Results 201-220 of 1,017,381 for in 'Dáil debates' OR (speaker:Tom Kitt OR speaker:Michael Fitzmaurice) in 'Committee meetings'

Acknowledgement and Apology to the Families and to the Victims of the Stardust Tragedy: Statements (23 Apr 2024)

Mattie McGrath: I question the previous judge, Mr. Keane. Who appointed him? Can we find that out? I know who appointed him. I know who his friends were. That is what is going on to this day. The judges are appointed and there is cover-up after cover-up. Shame on the major political parties that continue the farce.

Acknowledgement and Apology to the Families and to the Victims of the Stardust Tragedy: Statements (23 Apr 2024)

Joan Collins: I want to start by quoting the headline of the article by Kitty Holland on "The full story of the Stardust fire", which is, "Jesus Christ, the doors are locked". That is what the survivors from the Stardust fire have been saying for more than 40 years. They were not believed. They were ignored and, as Antoinette Keegan has said, they have been systematically abused by the Irish...

Acknowledgement and Apology to the Families and to the Victims of the Stardust Tragedy: Statements (23 Apr 2024)

Richard O'Donoghue: I offer my deepest sympathies to the families here today for the loss of their children, sisters, brothers and relations on 14 February 1981 - a night of love. I was 11 years old then. I am now a father of four children, all of whom are the ages of those who died in the Stardust fire. I am now a grandfather. It has taken 43 years for the Government to say sorry. It has taken 43 years for...

Acknowledgement and Apology to the Families and to the Victims of the Stardust Tragedy: Statements (23 Apr 2024)

Mattie McGrath: I welcome the families in the Gallery, some of whom I met outside and on the street. I met people from my constituency - Alison and Heather. Her mother was unable to come today. They are weary and tired from fighting for justice for so long. I salute them. The disaster has been a long-standing symbol of injustice in our country and not the only one. Some of the 48 people who lost...

Acknowledgement and Apology to the Families and to the Victims of the Stardust Tragedy: Statements (23 Apr 2024)

Michael Healy-Rae: I want to say to the family representatives here today that while I am very glad they are here, I am so sad they have to be here. Today finds us at the culmination of a lifetime of a battle. In time, it is really more than a lifetime of battle. The Stardust fire disaster has been a long-standing symbol of injustice in our country. The families of the victims have been let down by...

Acknowledgement and Apology to the Families and to the Victims of the Stardust Tragedy: Statements (23 Apr 2024)

Michael Collins: I express my deepest sympathy to the families of the Stardust victims. The pain and loss they have endured is unimaginable. I acknowledge the unwavering determination and dedication displayed by the families in their pursuit of truth and justice. Their resilience in the face of adversity is truly commendable. It is important to recognise that the journey to this point has been long and...

Acknowledgement and Apology to the Families and to the Victims of the Stardust Tragedy: Statements (23 Apr 2024)

Verona Murphy: I am privileged to be here to address you today. As a Member of this House, I am only four years elected. I would have been nine years old when the tragedy happened. I cannot pretend to remember but I have felt everything that has been said through the inquest in the last number of days, as well as every name I have heard and every family that has been remembered, particularly those who...

Acknowledgement and Apology to the Families and to the Victims of the Stardust Tragedy: Statements (23 Apr 2024)

Peter Fitzpatrick: On the night of 14 February 1981, many parents' worst nightmare came true. Forty-eight young people in the prime of their lives went out to the Stardust nightclub in Artane to celebrate St. Valentine's Day but never came home. Witnesses spoke of fire exits being locked and chained, which was denied by management. There were two inquests, one tribunal of inquiry, a compensation tribunal and...

Acknowledgement and Apology to the Families and to the Victims of the Stardust Tragedy: Statements (23 Apr 2024)

Paul Murphy: I pay tribute to all of the relatives and survivors. Their struggle, determination and resilience is incredibly inspiring against the backdrop of experiencing such horrific tragedy and trauma, faced with a State determined to cover up what happened and block the struggle for the truth. In the face of them and their loved ones being slandered and lied about, they just kept going. In the...

Acknowledgement and Apology to the Families and to the Victims of the Stardust Tragedy: Statements (23 Apr 2024)

Mick Barry: After 43 years, there is at last some measure of justice. What a massive vindication for the families who refused to take no for an answer and refused to be ground down by the system. Everybody knows that the verdict is down to their steadfast campaigning on behalf of their loved ones. Everybody knows that the political and judicial establishments put every obstacle possible in the way of...

