Results 8,901-8,920 of 24,338 for speaker:Jerry Buttimer
- Seanad: Order of Business (1 Feb 2018)
Jerry Buttimer: I join in the congratulations extended to our colleague and friend, Senator Joe O'Reilly, and his elevation to the position of vice president of the Council of Europe. He will bring a wonderful demeanour, huge expertise and a very high calibre to that role. We wish him every success. It is a tremendous honour for him, his family, for Cavan and for the Oireachtas that he has been elected to...
- Seanad: Order of Business (1 Feb 2018)
Jerry Buttimer: Good. I want to make this clear, no other country in the world is trying to do what we are trying to achieve, namely, to connect every house and business in the country to high speed broadband. The aim and aspiration is still to have 90% connectivity. I know Senator Leyden brought telephones around the country when he was Minister of State but we cannot do that in this case. This is a...
- Seanad: Order of Business (1 Feb 2018)
Jerry Buttimer: It is important we commit to this. The Minister and the Government are very much of that view. I hear people criticise the role of the Government in this matter, but let us reflect on what the Government did.
- Seanad: Order of Business (1 Feb 2018)
Jerry Buttimer: To be fair to the former Ministers, Pat Rabbitte and Alex White, and other Ministers who served in the previous Government and in this Government, we set up a national broadband procurement policy. It is a process. If there was political interference in that process, every one of the Members would have been roaring and shouting this morning about political involvement. The question that...
- Seanad: Order of Business (1 Feb 2018)
Jerry Buttimer: There you go. It did. There was an engagement with the bidders-----
- Seanad: Order of Business (1 Feb 2018)
Jerry Buttimer: The Senator is the best fellow I know for being right about everything and wrong about nothing.
- Seanad: Order of Business (1 Feb 2018)
Jerry Buttimer: The Senator is wrong about everything.
- Seanad: Order of Business (1 Feb 2018)
Jerry Buttimer: A independent process was put in place.
- Seanad: Order of Business (1 Feb 2018)
Jerry Buttimer: It did not fail. There is one bidder left who is committed.
- Seanad: Order of Business (1 Feb 2018)
Jerry Buttimer: Senator Ó Domhnaill knows well that there is no monopoly. Senator O'Reilly who is a member of the communications committee, as is Senator Leyden, will tell Senator Ó Domhnaill of what transpired with Eir.
- Seanad: Order of Business (1 Feb 2018)
Jerry Buttimer: The bottom line is the Government is committed. We have one bidder left and despite Senator Daly's cynicism, it may well be of benefit to the House and we may have connectivity quicker.
- Seanad: Order of Business (1 Feb 2018)
Jerry Buttimer: As the Minister, Deputy Naughten, said, the task is now to let us get the job done.
- Seanad: Order of Business (1 Feb 2018)
Jerry Buttimer: I am confident that we will get it done. I am very happy to facilitate the debate but I would again ask Senator Daly, who came back to us, to listen to what his learned colleague, Senator Wilson, said. We should never have sold off Eircom, which his party did, and the consequence of that is that it was asset-stripped from then. That is where we are at today in part. The question that must...
- Seanad: Order of Business (1 Feb 2018)
Jerry Buttimer: At least our party in government is ambitious for our people.
- Seanad: Order of Business (1 Feb 2018)
Jerry Buttimer: Some 77% of our people have connectivity.
- Seanad: Order of Business (1 Feb 2018)
Jerry Buttimer: I will roll on. Some 77% of our people will have broadband connectivity by the end of the year. That is not a bad achievement and there has been a 19% increase in connectivity since the Minister, Deputy Naughten, came into office. Senator Boyhan has requested a debate on Coillte and I would be very happy to facilitate that. The chief executive officer of Coillte, Mr. Gerard Murphy, was...
- Seanad: Order of Business (1 Feb 2018)
Jerry Buttimer: I am well aware of that. I have met these workers and spoken to them, as has the Senator.
- Seanad: Order of Business (1 Feb 2018)
Jerry Buttimer: If I can answer the issue the Senator raised, the funding position of section 39 organisations is that they get a grant, a service level agreement. There is an obligation on all Departments to engage with Oireachtas committees. In this case, the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform cited that the relevant Department was the Department of Health, but it would be helpful it there was a...
- Seanad: Order of Business (1 Feb 2018)
Jerry Buttimer: I would be happy to have that debate with him. I did not get all of Senator Leyden's contribution on the Druid production but I wish that production well. The Senator is certainly a good advertisement for being on stage with the actors in that production. I congratulate Senator Dolan on his advocacy for and work on seeking the ratification of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with...
- Seanad: Order of Business (1 Feb 2018)
Jerry Buttimer: The Taoiseach will be here.