Results 241-260 of 704 for speaker:John Kelly

Seanad: Order of Business (23 Jan 2014)

John Kelly: The Insolvency Service of Ireland employs 90 staff at its offices on the Conyngham Road and there has been one resolution to date using the insolvency legislation. It appears that only people with money can access the service. Nobody in authority can tell us who pays for the personal insolvency practitioner. The reality is that personal insolvency practitioners will take on cases where -...

Seanad: Order of Business (22 Jan 2014)

John Kelly: I support calls for the setting up of the charities regulator as a matter of urgency considering what we have read today about the level of profit received by Rehab for the sale of €4 million worth of lottery tickets. I was a voluntary, part-time fund-raiser for the Irish Wheelchair Association between 1980 and 1987. Every penny I raised for the association went directly to it. In...

Seanad: Road Traffic (No. 2) Bill 2013: Second Stage (21 Jan 2014)

John Kelly: I do not propose to use all of the time available to me or to regurgitate everything that has already been said. I merely wish to make a couple of observations, on which I would appreciate the Minister's feedback. Senator Barrett cited statistics which indicate that younger learner drivers are not really the major offenders on our roads. As one drives throughout the country on our major...

Seanad: Order of Business (21 Jan 2014)

John Kelly: I agree with Senator Quinn's point that governments deserve to be applauded wherever they make a U-turn on decisions that are fundamentally wrong. The imposition of pylons and wind farms on ordinary people in rural Ireland in particular has been continually raised in this House. It was interesting to read recent media reports which suggest that the EU plans to row back significantly on our...

Seanad: Valuation (Amendment) Bill 2013: Second Stage (16 Jan 2014)

John Kelly: I did not indicate a wish to speak, but I have a question for the Minister. Is it true that the valuation Bill does not apply to existing buildings retrospectively? If so, my one concern is that new multinationals will view the Bill as an obstacle to moving into rural towns because they will be subjected to a different rate from that paid by multinationals that are already located in towns.

Seanad: Order of Business (16 Jan 2014)

John Kelly: I welcome the announcement made yesterday by the Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, Deputy Jimmy Deenihan, on the turf cutting issue. Because of the great work the Minister has done, the number of planned designated natural heritage area, NHA, bogs havs been reduced from 3,000 to 500. In other words, 2,500 bogs have been de-designated. In my native county of Roscommon 435 plots...

Seanad: Order of Business (19 Dec 2013)

John Kelly: I want to respond to Senator Ó Clochartaigh's concerns about rural broadband. Eircom is investing €400 million in delivering fibre-optic broadband to 1.2 million homes. It recently announced that it is extending that to 1.4 million homes - an extra 200,000 homes. It will be extended to 562 communities around the country. An extra 22 communities in my county of Roscommon are...

Seanad: Order of Business (19 Dec 2013)

John Kelly: The Senator should have a look at the website.

Seanad: Order of Business (18 Dec 2013)

John Kelly: He was referring to pylons rather than wind farms.

Seanad: Order of Business (18 Dec 2013)

John Kelly: Like previous speakers, I congratulate Mr. Eddie Downey on his fabulous achievement. I was delighted by the stance he took during his election campaign to the effect that he is opposed to both wind turbines and pylons. This proves that the majority of farmers do not support the various projects which are proposed and which will lead to the landscape being destroyed.

Seanad: Order of Business (18 Dec 2013)

John Kelly: I support the call made earlier in the week by Senator Cullinane for a debate on poverty. When one comes to work each morning, one is struck by the number of people begging and each evening one is confronted by many individuals seeking money. In addition, every morning one can see many people lying in doorways. I have raised this matter in the Chamber on previous occasions. It is...

Seanad: Order of Business (18 Dec 2013)

John Kelly: -----but apparently they are not receiving them. When one takes everything I have just stated into account, it becomes clear that there is a need for a debate on this matter. The facts must be placed on the record and if it requires bringing the Minister for Social Protection before the House to explain the position to the people, so be it. The various parts of the social welfare system...

Seanad: Order of Business (17 Dec 2013)

John Kelly: I support my colleague, Senator Whelan's, request for a debate on the review of the wind energy guidelines. The date for further submissions is 21 February, so I suggest that the debate take place in early February. This will be another bubble if it is not dealt with, as we have said repeatedly in the House. I advise people who have an interest in this subject to look at the documentary...

Seanad: Order of Business (12 Dec 2013)

John Kelly: In February 2012 I introduced the Wind Turbines Bill in the House and it was passed with flying colours. Eight months ago, as a result of the legislation, the Department decided, with the help of the Minister, to review the wind energy guidelines. Hundreds of submissions were made to it, mostly about the setback distance of wind turbines from family homes. The Department addressed the...

Seanad: Order of Business (11 Dec 2013)

John Kelly: For a long time many economists, including Colm McCarthy whom the Government is happy to reference and quote on a regular basis, have referred to the wind energy strategy as economic lunacy, a disaster and not financially viable. The previous Government was warned by the same economists that we were in a property bubble. It did not listen and it cost taxpayers €64 billion. The wind...

Seanad: Adjournment Matters: Cycling Facilities Provision (4 Dec 2013)

John Kelly: I would like to ask the Minister of State with responsibility for sustainable transport, Deputy Alan Kelly, to consider establishing a small group to oversee the delivery of a national network of off-road cycle trails in order to assist with the timely delivery of the national cycling strategy and to create a network of trails to attract some of the cycling tourism business which is so...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport and Communications: Electricity Transmission Network: Discussion with EirGrid (4 Dec 2013)

John Kelly: What about the flawed consultation process whereby 10,000 letters went missing from around my area? We still have not got an explanation about how that happened.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport and Communications: Electricity Transmission Network: Discussion with EirGrid (4 Dec 2013)

John Kelly: I know all that.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport and Communications: Electricity Transmission Network: Discussion with EirGrid (4 Dec 2013)

John Kelly: I wish to put a final supplementary question relating to a response from the project manager for the Grid West project to a constituent of yours, Chairman. He said the project was funded by direct payments from wind developers as well as the bills of the electricity users. Could we get a breakdown of the figures relating to what the wind developers are paying towards this project? Then we...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport and Communications: Electricity Transmission Network: Discussion with EirGrid (4 Dec 2013)

John Kelly: I welcome the EirGrid team. I have been watching the proceedings in my office for the past hour and a half. I have a number of questions to which I want answers. There are also a number of observations I wish to make. Following the submission made by Deputy Michelle Mulherin, I believe the Minister would be agreeable to a cost benefit analysis of all three projects. The Minister has said...