Results 81-100 of 150 for "direct provision" speaker:Trevor Ó Clochartaigh

Seanad: Order of Business (19 Jun 2014)

Trevor Ó Clochartaigh: .... My office in Galway is inundated with people who are very concerned about how they will cope because of the cuts made to rent supplement. I thank all those Senators who were able to attend the presentation last night on the direct provision system. It was a very good presentation and I extend an invite to anybody who wants to become involved in the cross-party Oireachtas group we have...

Seanad: Mother and Baby Homes: Statements (11 Jun 2014)

Trevor Ó Clochartaigh: ...has yet to change. The onus is now on the Government to act. I would urge the Government to include the Magdalen laundries, as a matter of course, in any commission of inquiry. I would also like to take this opportunity to raise the issue of direct provision and I know the Minister is aware of this. This issue must be discussed on another occasion because it must be addressed. The...

Seanad: Racism in Ireland: Motion (4 Jun 2014)

Trevor Ó Clochartaigh: ...with people and groups from different cultural backgrounds, what strikes me most are the practical and current examples of racism in Ireland. Probably the most profound aspect of a very recent and moving presentation on direct provision in Galway related to the videos made by three teenagers in respect of their experiences of direct provision in the city. The teenagers in question...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Public Service Oversight and Petitions: Annual Report 2013: Office of the Ombudsman (4 Jun 2014)

Trevor Ó Clochartaigh: Will Mr. Tyndall address the issue of complaints about direct provision accommodation?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Public Service Oversight and Petitions: Annual Report 2013: Office of the Ombudsman (4 Jun 2014)

Trevor Ó Clochartaigh: I hope that we will have some good news for Mr. Tyndall. His predecessor, Ms Emily O'Reilly, and some of those who held the office before her, raised the issue of direct provision, which is the method we use to house asylum seekers when they come to these shores. We have included the issue in our work programme and have indicated that we want to consider whether it can be included in the...

Seanad: Order of Business (14 May 2014)

Trevor Ó Clochartaigh: ...yesterday does not reflect well on the House at all. I wish to refer to a serious matter which was raised yesterday by the Immigrant Council of Ireland, namely, the ban on political canvassing in direct provision centres. This ban, which was introduced by the Reception and Integration Agency, RIA, prevents residents who have a right to vote in the local elections from making informed...

Seanad: Order of Business (8 May 2014)

Trevor Ó Clochartaigh: ..., intellectual ability and knowledge of his brief. I wish him well. I welcome the appointment of Deputy Fitzgerald as Minister for Justice and Equality and hope that she will champion the issue of direct provision. I also wish Deputy Charles Flanagan well in his new role as Minister for Children and Youth Affairs. It is clear that Deputy Shatter presided over a number of debacles as...

Seanad: Order of Business (7 May 2014)

Trevor Ó Clochartaigh: ...make this point again is because the Seanad Public Consultation Committee had a very good set of hearings yesterday. I note that a recurring theme that arose throughout that debate was the issue of direct provision, which Members have brought up many times in this House. I note that Professor Michael O'Flaherty, Dr. Liam Thornton, the Immigrant Council of Ireland and a number of others...

Seanad Public Consultation Committee: Irish Compliance with International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights: Discussion (6 May 2014)

Trevor Ó Clochartaigh: I thank the witnesses for their presentations. If we needed further reasons to review direct provision, Ms Becker has provided them, specifically in respect of victims of trafficking who are seeking asylum. The figures Ms Becker provided are alarming. I ask her to elaborate on the reasons for her statement that direct provision is not appropriate for victims of sexual violence. While I...

Seanad Public Consultation Committee: Irish Compliance with International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights: Discussion (6 May 2014)

Trevor Ó Clochartaigh: ...as the Good Friday Agreement. Does the committee look only through the lens of its UN remit? Will the Aarhus Convention form a backdrop to its deliberations? I was not here for the debate on direct provision but I have campaigned passionately on it. Some people might call it an Irish solution to an Irish problem and, many people would argue, not a particularly satisfactory one. What...

