Results 121-140 of 1,760 for speaker:Aideen Hayden

Seanad: Order of Business (25 Nov 2015)

Aideen Hayden: It is important to acknowledge that there has been progress in the health system. We have 700 more nurses in the system now than we had this time last year.

Seanad: Order of Business (25 Nov 2015)

Aideen Hayden: We now have more doctors in the system than at any time in the history of the State. I have no difficulty with having a debate on health and I am sure the Leader will facilitate it when possible. I am very happy we passed the Residential Tenancies (No. 2) Bill through the Seanad last night. The Bill will introduce a deposit protection scheme for tenants and a rent-freeze period. These...

Seanad: Order of Business (25 Nov 2015)

Aideen Hayden: We were all shocked to see the level of earnings of one of the CEOs of an organisation with which we are all familiar and the debate that has ensued in the organisation. The debate could easily take place in a large number of other organisations. The State needs to take whatever measures are necessary to ensure people know the exact level of earnings in some of these organisations and...

Seanad: Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest Bill 2015: Second Stage (24 Nov 2015)

Aideen Hayden: I welcome the Minister to the House.This Bill seeks to implement the provisions agreed in the Lansdowne Road agreement earlier this year. As Members will know, the Lansdowne Road agreement follows on from the Haddington Road and Croke Park agreements and is designed to partially restore the remuneration of public servants and the pensions payable to former public servants. There are, of...

Seanad: Residential Tenancies (Amendment) (No. 2) Bill 2012: Report and Final Stages (24 Nov 2015)

Aideen Hayden: I welcome the groups present in the Visitors Gallery. In particular, I would mention members of the Threshold organisation, the Peter McVerry Trust, Clúid, the Union of Students in Ireland, the Simon Communities and the Dublin Region Homeless Executive. I would specifically mention, if it is appropriate, the presence of Mr. Tom Dunne, who was the chair of the original commission on the...

Seanad: Legal Services Regulation Bill 2011: Committee Stage (19 Nov 2015)

Aideen Hayden: A significant number of qualified solicitors and barristers do not work as solicitors or barristers but work for the firms to which Senator Ó Clochartaigh has referred. They work for accountancy firms, multinational companies, financial services organisations and so forth. If this provision makes any difference it all, it will allow them to compete with such firms on a more level...

Seanad: Legal Services Regulation Bill 2011: Committee Stage (19 Nov 2015)

Aideen Hayden: When somebody becomes a qualified solicitor they are eligible to be registered on the Roll of Solicitors but to practise as a solicitor they must hold a practising certificate. As Senator O'Donovan knows, they may have their name struck off the Roll of Solicitors or be suspended for practising because they do not hold a practising certificate. However, the fact that they do not hold a...

Seanad: Legal Services Regulation Bill 2011: Committee Stage (19 Nov 2015)

Aideen Hayden: The 15% margin is fair. It is fairly well accepted that one can have spurious and nebulous claims in relation to bills of cost. Determining bills of cost is very expensive and it is a well established legal precedent, not just in the area of law but in other areas also, that one does need to have some margin where there has to be some justification established to pursue very expensive...

Seanad: Order of Business (18 Nov 2015)

Aideen Hayden: I welcome the passing of Committee Stage of the Residential Tenancies (Amendment) (No. 2) Bill last night and I thank all sides of the House for their general broad support for the measures it contained, especially in rent regulation and the introduction of the deposit protection scheme. I also note the number of contributions during that debate which emphasised the need to expedite housing...

Seanad: Order of Business (17 Nov 2015)

Aideen Hayden: As the Labour Party Whip in the Seanad, I welcome Senator Máiría Cahill to the Chamber for the first time, along with her family and friends. It is an important occasion for a family. Our former colleague, Jimmy Harte, had been hoping for a Northern voice, and he will be pleased with the outcome of the election, a richly deserved victory on the part of Senator Cahill. I join the...

Seanad: Residential Tenancies (Amendment) (No. 2) Bill 2012: Committee Stage (17 Nov 2015)

Aideen Hayden: I welcome the Minister of State to the House, and I welcome the legislation and the various amendments. As Members will know, the rent increases and the response thereto are issues I have raised on a number of occasions. Other Members present today have also shown great concern over these issues. It has been asked whether we got the whole cake. The answer is obviously that we did not. I...

Seanad: Finance (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2015: Second Stage (12 Nov 2015)

Aideen Hayden: I welcome the Minister of State to the House. I agree with Senators Barrett and Michael D'Arcy on two points. First, as Senator Barrett said, it is too little, too late. The Irish people are paying the price for the failure to have a mechanism like this and we will continue to pay the price of that failure. No amount of legislation is going to change that, as far as I can see. I agree...

Seanad: Order of Business (10 Nov 2015)

Aideen Hayden: As Senator Bacik said, an agreement was reached by the Cabinet today regarding measures that will be put in place to provide what is termed a new deal for tenants and to provide better support for families who are facing homelessness. I want to start by thanking colleagues on all sides of the House. I know many colleagues have made written representations on this issue to the Taoiseach and...

Seanad: Order of Business (5 Nov 2015)

Aideen Hayden: I congratulate Senator Barrett on his National Mortgage and Housing Corporation Bill 2015, which was debated yesterday. It was an incredibly interesting discussion. I would like to reassure the Senator of my personal support for the issues raised in his legislation. I assure him that I brought the matter to the attention of the Labour Party Parliamentary Party last evening. It is an issue...

Seanad: Order of Business (4 Nov 2015)

Aideen Hayden: I join Senator Bacik in welcoming the announcement this morning of the annual cold weather initiative which will be in place from now until the end of April, with 175 additional beds being provided. This is on top of the 250 emergency beds provided last year. There is a Government commitment that nobody who wants or needs a bed in this crisis will be without one over the period of this...

Seanad: Order of Business (4 Nov 2015)

Aideen Hayden: I commend the additional number of family units being brought into play. These are not short-term but long-term units, with 14 in Glasnevin, 25 in Ballymun Plaza and 80 at a location where Dublin City Council has acquired a number of units. An aspect of the plan which is most welcome is the fact the children and families homelessness action team run by Focus Ireland will raise its staff...

Seanad: Order of Business (4 Nov 2015)

Aideen Hayden: The public is being asked as part of this initiative that where they encounter somebody who is homeless or vulnerable, such as a younger person or somebody in need of medical care, they act by contacting the emergency services or the local authorities. It is very important that we all play our part in this crisis.

Seanad: National Mortgage and Housing Corporation Bill 2015: Second Stage (4 Nov 2015)

Aideen Hayden: I thank Senator Michael D'Arcy for giving me the first space from the Government side.

Seanad: National Mortgage and Housing Corporation Bill 2015: Second Stage (4 Nov 2015)

Aideen Hayden: In particular I also wish to thank the proposers of this Bill, Senator Barrett and his team, for their comprehensive work and for having raised this important matter. I fully support the Senator in his efforts to provide affordable finance for home ownership in Ireland. The current financial system is not fit for purpose. We lack competition in the market, which is evidenced by the fact...

Seanad: National Mortgage and Housing Corporation Bill 2015: Second Stage (4 Nov 2015)

Aideen Hayden: It could be said that the Irish have paid the price for their obsession with home ownership and while it is widely recognised that the economy is in recovery with many back at work - unemployment is currently below 10% - we must acknowledge the significant and serious overhang in debt, in particular mortgage debt and mortgage arrears. This has, again, been highlighted by the Commission in...