Sunday, March 02, 2008
Labouring to the Top
The Daily Star called up on Tuesday to inquire about my health. They had heard that I was still recuperating after my efforts on Kiliminjaro. I spoke to Catherine Halloran for a bit and she did a very nice piece in the paper on Thursday, including a picture of me at the summit. She called the article "Labouring to the Top".
In the Seanad we debated the issue of Civil Unions. The subject was introduced by Senator David Norris and I spoke in support of his motion. The debate was well attended, both in the public gallery and by Senators, and views were expressed from all sides of the political specturm. In the end, the motion was defeated. Minister Brian Lenihan, who was in the House throughout the debate, says that he intend to introduce the "Heads of a Bill" (I explain what this is in my speech) within the next couple of months. It will be interesting to see how long it takes to get an actual Bill on the Statute books.
Wednesday saw another day of gridlock in Dublin, this time brought about by the closure of the Dublin Port Tunnel. A few days previously there was congestion due to some hoardings from Pearse Street flying around. A few weeks ago an accident brought the city to a standstill. I raised the matter in the Seanad and called for the emergency services to review their planning procedures. I don't accept that it should take so long to recover from these events.
I finished off the week with a visit to the opening of a new estate agency in Bettystown, A1 Auctioneers. It was a very pleasant event and I'd like to wish the proprietors, Mary and Val, every success.
In the Seanad we debated the issue of Civil Unions. The subject was introduced by Senator David Norris and I spoke in support of his motion. The debate was well attended, both in the public gallery and by Senators, and views were expressed from all sides of the political specturm. In the end, the motion was defeated. Minister Brian Lenihan, who was in the House throughout the debate, says that he intend to introduce the "Heads of a Bill" (I explain what this is in my speech) within the next couple of months. It will be interesting to see how long it takes to get an actual Bill on the Statute books.
Wednesday saw another day of gridlock in Dublin, this time brought about by the closure of the Dublin Port Tunnel. A few days previously there was congestion due to some hoardings from Pearse Street flying around. A few weeks ago an accident brought the city to a standstill. I raised the matter in the Seanad and called for the emergency services to review their planning procedures. I don't accept that it should take so long to recover from these events.
I finished off the week with a visit to the opening of a new estate agency in Bettystown, A1 Auctioneers. It was a very pleasant event and I'd like to wish the proprietors, Mary and Val, every success.
# posted by Senator Dominic Hannigan @ 11:54 AM 