Acknowledgement and Apology to the Families and to the Victims of the Stardust Tragedy: Statements (23 Apr 2024)

Richard Boyd Barrett: Much has been said today. I hope that, for the families of those who lost their loved ones and for the survivors, the State apology and the words spoken here today can do something to provide the solace, truth and justice they have fought for and long deserved. I am very conscious that I am not qualified to know or understand the pain, loss, injustice, trauma and hardship you have endured...

Acknowledgement and Apology to the Families and to the Victims of the Stardust Tragedy: Statements (23 Apr 2024)

Cian O'Callaghan: Forty-three years. I join others in welcoming the families to the Gallery and saying the unlawful killing verdict is very welcome, the formal State apology that has been given is very welcome and the inquests' conclusion as to how the fire started and why it spread so rapidly is welcome. It has put to bed once and for all the original tribunal’s conclusion that the fire was probably...

Acknowledgement and Apology to the Families and to the Victims of the Stardust Tragedy: Statements (23 Apr 2024)

Holly Cairns: I want to start by warmly welcoming the members of the Stardust families who are here today. It has been a long and difficult road to justice but their perseverance, courage and deep love of their family members has brought us here to this historic, but long overdue, day. It is less than a week since the jury in the Stardust inquest returned the verdicts that families and survivors have...

Acknowledgement and Apology to the Families and to the Victims of the Stardust Tragedy: Statements (23 Apr 2024)

Aodhán Ó Ríordáin: The truth shall set you free, or so they say. What we heard last Thursday was, indeed, the truth. We can only pray that the truth has begun to set the families of the 48 free – free from the campaigning, the meetings, the closed doors, the trauma, the criticism and the lies, free from 43 years of seeking the truth, free from the disgusting suspicion that the phrase “probable...

Acknowledgement and Apology to the Families and to the Victims of the Stardust Tragedy: Statements (23 Apr 2024)

Seán Crowe: In 1981, I was head of Sinn Féin youth. I think I have said this previously in the House in 2017. I remember clearly the events of that time, when I issued a statement. I went into a phone box, put in the change and rang The Irish Press. Phone boxes do not exist any more, and nor does The Irish Press. I remember it clearly, even if I do not remember where I was when I heard the news...

Acknowledgement and Apology to the Families and to the Victims of the Stardust Tragedy: Statements (23 Apr 2024)

Ivana Bacik: On behalf of the Labour Party, on this momentous and poignant day for the survivors and the surviving families of the Stardust victims, I welcome all those in the Visitors Gallery today and express my deepest sympathies and condolences to you all and to your families, your friends and your communities on the appalling loss you suffered 43 years ago. I welcome the fact that at last we have...

Acknowledgement and Apology to the Families and to the Victims of the Stardust Tragedy: Statements (23 Apr 2024)

Pa Daly: I commend the families of the Stardust fire on their long and courageous battle for justice in the face of opposition, denial and then negotiations, not just the cold shoulder. That includes Marie Hogan, now Griffin, who did in fact move to County Kerry and who gave crucial evidence at the inquest. The families achieved a stunning victory in establishing the inquest initially and then...

Acknowledgement and Apology to the Families and to the Victims of the Stardust Tragedy: Statements (23 Apr 2024)

Eoin Ó Broin: Hear hear.

Acknowledgement and Apology to the Families and to the Victims of the Stardust Tragedy: Statements (23 Apr 2024)

Pa Daly: Deputy Haughey made reference to the Kerry Babies case and to the apology that was given after 40 years. However, the apology was worded so that it was unclear exactly what the State was apologising for. Questions still remain to be answered. It has never been explained how five of the same statements which dovetailed were made in five different rooms about an event that science deems...

Acknowledgement and Apology to the Families and to the Victims of the Stardust Tragedy: Statements (23 Apr 2024)

Denise Mitchell: I have very vivid memories of the Stardust fire. I was living in Darndale at the time and my dad was working nights, so he would come home from work and go to bed. We as kids would get up early and watch the television so my da could have his sleep. I remember going down. I cannot remember exactly what was on the TV that day but I remember flicking through the stations and the news of the...