Results 561-580 of 1,136,782 for in 'Dáil debates' OR in 'Committee meetings' (speaker:George Lee OR speaker:Roderic O'Gorman OR speaker:Martin Kenny OR speaker:Brendan Griffin OR speaker:Colm Burke OR speaker:Peadar Tóibín OR speaker:Mary Lou McDonald OR speaker:Jim O'Callaghan OR speaker:Paul Donnelly OR speaker:Patricia Ryan OR speaker:Michael Healy-Rae OR speaker:Michael Ring OR speaker:Paul Murphy OR speaker:Matt Carthy OR speaker:Seán Haughey OR speaker:Richard Boyd Barrett OR speaker:Sorca Clarke OR speaker:Rose Conway-Walsh OR speaker:Cathal Berry OR speaker:Martin Browne OR speaker:Dara Calleary OR speaker:Neale Richmond OR speaker:Steven Matthews OR speaker:Denis Naughten OR speaker:Denise Mitchell OR speaker:Dessie Ellis OR speaker:Alan Farrell OR speaker:David Cullinane OR speaker:John McGuinness OR speaker:Jennifer Murnane O'Connor OR speaker:Jackie Cahill OR speaker:Darren O'Rourke OR speaker:Thomas Byrne OR speaker:Mark Ward OR speaker:Martin Heydon)

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Defence Forces (17 Oct 2024)

Matt Carthy: This question is to adjudicate the performance of the Government in respect of the Defence Forces. Sometimes the Tánaiste says there is unfair criticism. It would be important to set out for the Dáil, in each year of this Government from 2020, the target recruitment for the Defence Forces and, in each year, how many were actually inducted and how many left, in other words, the net...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Defence Forces (17 Oct 2024)

Micheál Martin: The military authorities have advised me that as of 31 August 2024, the latest date for which such information is available, the strength of the Permanent Defence Force stood at 7,426. A table containing the requested induction and discharges figures for each year from 2020 to 2024 will be provided to the Deputy. I have acknowledged in the past the recruitment and retention challenges in...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Defence Forces (17 Oct 2024)

Matt Carthy: It is hard to ask a supplementary question when I do not have the substantive response to the question I asked. I take the Tánaiste's commitment to provide the precise figures. Here is what we do know from the Tánaiste's response. There are currently fewer than 7,500 members of our Defence Forces, 2,000 below the establishment figure and a whopping 4,000 below the two-figure...

Committee on Drugs Use: A Health-Led Approach: Discussion (Resumed) (17 Oct 2024)

Mark Ward: I thank all the witnesses for coming in. I do not know if Dr. Kelly remembers me but I was in his class in 2012 in UCD. I tried to see if he was outside and I did not recognise him but I did when he came in to speak. It is good to see him again after the council on intervention skills in UCD back in 2012. That is neither here or there. My first question is to Mr. McBrien. He mentioned...

Committee on Drugs Use: A Health-Led Approach: Discussion (Resumed) (17 Oct 2024)

Mark Ward: That makes no sense to me. The thing about common sense is that it is not very common but that is something we absolutely need to challenge. Has Mr. McBrien had any conversations with other nurse practitioners who are able to prescribe and do they share the same view as him? Do they see any challenges in prescribing opioid substitution therapy?

Committee on Drugs Use: A Health-Led Approach: Discussion (Resumed) (17 Oct 2024)

Mark Ward: If somebody in the situation Mr. McBrien described came into his service and they were already on a methadone prescriber programme but they had to get out and get their daily doses, whatever it might be, is there any co-operation between his department and the methadone dispensers? Does that work in tandem at all?

Committee on Drugs Use: A Health-Led Approach: Discussion (Resumed) (17 Oct 2024)

Mark Ward: Dr. Kelly mentioned at the start he made on 13 recommendations to the citizens' assembly. Were they all accepted or were any barriers faced in getting some of them accepted?

Committee on Drugs Use: A Health-Led Approach: Discussion (Resumed) (17 Oct 2024)

Mark Ward: Did Dr. Kelly meet any barriers when speaking at the citizens' assembly? What was the feedback on the recommendations he put forward?

Committee on Drugs Use: A Health-Led Approach: Discussion (Resumed) (17 Oct 2024)

Mark Ward: Professor Comiskey said we should enable evidence-informed policy and nurse-led prescribing and she has research to support that. She said she wanted to expand on that research.

Committee on Drugs Use: A Health-Led Approach: Discussion (Resumed) (17 Oct 2024)

Mark Ward: It is anecdotal.

Committee on Drugs Use: A Health-Led Approach: Discussion (Resumed) (17 Oct 2024)

Mark Ward: It is fantastic. I thank the Chair.

Committee on Drugs Use: A Health-Led Approach: Discussion (Resumed) (17 Oct 2024)

Mark Ward: I was not sure what the time was, but I am fine.

Committee on Drugs Use: A Health-Led Approach: Discussion (Resumed) (17 Oct 2024)

Mark Ward: I will not say what popped into my head. Just taking the piss.

Committee on Drugs Use: A Health-Led Approach: Discussion (Resumed) (17 Oct 2024)

Mark Ward: Not once or twice weekly, however. There is no benefit there.

Committee on Drugs Use: A Health-Led Approach: Discussion (Resumed) (17 Oct 2024)

Mark Ward: That was my experience. At some stage it was once weekly and if a doctor had concerns it was twice weekly. It was being used punitively.

Committee on Drugs Use: A Health-Led Approach: Discussion (Resumed) (17 Oct 2024)

Mark Ward: I thank our witnesses for their opening statements. It was very interesting to listen to them. I am from Clondalkin and over the past few years, we have been lucky enough to have some very progressive community gardaí, particularly with regard to people in the throes of addiction. They see these people as people and not as a burden on society. Once that relationship changed, we could...

Committee on Drugs Use: A Health-Led Approach: Discussion (Resumed) (17 Oct 2024)

Mark Ward: That daily interaction with people, when done humanely, trickles back into the community, families and the organisations the people may be engaged with. Community policing, especially at that level, really works.

Committee on Drugs Use: A Health-Led Approach: Discussion (Resumed) (17 Oct 2024)

Mark Ward: Are conversations taking place with members of the force in relation to potential changes in drug policy? For example, if we move from decriminalising the person but not the drug, how would that affect gardaí on a daily basis? What are their thoughts on that?

Committee on Drugs Use: A Health-Led Approach: Discussion (Resumed) (17 Oct 2024)

Mark Ward: I am sorry to cut across Mr. Kelly. He referred to the organisational change the Garda has to make and there could be more organisational change if some of the recommendations are carried into legislation. Does the Garda get support on that? Does it get resources to implement that change or it is doing that out of existing resources?

Committee on Drugs Use: A Health-Led Approach: Discussion (Resumed) (17 Oct 2024)

Mark Ward: Professor Comiskey mentioned Patricia, who was abused at the age of seven. She was injecting at the age of 15. She was criminalised for her sexuality at the age of 20 and got HIV at the age of 24. Now aged 45, she is still subjected to supervised urine testing. I spoke about this last week, but part of a previous role when I first started was supervising male urine samples. I always...