Seanad: Order of Business (10 Apr 2014)

Trevor Ó Clochartaigh: ...to her memoirs once she has left. I imagine they will be a fantastic read and I hope that they make the bestseller list. I join with the statements made by Senator Conway and Senator van Turnhout this morning around the issue of direct provision. It is an appalling situation that these people find themselves in. Today is the anniversary of the setting up of direct provision. I note...

Seanad: Order of Business (30 Jan 2014)

Trevor Ó Clochartaigh: ..., thereby placing strain on services already under pressure. The Ryan report, published five years ago, recommended the recruitment of an additional 270 social workers. However, there now are fewer social workers employed than when the report was issued. I have raised many times in this House my concerns about children in direct provision accommodation. In addition, there have been...

Seanad: Order of Business (15 Jan 2014)

Trevor Ó Clochartaigh: ...and was welcomed by many people from different areas. Fishermen were hit very badly by the storms and I have tabled an Adjournment motion on that issue. Another group affected by the storms that did not get much publicity is a group of residents in direct provision in the Eglinton Hotel in Salthill, Galway, who were totally surrounded by water during the floods. On the legislation list...

Seanad: Adoption (Amendment) Bill 2013: Second Stage (20 Dec 2013)

Trevor Ó Clochartaigh: ...sure the Minister is aware them. I will not go back over them. We have had a good year. I believe the Minister is doing a good job. She is working hard for the rights of children. She knows that the treatment of children in direct provision is my own bugbear. I have raised that issue with her previously and I intend to do so again after Christmas. Our concerns about those children,...

Seanad: Adjournment Matter: EU Funding (16 Dec 2013)

Trevor Ó Clochartaigh: ...refugees and displaced persons and guaranteeing access to consistent, fair and effective asylum procedures. A new round of the ERF will be announced. The European Integration Fund supports immigrants who come into the State. I have been a long-time critic of our direct provision system. That said, it is important we support refugees who come to our shores in any way we can. Under...

Seanad: Death of Nelson Mandela: Statements (10 Dec 2013)

Trevor Ó Clochartaigh: ...directed at and actions taken against Travellers, the Roma community and other ethnic minorities? Today is International Human Rights Day. The Irish Refugee Council launched an important report on direct provision this morning called "Direct Provision: Framing an alternative reception system for people seeking international protection". It is scandalous that there are still people in...

Seanad: Order of Business (10 Dec 2013)

Trevor Ó Clochartaigh: Ba mhaith liom freisin fáilte a chur roimh an tuarascáil a foilsíodh inniu, Direct Provision: Framing an alternative reception system for people seeking international protection. B'fhéidir go mbeadh díospóireacht againn faoi sin lá níos faide anonn. I congratulate the Irish Refugee Council, which is celebrating 21 years in operation this year, on the...

Seanad: Social Welfare and Pensions Bill 2013: Fifth Stage (7 Nov 2013)

Trevor Ó Clochartaigh: If you listen you might understand what it is all about. We tabled an amendment that was ruled out of order but it was a serious amendment on children and direct provision. We had a debate in the House in recent weeks on direct provision in which Senators from all parties agreed that the direct provision system should be reformed. The Minister is not yet of the same mind but there is a...

Seanad: Order of Business (24 Oct 2013)

Trevor Ó Clochartaigh: ...connected to Niall. His death is an awful tragedy. We had a very good debate last night, one of the best in which I have taken part in this Seanad, in which Members on all sides raised serious issues about the direct provision system. However, I was totally dismayed by the Minister's response to the debate. His prepared speech was a regurgitation of replies to Adjournment matters and...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Public Service Oversight and Petitions: Ombudsman and Information Commissioner: Discussion with Nominee (23 Oct 2013)

Trevor Ó Clochartaigh: ...opinion. She asked that particular sectors should be included in the amended legislation, such as groups of people who do not have recourse to a complaints system. I refer specifically to those living in direct provision. I acknowledge Mr. Tyndall is new and he faces a task of work which includes an extended remit. I ask Mr. Tyndall not to let that ball drop. The extension of the...