Results 1-20 of 7,266 for speaker:Rose Conway-Walsh

National Training Fund (Amendment) Bill 2025: Second Stage (16 Oct 2025)

Rose Conway-Walsh: I welcome the opportunity to talk about the National Training Fund because, as the Minister will know, we have long wanted to unlock this fund. It is, as was said, the fund that employers and hard-pressed businesses have paid into. They feel they have got very little back for the payments that have been made and they have been seeing the figures accumulate over the years. I have some...

Committee on Defence and National Security: Civil Defence and the Office of Emergency Planning: Discussion (16 Oct 2025)

Rose Conway-Walsh: Apologies have been received from Deputy O'Meara. The joint committee is meeting today for a briefing on key issues and priorities for Civil Defence and the Office of Emergency Planning with officials from the Office of Emergency Planning and the Civil Defence branch of the Department of Defence. On behalf of the committee, I welcome: Mr. Kealan McMoreland, principal officer, Ms Aisling...

Committee on Defence and National Security: Civil Defence and the Office of Emergency Planning: Discussion (16 Oct 2025)

Rose Conway-Walsh: Go raibh maith agaibh. I will open the debate to members and I have two on my list so far. The first is Senator Gerard Craughwell who will be followed by Deputy Brian Stanley and any others could indicate.

Committee on Defence and National Security: Civil Defence and the Office of Emergency Planning: Discussion (16 Oct 2025)

Rose Conway-Walsh: There is very limited time to answer those questions, but if the witnesses could try.

Committee on Defence and National Security: Civil Defence and the Office of Emergency Planning: Discussion (16 Oct 2025)

Rose Conway-Walsh: Senator Craughwell spoke for too long but I would like to have a quick response from Mr. McMoreland before I move on.

Committee on Defence and National Security: Civil Defence and the Office of Emergency Planning: Discussion (16 Oct 2025)

Rose Conway-Walsh: I will move to the next speaker. Is Deputy Stanley okay to go next?

Committee on Defence and National Security: Civil Defence and the Office of Emergency Planning: Discussion (16 Oct 2025)

Rose Conway-Walsh: I absolutely agree. It is obviously significant for the whole of the operation. There is no point in having all of these strategies and plans and everything else if we do not-----

Committee on Defence and National Security: Civil Defence and the Office of Emergency Planning: Discussion (16 Oct 2025)

Rose Conway-Walsh: Yes, if we do not have enough feet on the ground. Perhaps we will discuss in private session how we can bring forward highlighting this at the committee. We will move on to Deputy Ó Laoghaire.

Committee on Defence and National Security: Civil Defence and the Office of Emergency Planning: Discussion (16 Oct 2025)

Rose Conway-Walsh: I will come back to Deputy Stanley. There were a couple of questions I wanted to ask. One is on all-island co-operation. If we have an emergency disaster, what does that look like in terms of protection of the island?

Committee on Defence and National Security: Civil Defence and the Office of Emergency Planning: Discussion (16 Oct 2025)

Rose Conway-Walsh: I very much welcome that there is co-operation North-South, east and west but is there a plan? Does everybody know what to do basicall, if there is a national emergency that affects all of the island or indeed both islands?

Committee on Defence and National Security: Civil Defence and the Office of Emergency Planning: Discussion (16 Oct 2025)

Rose Conway-Walsh: How does Mr. McMoreland find that co-operation? Are there any obstacles?

Committee on Defence and National Security: Civil Defence and the Office of Emergency Planning: Discussion (16 Oct 2025)

Rose Conway-Walsh: That is good. It is bigger than just the Border region and just those areas. It is looking at this from an all-island perspective so that there is a seamless approach to protection of the island and to planning for emergencies. Would Mr. McMoreland say we are there yet? Is there anything we can do as a committee to assist that?

Committee on Defence and National Security: Civil Defence and the Office of Emergency Planning: Discussion (16 Oct 2025)

Rose Conway-Walsh: Has everything been stepped up? The office has in its plan that the risks are being updated all the time. Is there a sense of urgency within the Departments to get to a place where we are in a better position?

Committee on Defence and National Security: Civil Defence and the Office of Emergency Planning: Discussion (16 Oct 2025)

Rose Conway-Walsh: Can we go as a committee to visit the national centre?

Committee on Defence and National Security: Civil Defence and the Office of Emergency Planning: Discussion (16 Oct 2025)

Rose Conway-Walsh: Thank you. I think we will do that. It is important to instil confidence in the population about the good work that has been outlined to ensure people are confident in what is there. The more awareness we can raise about that the better, as well as having people's questions answered. I commend the Civil Defence. The main challenge we had was with the R116 crash. I saw how the response...

Committee on Defence and National Security: Civil Defence and the Office of Emergency Planning: Discussion (16 Oct 2025)

Rose Conway-Walsh: Is there engagement with members?

Committee on Defence and National Security: Civil Defence and the Office of Emergency Planning: Discussion (16 Oct 2025)

Rose Conway-Walsh: That is very good. It is really important to get to the members because events often take place over a weekend when only the members are available. Just engaging with the executive falls short. Every member of the local authority needs to know what is available and how things work because you are responding in real time and there are dangers around that. There are not enough local...

Committee on Defence and National Security: Civil Defence and the Office of Emergency Planning: Discussion (16 Oct 2025)

Rose Conway-Walsh: Okay. On the overall emergency planning, one of the things from the last storm was the delay or the failure to call in the armed forces to help when people were many days without power and water. Why were the Defence Forces called in so late?

Committee on Defence and National Security: Civil Defence and the Office of Emergency Planning: Discussion (16 Oct 2025)

Rose Conway-Walsh: I note again the delays in calling in the Defence Forces when people on the ground were begging for them to be called in to help them to clear trees and do other things that needed to be done. This is important. I would not like to see the same delays again if we are in a similar situation because the Defence Forces have a lot to add to that space. Deputy Stanley is next.

Committee on Defence and National Security: Civil Defence and the Office of Emergency Planning: Discussion (16 Oct 2025)

Rose Conway-Walsh: Are we okay with all of that? Yes. On behalf of the committee, I again thank the officials very much for their time and engagement this morning. We will allow the witnesses to exit and then go into private session.