Results 1-20 of 90 for long speaker:Catherine Ardagh

Seanad: Policing, Security and Community Safety Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (13 Dec 2023)

Catherine Ardagh: I will speak on the issue of capital planning. We all know that the process of budgeting resources for organisations is a budgeting process for their long-term future that includes projections for future projects.I commend the Minister and the Department. Around the country, we can see beautiful Garda stations. I think we have seen these in all our communities. I know the OPW can be...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (26 Sep 2023)

Catherine Ardagh: ...move somehow. Childcare providers need to see a plan of how the State can get more directly involved in providing childcare in this country because at the moment, it is not working. We need to see both a long-term and a short-term plan to help these professionals stay within the industry.

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (4 May 2023)

Catherine Ardagh: ...are possibly holding off getting a private pension because they are waiting on the auto-enrolment scheme. It is great to see the Oireachtas committee working on it but we have been waiting on it a long time. I hope that finally there is a good push to ensure that it is brought in without delay, as soon as possible. I was very disappointed to read a report that experts are advising...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (2 Feb 2023)

Catherine Ardagh: ..., however, it really works. We need to look at the international protection process and the timeframes involved. It is really unfair that people seeking international protection have to wait so long. Many of them have deportation orders hanging over their heads. That is institutional bullying. It is horrendous when you see families that are not really living their lives because they...

Seanad: Transport Police Service: Motion (25 Jan 2023)

Catherine Ardagh: ...re-examine the matter. Perhaps they will re-examine it on a pilot basis on Nightlink buses and certain routes and extend the idea of transport police, to see if it works out and if people feel safer, and do research accordingly. It is long overdue and I am very glad we are tabling this motion today. I hope we will get support from across the House.

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2022: Second Stage (7 Dec 2022)

Catherine Ardagh: ...2023. The social protection budget, the largest in the history of the State, will assist families with the cost of living through a mix of lump sum supports and increases to weekly payments. This is the most generous budget we have seen in a long time. I am proud to live in a country where we have a generous social welfare safety net for people. You can look across the water or if you...

Seanad: Central Bank (Amendment) Bill 2022: Second Stage (17 Nov 2022)

Catherine Ardagh: ...disclose or declare they previously suffered from cancer. This is especially pertinent for those who had cancer as a child, teenager or young adult. I hope the House will agree the legislation is long overdue. It is not something we are leading on in Ireland; this kind of legislation has already been enacted in many countries in the EU, including France. It represents an important and...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Autism: Autism Policy: Discussion (12 Jul 2022)

Catherine Ardagh: ...clear what will happen after a diagnosis with regard to what school the children will go to and the opportunities they will then have to go to college or work. The committee should consider as a long-term goal the parents of children who need high levels of support. Probably on a daily basis many parents of children with autism who require high levels of support ask themselves what...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Autism: Autism Policy and Education: Discussion (28 Jun 2022)

Catherine Ardagh: Mr. Kearney has not been in his role for long so it is great to hear his language. It is very refreshing, especially when he discusses local schools and says it is very important for children to attend their local school. I counted and believe he said it three or four times. It is new language the NCSE is using, and it is noted, so I thank Mr. Kearney for that. SEN education has come in...

Seanad: Safe Access to Termination of Pregnancy Services Bill 2021: Report and Final Stages (7 Apr 2022)

Catherine Ardagh: I thank Senators Gavan and Moynihan and all the activists who have campaigned so long to have this Bill before the House today. It is gut-wrenching to hear Senator Mullen talk about fascism. To describe this Bill as fascist is completely disingenuous and he should retract those comments. We know the people have campaigned and the people decided on the repeal of the eighth amendment during...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (17 Feb 2022)

Catherine Ardagh: ...want to extend a special word of thanks to the Minister for Education, Deputy Foley, who yesterday opened a special school for children with autism in Crumlin, Our Lady of Hope School. It was a long-fought campaign by the Dublin 12 campaign 4 Autism Inclusion and it was great to see the school finally open yesterday with the huge support of the Minister and I thank her for that. On the...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (6 Oct 2021)

Catherine Ardagh: ...to this or they need to do that. This legislation would make it so much easier for them.We need to make sure that this legislation is enacted sooner rather than later and is not put on the long finger again because we have been promised it for a long time.

Seanad: Situation in Belarus: Statements (5 Oct 2021)

Catherine Ardagh: ...for attending the House today. This is a topic on which many of us are ad idem. Many of us had the opportunity meet Ms Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya when she was in this country. We know Sviatlana, along with her compatriots, have unceasingly and courageously stood up for human rights and basic freedoms. As others have outlined, they have sought democratic elections in the country. Others...

Seanad: CervicalCheck Tribunal (Amendment) Bill 2021: Second Stage (15 Jul 2021)

Catherine Ardagh: ...of whom have been in the public eye. All the members of the 221+ group have kept this issue alive, as my colleague said, through huge adversity and pain for their families. My father had cancer for a long time before he passed away. I do not know how these women had the energy, going through this, to keep their fight alive. It is commendable. People are watching Vicky Phelan's journey...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (1 Jun 2021)

Catherine Ardagh: ...much time off work. It is important that we look after our Irish citizens. It was such a big step for the WHO to approve this vaccine that I wonder why the European Medicines Agency is taking so long. It seems like a vaccine that could be turned out really quickly. It is stored at a low refrigerated temperature and could really help fight the vaccine inequality we are seeing all over...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (26 Feb 2021)

Catherine Ardagh: ...of them said to him that they would prefer to go to jail because they would have a definite sentence and would know when they were getting out. Many of us have been championing this cause for a long time. One of the first motions I put my name to in Dublin City Council in 2014 was to end direct provision. The campaign to end it has been going on for a long time. Today is a cause for...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (8 Feb 2021)

Catherine Ardagh: ...Members have tabled similar legislation. It is great to see women-specific legislation on the Order Paper and being debated in the House. Senator Clifford-Lee has been working on this issue for a long time, including in the previous Seanad. She has helped councillors in Longford and Kilkenny to bring motions on the issue and has supported other councillors who will be bringing motions...

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Health Services Provision (1 Feb 2021)

Catherine Ardagh: Beannachtaí Lá Fhéile Bríde oraibh go léir. I will be quick as I am sharing time with Senator Fiona O'Loughlin who has a long track record of advocating in the Dáil for a publicly funded IVF system. As we know, the statistics show that infertility affects one in six couples and affects men and women equally. Having lived through the highs and lows of five IVF...

Seanad: Response to Covid-19 (Social Protection): Statements (1 Feb 2021)

Catherine Ardagh: ...for immigrants. The pandemic has had a real effect on young people, those on low incomes and immigrants. I know the State is doing so much to protect those cohort of workers but if we could do a little bit more, in the long run it would contribute hugely to the fabric of our society.

Seanad: Social Welfare Bill 2020: Second Stage (14 Dec 2020)

Catherine Ardagh: ...consider the cost of living inflation and look to a future where the basic social welfare levels are harmonised with the cost of living inflation. People on a set income - those on social welfare, and especially the long-term unemployed or people on the State pension that will not see an increase - have no capacity to gain extra income. It is really important we do not leave people...