Results 161-180 of 1,760 for speaker:Aideen Hayden

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Proceeds of Sale of Aer Lingus: Motion (7 Oct 2015)

Aideen Hayden: I agree with some of the comments made by the previous speaker. Not all of us wanted the State's shares in Aer Lingus to be sold. For example, Senator Barrett and I had a shared point of view on the issue. However, as the Minister of State pointed out, we are where we are. I understand the National Pensions Reserve Fund has invested in the ISIF, which places certain pressures in terms...

Seanad: Order of Business (7 Oct 2015)

Aideen Hayden: I agree with Senator Darragh O'Brien that a wide-ranging debate on the entire issue of housing would be in order. I agree that we should not just focus on homelessness but also on supply, which is very problematic in the market at present. I have concerns with regard to Longboat Quay. The owners are now threatening legal action. It has come to my attention that while there are...

Seanad: Order of Business (1 Oct 2015)

Aideen Hayden: I welcome my colleague, Senator O'Keeffe, back to the House and thank her and Senators MacSharry, Barrett and Michael D'Arcy for the good work they have done at the banking inquiry. I agree with Senator Daly on the need for an urgent debate on the issue of the Longboat Quay development. We face a scenario where 900 residents of this apartment complex face possible homelessness because they...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Estimates for Public Services 2015: Vote 13 - Office of Public Works (30 Sep 2015)

Aideen Hayden: I will be brief. Deputy Fleming spoke in terms of outputs, outcomes and all of that. I want to take a step back. Ms McGrath spoke about the State's estate - the State's entire property holding, for want of a better word. Is there an overarching vision and mission in respect of the State's holdings? Do we have a strategy that says, for the sake of argument, that 30% of all State building...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Estimates for Public Services 2015: Vote 13 - Office of Public Works (30 Sep 2015)

Aideen Hayden: Perhaps just a very quick answer; is this fitting within some overall strategy that says "We own about 30% of the State's requirements for office space," for example? Do we, or where do we stand?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Estimates for Public Services 2015: Vote 13 - Office of Public Works (30 Sep 2015)

Aideen Hayden: I take the Chairman's point. It is really more for an overall perspective. In terms of being able to look at performance indicators, an overall picture does not hurt. In terms of the OPW's performance issues, Ms McGrath said there had been a culture of greater collaboration. She referred to being able to use local authority offices for the delivery of services. She mentioned the Intreo...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Estimates for Public Services 2015: Vote 13 - Office of Public Works (30 Sep 2015)

Aideen Hayden: One is depending on a willingness to put it up.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Estimates for Public Services 2015: Vote 13 - Office of Public Works (30 Sep 2015)

Aideen Hayden: This question may not be appropriate. The Chairman can direct me. Ms McGrath mentioned a number of indicators in relation to flood works as to what constituted output, and she mentioned additional properties that would benefit, the cumulative number of properties, the value of the benefit to the properties and the cumulative value of the benefit to the properties. When one measures the...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Estimates for Public Services 2015: Vote 13 - Office of Public Works (30 Sep 2015)

Aideen Hayden: Indeed, it would. Families remain uninsurable.

Seanad: Pre-Budget Outlook: Statements (30 Sep 2015)

Aideen Hayden: I welcome the Minister. I also welcome Senators MacSharry and Michael D'Arcy back to the House. They have had a long absence of-----

Seanad: Pre-Budget Outlook: Statements (30 Sep 2015)

Aideen Hayden: Senator MacSharry made a point about the fiscal council. It has agreed with the headline figures. It is for the Government of the day to decide how we spend our resources. The Senator stated that we needed to spread the recovery beyond urban areas. It is important that we use the budget as a mechanism to do so. This morning, the ESRI reported that Ireland was the fastest growing economy...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on European Union Affairs: European Economic and Monetary Union: Discussion (24 Sep 2015)

Aideen Hayden: My first question relates to the text of the introduction to the document, which states that the report reflects the deliberations of the five presidents and focuses on the euro area. It states that, for obvious reasons, the currency is facing common challenges and responsibilities and that the process towards deeper union is open to all EU members. Do the witnesses not think that, on one...

Seanad: Minerals Development Bill 2015: Second Stage (24 Sep 2015)

Aideen Hayden: I welcome the Minister of State to the House. The Bill before the House is a consolidation and modernisation of Ireland's exploration and mining legislation. It has already been acknowledged that it is the culmination of in and around five years of preparatory work. I am keen to acknowledge the work of the staff of the Department of Communications, Energy and Natural Resources, the...

Seanad: Order of Business (23 Sep 2015)

Aideen Hayden: I add my voice to those who have wished our colleague, Senator Jimmy Harte, a happy and successful retirement. All of us in this Chamber had hoped to see him back among us before the House rose for the last time. Like me, he is a graduate of University College Dublin, UCD. We all know that he is a man with a very strong moral compass and with a very strong voice when it comes to supporting...

Seanad: Order of Business (21 Jul 2015)

Aideen Hayden: I ask the Leader to accede to Senator Darragh O'Brien's request for a change to the Order of Business, noting the fact that it refers to a previous resolution of the Seanad on the matter. Trade and trade matters generally are important to the country and the motion should be considered seriously. While the House is in recess, a number of very anxious parents will be awaiting the results...

Seanad: Children First Bill 2014: Second Stage (21 Jul 2015)

Aideen Hayden: I welcome the Minister to the House. I am pleased we have finally reached the Seanad stage of this Bill. It seems to have been a long time since we first came into the Chamber to discuss the issue of Children First. None of us could ever disagree with the purpose of this Bill which is to make further and better provision for the care and protection of children, including raising awareness...

Seanad: Order of Business (20 Jul 2015)

Aideen Hayden: I too welcome the news that the heads of the adoption (information and tracing) Bill will be adopted by Cabinet and acknowledge the work of a number of people including my colleague, Senator Ivana Bacik, and the Adoption Authority of Ireland on this issue. I also note some of the issues the Adoption Authority of Ireland has noted it considers need to be addressed. We need to be mindful that...

Seanad: Personal Insolvency (Amendment) Bill 2014: Committee and Remaining Stages (20 Jul 2015)

Aideen Hayden: This is an issue on which I hold very strong views, as colleagues know, but it seems to me some Members are confused about what is set out in the Bill. The lines that are proposed to be deleted relate to the provision whereby a debtor may make a declaration in writing that he or she has co-operated. In other words, it is the person who owes money who determines, by way of declaration,...

Seanad: Order of Business (17 Jul 2015)

Aideen Hayden: I also express my sympathies to the family of Alexis Fitzgerald, in particular his wife, Mary. I knew Alexis through UCD. I also express my sympathy to Deputy Joe O’Reilly, another UCD colleague, on the death of his mother. I agree with Senator Mooney on the need for a debate on homelessness. I formally ask the Leader to call on the Minister, Deputy Alan Kelly, to immediately meet...

Seanad: Personal Insolvency (Amendment) Bill 2014: Second Stage (16 Jul 2015)

Aideen Hayden: I welcome the Minister. I apologise as I have a bit of a frog in my throat. I compliment the work of some of those who are active in the field of mortgage arrears, in particular, FLAC and MABS, and the work that has been done by the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform in its report, one of the recommendations of which was the removal of the bank veto, which...