Results 1-17 of 17 for other and baby speaker:Feargal Quinn

Seanad: Appointment of Ombudsman for Children: Motion (12 Feb 2015)

Feargal Quinn: I welcome the Minister and thank him for giving us such an explanation of Dr. Muldoon's CV, if I may say that. It seems to me that we have exactly the right man in Dr. Muldoon. The role is important given that we have such a young population that is also increasing at the fastest rate in the EU. We need someone who can listen to children, and based on what we have heard today from various...

Seanad: Improving the Quality of Early Years Education: Statements (21 Jan 2015)

Feargal Quinn: ...her here again. She attends regularly. I am reminded of when she was a Member here. Her interest in this topic was evident then. I wondered what I would speak about today. I have five children and 16 grandchildren and, therefore, have some experience from that point of view. My other experience is that, in my business approximately 40 years ago, we established playhouses in each of...

Seanad: Employment Permits (Amendment) Bill 2014: Second Stage (9 Jul 2014)

Feargal Quinn: I welcome the Minister. He is getting fond of this House and seems to be coming in quite a lot in recent days. The Bill covers a range of issues related to employment permits. I welcome the fact that it addresses the loophole related to the dreadful treatment of Mr. Mohammed Younis who was exploited for years. This is what I tried to achieve through a Bill I introduced about 18 months...

Seanad: Social Welfare and Pensions Bill 2014: Second Stage (26 Jun 2014)

Feargal Quinn: ...to hear the Minister's words about An Post, which seems to have taken more attention than anything else among the speakers here. I was involved in An Post for the first ten years of its life and like everybody else I have a good feeling about it. However, I want to ensure we are getting good business quotes from it. Having the Minister watch over with a big heavy stick if there is any...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Groceries Sector: Discussion (7 May 2013)

Feargal Quinn: I welcome the witnesses and thank them for coming before the committee. Most of the questions I was going to ask have been covered. Mr. Dempsey spoke about consumer foods and there is a danger involved in introducing an obesity tax. I raised this matter in the Seanad last week and spoke about what has been done in Denmark. There is little doubt it has shown a dramatic increase. It...

Seanad: Budget 2013: Statements (5 Dec 2012)

Feargal Quinn: ...of the economy. However, in this case the Minister, Deputy Noonan, listened to the voices that said we must prioritise jobs. He spoke about their being the lifeblood of the future. He listened and took a number of steps in that direction. He also recognised the importance of the SMEs and a great number of the steps he has taken will bring improvements in that sector. SMEs are so...

Seanad: Common Agricultural Policy: Motion (4 Oct 2012)

Feargal Quinn: ...do the same during the negotiations on CAP reform. We need to frame agriculture in terms of our overall economic recovery. I have looked at one or two particular countries. Politicians in New Zealand understand that their country's economic growth depends on innovation and value-added food production. They know that New Zealand must be an international leader in that field. We must get...

Seanad: Irish Water and Related Reforms: Statements (Resumed) (20 Sep 2012)

Feargal Quinn: She was very articulate as well. I was here for the Minister of State's speech and I heard what he said although I had to leave for a little while. I was most surprised when I read of the Minister's dealings relating to water meters with the private company Siemens. Siemens is one of the world's largest companies and employs cutting edge technology. It was involved in building the Shannon...

Seanad: Developments in the European Union and Ireland's Presidency of the European Council: Statements with An Taoiseach (18 Jul 2012)

Feargal Quinn: Yesterday, I met a leprechaun who gave me a pot of gold and five wishes for the Irish Presidency. The first wish, reputation, was mentioned by the Taoiseach in his opening statement. I have been involved in European affairs in Brussels for the past years. When we started we were highly regarded but our reputation has since become tarnished. It is interesting to see how our reputation has...

Seanad: Finance Bill 2012: Second Stage (21 Mar 2012)

Feargal Quinn: I welcome the Minister of State to the House and I welcome the Bill. My daughter, Gillian, studied under Senator Barrett in Trinity College and graduated in 1988, one of a group of 38. The day after her graduation, 37 of the group emigrated. Those who talk about how difficult times are now - I agree times are difficult - should be reminded that we have gone through difficult times in the...

Seanad: Gender-Based Violence: Motion (26 Oct 2011)

Feargal Quinn: ...of their sex. Deaths in childbirth account for about a third of the overall number of missing women. An even larger share derives from the 1.43 million girls missing at birth, mainly in China and India. An article in The Economist, entitled The War on Baby Girls, said: "It is no exaggeration to call this phenomenon gendercide." Why does it happen? As has been well documented, male...

Seanad: Order of Business (29 Jun 2011)

Feargal Quinn: I add my voice to the congratulations that have been extended on the birth of baby Finn Cullinane. I am not sure if the name was chosen because it rhymes with "Sinn". I congratulate Senator Cullinane, his wife and his parents. I join others in expressing concern about rushed legislation. It is something we have to avoid. We should never do this. Legislation has been rushed in the past....

Seanad: Tourism Industry: Statements (25 Mar 2009)

Feargal Quinn: I welcome the Minister of State to the House. I am one of those people who grew up in the tourism business and welcome the opportunity to speak on the issue. I am not going to point out what the Government should do to solve the difficulties because the current difficulties will not be solved by the Government but by ourselves. I grew up in the tourism business and I advise anybody...

Seanad: Development of the West: Statements (24 Feb 2009)

Feargal Quinn: I welcome the Minister and Senator Doherty's report. When I was seven years of age my party piece was "The West's Awake". It is a smashing song and I remember it well. I was impressed by the words Senator Doherty used in the report. The purpose of the report is to identify these social and economic needs of the west and to bring forward proposals for redevelopment. There appears to be a...

Seanad: Human Body Organs and Human Tissue Bill 2008: Second Stage (1 Oct 2008)

Feargal Quinn: I thank the Minister of State for attending the House for this debate. The objective of the Bill is to save lives. Ireland has a rate of organ donation approximately half that of Spain, which has had what is termed a "presumed consent" system in operation for some years. There is no legislative framework in Ireland governing the use or withholding of consent in regard to the donation of...

Seanad: European Union Reform Treaty: Statements (12 Dec 2007)

Feargal Quinn: I welcome the Minister of State and wish to concur with the words Senator Leyden has just used, about Deputy Roche's enthusiasm, which is great to hear. I experienced such enthusiasm first in 1958 when the Minister of State was perhaps only a baby. Going to Brussels and later France and spending winter in that part of the world was like going to Australia or New Zealand nowadays. It was an...

Seanad: Electoral (Amendment) Bill 2004: Second Stage. (7 May 2004)

Feargal Quinn: ..., it is important because it comes to the House after the publication of the first report of the Commission on Electronic Voting, published after Committee Stage of the Bill was completed in the other House. It falls to the Seanad, therefore, to carry out the revision of the Bill that is so clearly needed in the changed circumstances created by the commission's report. I hope that in the...