Results 341-360 of 566 for speaker:Niall Ó Brolcháin

Seanad: Order of Business. (28 Apr 2010)

Niall Ó Brolcháin: What politicians actually do is a mystery to many people, so there must also be an educational process. I hope the debate will be soon. I will not oppose the Order of Business, but I welcome Senator O'Toole's raising of the issue.

Seanad: Smarter Travel Initiative: Motion (28 Apr 2010)

Niall Ó Brolcháin: Smarter travel.

Seanad: Smarter Travel Initiative: Motion (28 Apr 2010)

Niall Ó Brolcháin: On a point of order, he should be allowed to get on with it.

Seanad: Smarter Travel Initiative: Motion (28 Apr 2010)

Niall Ó Brolcháin: The Minister of State did not refer to any particular parties.

Seanad: Smarter Travel Initiative: Motion (28 Apr 2010)

Niall Ó Brolcháin: In fairness, this is an important debate and the Minister of State should be allowed to continue.

Seanad: Smarter Travel Initiative: Motion (28 Apr 2010)

Niall Ó Brolcháin: I thank Senator Norris in particular for his reference to the western rail corridor because in these debates, people sometimes have the view that public transport or transport in general ends at the border of the Pale, which it does not. I believe Senator Coffey also will attest to this.

Seanad: Smarter Travel Initiative: Motion (28 Apr 2010)

Niall Ó Brolcháin: I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Finneran, to the House and it would be remiss of me were I to fail to congratulate the Minister of State, Deputy Cuffe, on his first visit to the Seanad. Unfortunately, he now has left the Chamber. In respect of smarter travel, I note that people frequently use the wonderful word "smart". We are becoming a smart nation that has a smart economy, smart...

Seanad: Order of Business. (27 Apr 2010)

Niall Ó Brolcháin: I call on the Leader for a debate on a slightly different subject, namely, the conservation of our environment. While Members have many debates on the economy and on the human impact on the country, no matter what is happening with regard to our economy, we have a fantastic natural environment and are very lucky people. Before the existing banks ever were invented, we had banks of the...

Seanad: Order of Business. (22 Apr 2010)

Niall Ó Brolcháin: I call for a debate on the future of sheep farming because the sheep farmers in the west are under great threat. The cost of shearing a sheep is now dearer than the price fetched for a fleece. There is also a demographic issue with many of the younger generation not taking up sheep farming. The carpet in Dáil Éireann was manufactured in Galway with wool from the west. Carpet...

Seanad: Order of Business. (22 Apr 2010)

Niall Ó Brolcháin: Dogs, including the famous one on "The Late Late Show" recently, can command stud fees of up to €1 million for their owners. Many of the greyhound industry dogs are sold for thousands of euro yet it is believed rural Ireland will collapse if a €6 one-off fee is imposed on breeders.

Seanad: Order of Business. (22 Apr 2010)

Niall Ó Brolcháin: It is important to have a debate on this matter.

Seanad: Order of Business. (22 Apr 2010)

Niall Ó Brolcháin: This is a trumped-up claim. Fine Gael is missing the point about rural Ireland by focusing on the wrong debate.

Seanad: Order of Business. (22 Apr 2010)

Niall Ó Brolcháin: Fine Gael is protecting big farmers and the wealthy.

Seanad: Inland Fisheries Bill 2009: Second Stage. (20 Apr 2010)

Niall Ó Brolcháin: Given that the current structure has been in place for 30 years, it is appropriate that we examine it afresh. It is welcome, therefore, that the Inland Fisheries Bill 2009 has come before us for our consideration. However, while it contains a number of positive measures, I am concerned as a Senator from Galway that we might lose the local focus which has developed over the years. Whenever...

Seanad: Order of Business. (20 Apr 2010)

Niall Ó Brolcháin: Senator Quinn's proposal as regards good news is a good suggestion. It is important to have good spirits both in this House and indeed in the country. I refer to my earlier comments as regards the Romanian Senate which unanimously passed a decree to the effect that there should be 50% good news and 50% bad news in newspapers. Unfortunately, it appears it was not possible to define what was...

Seanad: Order of Business. (20 Apr 2010)

Niall Ó Brolcháin: As regards questions for the Leader, I support the call for a debate by Senator O'Reilly, which was good news, as regards co-op wind farms. That certainly is a good suggestion, and he might also look into the idea of biogas. Other countries such as Germany have strong biogas industries, while in Ireland there is great potential but actually zero-----

Seanad: Order of Business. (20 Apr 2010)

Niall Ó Brolcháin: Yes, indeed it is and we are working on it. Finally, there is a volcano erupting in Iceland which indeed is an act of God, but-----

Seanad: Order of Business. (20 Apr 2010)

Niall Ó Brolcháin: Indeed, there is an enormous amount of hot air. I call for a debate on this because there are quite important implications. If a member of my party had suggested a few weeks ago that all the planes in Europe were going to be grounded because of a volcano in Iceland, Members opposite would have suggested we were all sandal-wearing, bearded, muesli-eating hippies-----

Seanad: Order of Business. (20 Apr 2010)

Niall Ó Brolcháin: In all seriousness-----

Seanad: Order of Business. (20 Apr 2010)

Niall Ó Brolcháin: -----this matter has huge implications for our country. This is an island nation and many multinationals here rely on airplanes for exporting produce from this country.