Type: Speech

I welcome the opportunity to contribute to the debate on this Bill. On 27 October last I contributed to the debate on Deputy O’Callaghan’s judicial appointments Bill, which was a significant and welcome improvement on the absurdity of Deputy Ross’s proposals when he introduced a Bill in 2014. I will relay some of the things…

This issue has dominated parliamentary questions on defence since this Dáil came into being last year and, indeed, during the previous Dáil. It has been the primary issue during every oral parliamentary question session. The Minister of State is well acquainted with the political will on this side of the House to remove Lariam as…

Good evening. Welcome to Dublin Central. Welcome to the new four seat constituency. Welcome also to O’Connell St., the heart of Dublin Central and the heart of our capital city. It was here that so much of our modern Labour history was forged. The balcony of the old Imperial Hotel down the street was where…

CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY Remarks by Brendan Howlin TD, Leader of the Labour Party to the Public Affairs Ireland Conference Whistleblowing, Protected Disclosures and Public Sector organisations, ‘The Policy and political background to the Protected Disclosures Act 2014 – why was it introduced and what has it achieved’. Good morning, Thank you for the invitation to…

Speech by Labour Party Leader Brendan Howlin on Post-EU Council Statements. Check against delivery Taoiseach, I hope you enjoyed your first EU Council meeting. It appears from reports that you kept yourself busy while in Brussels. Deputy Martin raised with you last week his frustration with the level of debate and engagement on EU issues….

A Cheann Comhairle, This is a poor measure. And it is promoted for shoddy motives. That it is being promoted by the party that prides itself above all on its adherence to the Constitution, constitutional probity and the rule of law is deeply depressing. And it does not go unnoticed that the party of Collins…

Good evening all. It’s great to see such a turnout here to support Aodhán. The last twelve months have not represented Irish politics finest hour. Having squabbled for 70 days, Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael finally came to an agreement. And we might have thought that some work would begin. Very quickly, we realised how…

It is one of the greatest honours of my life to be trusted to fly the Labour banner by members of this great party. Having fought successful local elections in 2004, 2009 and a General Election in 2011, it was by the narrowest of margins that we lost out on a seat in Dublin Bay…

Speech by Joan Burton in Dáil  Éireann on Leo Varadkar’s election as Taoiseach “On my own behalf and on behalf of the people of Dublin West I want to express my congratulations and good wishes to Leo’s family – his parents Miriam and Ashock and his partner Matt. This is a very proud day for…

Minister Varadkar, On a personal level, I want to wish you well today. While my party cannot support your election as Taoiseach on the basis of the existing programme for Government, it is a proud day for you. Equally, I am sure it is a happy day for your partner Matthew, for your parents Ashok…

Good evening, It’s an honour to be here at Tom Johnson for my second time as Labour leader. And I’m particularly pleased that we’re gathering here in Cork. This city fell out of love with us a little over recent years. But with people of the calibre of Peter Horgan and Luke Field standing alongside…

Speech by Willie Penrose TD, Labour spokesperson on Agriculture on private members motion on the Fair Deal scheme and farmers. “Fair Deal should provide for respite care and convalescense in own home. “Farmers and businesses face difficulties with asset assessment in Fair Deal “Current rules discriminate in particular against small farmers “Causing great stress and…

Speech by Labour Party Leader Brendan Howlin on Report & Final Stages of Competition Amendment Bill. First Opposition Bill to pass into law from 32nd Dáil and 25th Seanad. Provides collective bargaining rights for freelance workers. Defines in law for first time bogus self employment. Will ensure workers in the gig economy can organise for…

CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY Anyone charged with investigating serious crime has two basic obligations. The first is to assemble all the information needed to persuade a jury that the accused person has committed that crime. The second obligation is to maintain the integrity of that information and of the information-gathering process. To acquire full information, to…

Speech by Party Leader Brendan Howlin at the Labour Party Dublin South West selection convention. 24th May 2017 In just over a year and a half, on the 21st January 2019, we will be celebrating the centenary of this country’s Declaration of Independence at the first meeting of Dáil Éireann. We probably have a greater…

We are assembled here today, in the centenary year of the Russian Revolution, to commemorate the heroic figure of James Connolly, trade unionist, labourite, socialist and revolutionary martyr.We are here, 101 years after his brutal execution, to reassert his continued relevance in the context of a seminal moment for the people of this island, for…

Introduction / James Connolly We are assembled here to pay homage to the memory of James Connolly. It is a deep honour for me to be here for the first time as Leader of the Labour Party. Connolly was a political thinker, a trade unionist, and a fighter for freedom. He founded the Labour Party….

Thank you, Ceann Comhairle. Mr. Barnier, You will appreciate that the Brexit negotiating mandate is about our vital national interests, and the vital interests of this island as a whole. We have many concerns. We are an island off an island off the European mainland. Inevitably, our geography must dictate our policies and priorities. The…

There is no attempt by the Labour Party to prevent the normalisation of the banking sector, as the Minister of State alleged. There is certainly no attempt to conflate two separate and discrete policy areas, namely, banking policy and capital investment constraints. The debt to GDP ratio is at a sustainable level and the general…

My Party Leader Brendan Howlin has outlined the compelling reasons why we should postpone the sale of AIB shares until the fiscal rules are changed to allow us to use the capital that will accrue for infrastructural projects that will bring social and economic benefit. Our Party has secured the support of sister parties in…

Statements re. Ireland and the negotiations on the UK’s withdrawal from the European Union Speech by Brendan Howlin TD CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY Taoiseach, On behalf of my party and our movement I want to wish you all a Happy Europe Day. May we be united in diversity, to quote the EU motto. I welcome the…

  This motion isn’t just about economics. About cautious fiscal plans and prudent public spending. This motion is also about some basic morality. It’s about an economic collapse, brought about by our profligate, property-speculating banks. And it’s about the enormous price our people paid to rescue the banks and to rescue the economy. The last…

I will speak in favour of this Bill on behalf of the Labour Party. I congratulate and thank Deputy Browne and his colleagues on bringing it forward. It is very good legislation and it is a matter in which the Deputy has a keen interest and which he pursues consistently. The Bill seeks to integrate…

CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY I introduced Eamon Gilmore as leader in this room 10 years ago. So, Rebecca, you never know! Fáilte romhaibh uilig go Loch Garman! Seasann Páirtí an Lucht Oibre ar trí bhunphriosabail: Daonnacht, cearta agus comhionannas. Geallaim daoibh anocht go mbeidh an páirtí seo ag díriú go hiomlán; Chun iad seo a chur…