auctioneers, for the special purpose of drawing up a Code of Ethics and Professional Standards applicable to auctioneers in the course of their professional work. Such Code to be implemented by order, regulation or...

Seanad: Auctioneering Profession: Motion. (28 May 2003)

Shane Ross: This serious motion, which is long overdue for debate, concerns the auctioneering profession. It is appropriate that it should come so soon after the previous debate on this subject. It concerns the self-regulation of the industry.

Seanad: Autism Services: Statements. (11 Jun 2003)

Shane Ross: I would like to share my time in rather unequal proportions with Senators Henry and Norris. I will give Senator Henry five minutes and Senator Norris one minute.

Seanad: Autism Services: Statements. (11 Jun 2003)

Shane Ross: I thank the Leader for providing an hour and a half for this debate, in response to a request I made to her. I thank the Minister of State, Deputy Tim O'Malley, for coming to the House to give us a comprehensive reply to some of the statements that have been made. I do not believe his speech was adequate, however, as it read like many of the presentations made to the Joint Committee on Health...

Seanad: Interest Rates Reduction: Statements. (12 Jun 2003)

Shane Ross: I am sure the Senator's grandmother had plenty of money. Otherwise she would not have treated any bank with such courage. That is the only moral one can draw from that story. I endorse what everyone has said this morning. To me, what has happened regarding the banks and the ECB cut is simply theft. It is subterfuge, but it is theft. There is only one purpose to ECB cuts. Whether the cut is...

Seanad: Interest Rates Reduction: Statements. (12 Jun 2003)

Shane Ross: With AIB having cut its rate by a smaller amount, the rate difference between the institutions is now so small that inertia exists, and people have no incentive to switch to other institutions. The banks know this. I am convinced that, as Senator O'Toole said, there is a cartel operating, that telephone calls are being made between banks, and that they agree on rates and on what action they...