Results 1-20 of 5,444 for speaker:Gerard Craughwell

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (17 Apr 2024)

Gerard Craughwell: I second my colleague Senator McDowell's amendment. The time has come to establish whether we live in a democracy and whether this House has the right to debate issues that are important to the citizens of this State. Bringing in legislation and just ramming it through is becoming rather tiresome. I would have expected the referendums had taught a lesson to the Government to engage in...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (16 Apr 2024)

Gerard Craughwell: We had a junior Minister appointed to the Department of Defence in the recent reshuffle but given absolutely no responsibility in that Department. It is the second time this has happened. As a democracy, we are one of the outliers in the world with respect to the fact that we do not have a published national security strategy. There was a statement published some time ago but that is not...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (11 Apr 2024)

Gerard Craughwell: I, too, welcome Senator O'Hara to the Seanad. Today is not the day for a discussion on by-elections. I came to this House through a by-election but we will have that discussion and I encourage everyone to join in. I thank the Fine Gael Party and the now Taoiseach, Deputy Harris, for choosing my home town for his first Ard-Fheis. I was delighted to see them there. If the Taoiseach brings...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (21 Mar 2024)

Gerard Craughwell: What about homework off?

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (21 Mar 2024)

Gerard Craughwell: This morning I rise to raise two issues. One is the issue of wind turbines. My colleague Senator McGreehan has been working on a particular scheme in Monasterboice in County Louth. The problem is that the regulations we are working under are outdated. The turbines being put in are way bigger than any turbine that had been put in under the old regulations. All erection of wind turbines...

Committee on Public Petitions: Decisions on Public Petitions Received (21 Mar 2024)

Gerard Craughwell: We might as well try to get the most comprehensive answer as possible.

Committee on Public Petitions: Decisions on Public Petitions Received (21 Mar 2024)

Gerard Craughwell: From my perspective, further scrutiny of Tusla is not such a bad idea given that so many children have disappeared, especially migrant children who came into the country unaccompanied by an adult. The only problem I have is that I am not sure whether HIQA is the relevant organisation. Its role is more about facilities and infrastructure in medical centres and the like. I am not sure if it...

Committee on Public Petitions: Decisions on Public Petitions Received (21 Mar 2024)

Gerard Craughwell: I am not sure that the Ombudsman is an appropriate authority either to inspect. I have an issue with these agencies, organisations, Departments, etc. They should ultimately be answerable to a committee of the Oireachtas and they should be overseen by a committee of the Oireachtas. That is what we should be doing. There is a tendency to try to off-load our responsibilities to other...

Committee on Public Petitions: Decisions on Public Petitions Received (21 Mar 2024)

Gerard Craughwell: That would be the recommendation that I would like to put forward. I am not sure how my colleagues feel about that but that would be my view.

Committee on Public Petitions: Decisions on Public Petitions Received (21 Mar 2024)

Gerard Craughwell: I wonder if there would be merit in bringing the petitioner in here and letting them outline their case by crafting questions that they believe should be answered and then bring Tusla in and put those questions to it in order to give closure to the petitioner's case. They may not get the answers that they want but at least they will have had their moment of having the issue heard. I think...

Committee on Public Petitions: Decisions on Public Petitions Received (21 Mar 2024)

Gerard Craughwell: While we are waiting on Senator Murphy, has the secretariat a view on this? Would it be appropriate to have Tusla before this committee or should it be another committee, like the health committee, for example?

Committee on Public Petitions: Decisions on Public Petitions Received (21 Mar 2024)

Gerard Craughwell: It is important that the petitioner is aware of the fact that if they are bringing specific evidence, it should be empirical evidence that will stand the test of scrutiny. One thing we do not want is the committee to be used as a battering ram with no solid ground behind it. That would want to be made perfectly clear to the petitioner when they come in.

Committee on Public Petitions: Decisions on Public Petitions Received (21 Mar 2024)

Gerard Craughwell: As a former leader of a trade union in the education area, nobody should be out of pocket during their training other than whatever fees they pay for their course. If it is, for example, mandatory that you spend six months in St. Vincent's hospital, St. James's Hospital or somewhere and that incurs a cost of having to travel to and from home, we must remember they are students and not...

Committee on Public Petitions: Decisions on Public Petitions Received (21 Mar 2024)

Gerard Craughwell: I have a couple of points on this. First and foremost, the petitioner is looking for the commissioning of a report. We should put a bit of framework around whatever study that would be carried out by having the representative bodies in here. I would go right across the medical profession and have all of them make a submission as to what they think should be put in place. Simply asking for...

Committee on Public Petitions: Decisions on Public Petitions Received (21 Mar 2024)

Gerard Craughwell: Deputy O'Donoghue made the point about people working in construction. I was involved in a major chemical site many years ago. We were provided with everything from our steel toe cap boots to helmets, earmuffs and the whole shooting gallery. I had reason to write to the health service some time ago about people being provided with work wear or scrubs as they are called in the hospitals -...

Committee on Public Petitions: Decisions on Public Petitions Received (21 Mar 2024)

Gerard Craughwell: Anyway, I digress; that is going off the issue. The question is whether we all agree to bring in the representatives of bodies and get their views on what should be done with respect to training.

Committee on Public Petitions: Decisions on Public Petitions Received (21 Mar 2024)

Gerard Craughwell: That is a fair point.

Committee on Public Petitions: Decisions on Public Petitions Received (21 Mar 2024)

Gerard Craughwell: This case particularly raises the issue of European responsibility because if a ship or, in this case, a fishing vessel was licensed in one jurisdiction, it is more than likely that when it came to be relicensed in Ireland, it was a rubber-stamp operation. There would have been no serious effort to establish the stability of the particular ship or boat. This particular family appeared...

Committee on Public Petitions: Decisions on Public Petitions Received (21 Mar 2024)

Gerard Craughwell: I am deeply unhappy with that. The Cathaoirleach was quite taken with the family when they came in, as were Deputy Buckley and various other members. I do not know what we can do.

Committee on Public Petitions: Decisions on Public Petitions Received (21 Mar 2024)

Gerard Craughwell: I have no difficulty bringing in representatives of those two Departments but before we do that, we should seek to be provided with the marine inspector's report that gave the licence to that boat. We should be provided with all the documentation that led to the licence being awarded. Thereafter, and the secretariat may tell me we do not have the power to do this, we should get an...