Results 901-920 of 11,114 for speaker:Damien English

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Urban Development (8 Mar 2022)

Damien English: I thank Senator Currie for raising this issue, which I will answer on behalf of my colleague, the Minister of State at the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Deputy Peter Burke, who could not make it today. He is glad the Senator raised this issue, however, because it is certainly something he would like to talk about to focus minds. The whole idea behind the Town Centre...

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Urban Development (8 Mar 2022)

Damien English: As I am no longer the Minister of State with responsibility in this Department, I do not want to rewrite policy while I am here. I will certainly bring back the points raised by the Senator to the Minister of State, Deputy Peter Burke. To be clear, the understanding when we set up the urban and rural regeneration funds was that they would achieve the same thing in different settings because...

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Food Industry (8 Mar 2022)

Damien English: I thank the Senator for raising this issue. We have had to have an important conversation on import substitution and food security. In recent years our supply chains were tested by Brexit, then Covid and now the terrible events and atrocities in Ukraine. There is an urgency around looking at food security issues, and import substitution is something that is close to my heart and which we...

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Food Industry (8 Mar 2022)

Damien English: I again thank the Senator for raising this issue. We are at one on the need to focus on import substitution in the short and long term to deal with crises such as the current one, but also from the perspective of job security and security for various parts of the market. We should look at this for different reasons. It is an area we probably need to focus more on, which I have been saying...

Seanad: Redundancy Payments (Amendment) Bill 2022: Second Stage (8 Mar 2022)

Damien English: I thank the Acting Chairperson. I am glad to be here to focus on, discuss and introduce the Redundancy Payments (Amendment) Bill 2022 to Seanad Éireann. It is a short but important piece of legislation in response to the Covid-19 situation. Since the outbreak of Covid-19 in March 2020, the Government has sought to protect as many businesses, jobs and workers as possible through the...

Seanad: Redundancy Payments (Amendment) Bill 2022: Second Stage (8 Mar 2022)

Damien English: I thank Senators for their contributions and for their positive comments on the Bill. I will tease through some of the issues that were raised. I understand that Senator Hoey had to leave to attend an International Women's Day event. Today is an important day and we are all very supportive of it. On International Women's Day, I am glad to give a shout out to all of the women involved in...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Legislative Measures (8 Mar 2022)

Damien English: I intend to launch a consultation into certain matters raised during consideration of the Industrial Relations (Provisions in Respect of Pension Entitlements of Retired Workers) Bill 2021 shortly. This consultation will include input from organisations representing retired workers which will assistthe Government in making informed decisions on the matter.

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Redundancy Payments (8 Mar 2022)

Damien English: I fully appreciate how difficult the situation is for those people who have been affected by redundancies in the case outlined.  By law, it is the employer’s responsibility to pay statutory redundancy to eligible workers.  In situations where an employer is genuinely unable to pay statutory redundancy entitlements due to financial difficulties or insolvency, the...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: EU Directives (2 Mar 2022)

Damien English: Work is on track to transpose the Directive by the deadline of 1 August 2022.  Officials in my Department are currently examining and considering the necessary amendments so that proposals can be brought to Cabinet for approval to draft legislation as soon as possible.   A public consultation on EU Directive 2019/1152 on Transparent and Predictable Working Conditions was...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Weather Events (1 Mar 2022)

Damien English: The Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment (DETE) Flooding Relief Scheme is an emergency humanitarian contribution for businesses, (up to 20 employees), community, voluntary and sporting bodies, who are unable to secure flooding insurance, to assist them in returning their premises to their pre-flood condition. The Scheme may be invoked following a Government Decision to provide...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Horticulture Sector (1 Mar 2022)

Damien English: A Review of Economic Migration Policy undertaken in 2018 concluded that while the employment permits system provides a robust framework to supplement skills and labour needs in the State, the current legislation imposes considerable inflexibility in its operation. In order to increase the agility and responsiveness of the system, the Review recommended that new legislation be initiated. ...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Local Authorities (1 Mar 2022)

Damien English: Following the dissolution of the County and City Enterprise Boards in 2014, the 31 Local Enterprise Offices (LEOs) were established to promote entrepreneurship and to act as a “first-stop-shop” for providing advice and guidance and financial assistance to those wishing to start or grow their own business. Over the eight years since their establishment the LEOs have provided...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Departmental Data (1 Mar 2022)

Damien English: Following the dissolution of the County and City Enterprise Boards in 2014, the 31 Local Enterprise Offices (LEOs) were established to promote entrepreneurship and to act as a “first-stop-shop” for providing advice and guidance and financial assistance to those wishing to start or grow their own business. Over the eight years since their establishment the LEOs have provided...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Health and Safety (1 Mar 2022)

Damien English: The Health and Safety Authority (HSA) is the national statutory body with responsibility for ensuring that all employees and those affected by work activities are protected from work related injury and ill-health. The HSA does this by enforcing occupational health and safety legislation, promoting accident prevention, and providing information and advice across all sectors.  The...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Tourism Industry (1 Mar 2022)

Damien English: I propose to take Questions Nos. 136, 137 and 138 together. The employment permits system is designed to facilitate the entry of appropriately skilled non-EEA nationals to fill skills and/or labour shortages, in circumstances where there are no suitably qualified Irish/EEA nationals available to undertake the work and that the shortage is a genuine one.  The system is managed through the...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Employment Rights (1 Mar 2022)

Damien English: The Government has agreed to have a once-off public holiday on Friday 18thMarch 2022 in recognition of the efforts of the general public and Ireland’s frontline workers during the Covid-19 pandemic and in remembrance of people who lost their lives due to the Covid-19 pandemic. From next year there will be a new permanent public holiday established in celebration of Imbolc/St....

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Joint Labour Committees (24 Feb 2022)

Damien English: If the Labour Court receive proposals from the Early Years’ Joint Labour Committee (JLC) for the adoption of proposals for an Employment Regulation Order (ERO) they will examine the proposals and the report of the Chairman of the JLC submitted to it in accordance with the Industrial Relations Act, 1946 at Section 42B(12)(d). The Labour Court may, as it thinks proper, adopt the...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Environmental Schemes (23 Feb 2022)

Damien English: My Department’s Agencies, as part of their funding offers, support investment in energy efficiency and environmental projects in their client companies, in compliance with the conditions of the Environmental State Aid Scheme agreed for Ireland 2014-2020 and recently extended to 2023. The legal basis for the Scheme is the enabling legislation of Enterprise Ireland, IDA Ireland and...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Environmental Schemes (23 Feb 2022)

Damien English: My Department’s Agencies, as part of their funding offers, support investment in energy efficiency and environmental projects in their client companies, in compliance with the conditions of the Environmental State Aid Scheme agreed for Ireland 2014-2020 and recently extended to 2023. The legal basis for the Scheme is the enabling legislation of Enterprise Ireland, IDA Ireland and...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Enterprise Support Services (23 Feb 2022)

Damien English: My Department’s Agencies, as part of their funding offers, support investment in energy efficiency and environmental projects in their client companies, in compliance with the conditions of the Environmental State Aid Scheme agreed for Ireland 2014-2020 and recently extended to 2023. The legal basis for the Scheme is the enabling legislation of Enterprise Ireland, IDA Ireland and...