Results 101-120 of 1,760 for speaker:Aideen Hayden

Seanad: Treaty on Stability, Coordination and Governance in the Economic and Monetary Union: Statements (14 Mar 2012)

Aideen Hayden: Like everybody else, I welcome the fact we are having this important debate. I agree with Senator Darragh O'Brien and believe the support of Fianna Fáil for the treaty is crucial at a time when, as an economy, we are trying to move forward. I was struck by a piece on RTE by Ms Olivia O'Leary where she basically said that rather than having us all sitting around, castigating Fianna Fáil at...

Seanad: Treaty on Stability, Coordination and Governance in the Economic and Monetary Union: Statements (14 Mar 2012)

Aideen Hayden: I am inclined to agree with her.

Seanad: Treaty on Stability, Coordination and Governance in the Economic and Monetary Union: Statements (14 Mar 2012)

Aideen Hayden: I am also inclined to accept a certain amount of what Senator Darragh O'Brien has said. This is an incredibly important treaty. I make no excuse for saying straight up that I am very much a pro-European. I have worked and lived in Europe and have worked within the European Community. I saw at first hand back in the 1980s and 1990s the importance of Europe to this country and State. There...

Seanad: Treaty on Stability, Coordination and Governance in the Economic and Monetary Union: Statements (14 Mar 2012)

Aideen Hayden: Warning bells went off and there was criticism from the EU about the way our economic policy was going. Not to put too fine a point on it, two fingers were given to the advice we were getting from Europe. There was the Boston v. Berlin argument, and the "we knew better" approach. The fact of the matter is that we did not know better. When it came right down to it, which were we going to...

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

Aideen Hayden: I welcome the Minister of the State, Deputy Brian Hayes, to the House. Ireland has experienced the most severe recession in the history of the State. Some of this is as a result of international difficulties but some of our difficulties are the result of domestic mistakes made in the past. I am not going to dwell on what other Governments did or did not do or whether the neo-liberal...

Seanad: Order of Business (22 Mar 2012)

Aideen Hayden: Like a number of other speakers I welcome the move on the promissory notes and the recognition internationally that we are making an effort as a country and that we need movement to allow the country to grow and move on. More than 100,000 families would like the same type of consideration. These are the 100,000 families in mortgage arrears who cannot move on with their lives until we come...

Seanad: Finance Bill 2012 (Certified Money Bill): Committee and Remaining Stages (22 Mar 2012)

Aideen Hayden: I agree with the Minister, in that the ESRI does not have a monopoly on ultimate truth. It is important to point out that, in recent years, widespread use has been made of the pre-budget process whereby organisations have the capacity to approach Departments, in particular the Department of Social Protection, concerning the impacts of proposed and supposed measures on the lowest deciles in...

Seanad: Finance Bill 2012 (Certified Money Bill): Committee and Remaining Stages (22 Mar 2012)

Aideen Hayden: My colleagues and I appreciate the Senator's statement and will follow his lead in this matter.

Seanad: Finance Bill 2012 (Certified Money Bill): Committee and Remaining Stages (22 Mar 2012)

Aideen Hayden: Does Senator Cullinane honestly believe Members on this side of the House want to increase VAT? The issue is clear. We have to save a certain amount of money. The Senator acknowledged that we are spending more than we earn. Senator Reilly forgot to mention that we retained the lower rate of VAT on food and children's clothing. She picked several issues but she neglected to mention the...

Seanad: Finance Bill 2012 (Certified Money Bill): Committee and Remaining Stages (22 Mar 2012)

Aideen Hayden: The reality is -----

Seanad: Finance Bill 2012 (Certified Money Bill): Committee and Remaining Stages (22 Mar 2012)

Aideen Hayden: We are living in the middle of an international financial crisis.

Seanad: Finance Bill 2012 (Certified Money Bill): Committee and Remaining Stages (22 Mar 2012)

Aideen Hayden: If the Senator feels that strongly about it I hope his party is able to support the treaty referendum -----

Seanad: Finance Bill 2012 (Certified Money Bill): Committee and Remaining Stages (22 Mar 2012)

Aideen Hayden: ----- so that we can re-establish some confidence in the eurozone and in this country.

Seanad: Housing Policy: Statements, Questions and Answers (28 Mar 2012)

Aideen Hayden: I welcome the Minister of State and pay tribute to the former Minister of State, Deputy Willie Penrose. While I am at it, I also pay tribute to previous Ministers of State, Bobby Molloy, Michael Finneran and Noel Ahern. We all agree that housing policy is incremental and does not just fall from the sky. Good things have been done in the last ten or 15 years which, although we are going...

Seanad: Housing Policy: Statements, Questions and Answers (28 Mar 2012)

Aideen Hayden: As Senator Ó Domhnaill said, the issue of mortgage lending must be addressed. If the pillar banks will not comply, we must look at other options. We may have to go back to the local authority model under which considerable amounts of lending was made to low-income people. Alternatively, the credit unions may be able to offer some solution. Let us not forget either that we own the Irish...

Seanad: Human Trafficking and Prostitution: Motion (18 Apr 2012)

Aideen Hayden: I was heartened by the Minister's speech. He has raised a number of very important points. We in this House must ask ourselves why we are here today. We are here because the Minister made a commitment that was not adhered to. Ministers who come to the Seanad will be much more cautious about giving commitments to Members than they were in the past. The lesson is that if a Minister finds...

Seanad: Sale of State Assets: Statements, Questions and Answers (19 Apr 2012)

Aideen Hayden: The sale of State assets in periods of economic crisis is not unusual. I remind Senator Byrne that the largest State sale ever was the sale of State housing starting in 1988 when in three years we sold off 30% of our entire housing stock. I ask the Minister to take the opportunity of the privatisation of State assets not just to look at a share sale which is the most common way of...

Seanad: Thirtieth Amendment of the Constitution (Treaty on Stability, Coordination and Governance in the Economic and Monetary Union) Bill 2012: Committee and Remaining Stages (24 Apr 2012)

Aideen Hayden: I draw Senators' attention to the fact that the treaty title, Treaty on Stability, Coordination and Governance in the Economic and Monetary Union, does not refer to growth, water charges, carers or any of the other issues raised by Sinn Féin Senators. Europe has been much too slow to take action on the euro and the current process is an attempt to bring under control the tsunami that has...

Seanad: Thirtieth Amendment of the Constitution (Treaty on Stability, Coordination and Governance in the Economic and Monetary Union) Bill 2012: Committee and Remaining Stages (24 Apr 2012)

Aideen Hayden: The Senator is correct. The treaty is not about being a member of the European Union and anybody who makes such a suggestion is scaremongering. However, on the question of whether it is about membership of the euro, although that may not be the case in the immediate short term, rejection of the treaty would fundamentally undermine our membership of the euro in the long term. It has been...

Seanad: Order of Business (1 May 2012)

Aideen Hayden: Today is 1 May, international labour day. It is also the feast of St. Joseph, the carpenter. Whatever one's perspective, be it socialist or Roman Catholic, it is a day to celebrate.