Results 1,301-1,320 of 20,724 for speaker:Mattie McGrath

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Departmental Data (15 Feb 2024)

Mattie McGrath: 287. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the number of persons refused entry to the state every year for the past four years; the reasons for refusal; the point of entry where entry was refused; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [7309/24]

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Asylum Seekers (15 Feb 2024)

Mattie McGrath: 288. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the number of persons who have been refused asylum in Ireland every year for the past four years; the number of deportations that have been carried out each year for the past four years; the number of people given self-deportation orders; the number of those that have been carried out; and if she will make a statement on the...

Recent Developments in Northern Ireland: Statements (14 Feb 2024)

Mattie McGrath: I, too, am delighted to speak on this issue. It is long awaited. I salute those involved in the peace process, none less than former Minister, and a colleague of mine in Tipperary, Martin Mansergh, and, indeed, the late Fr. Alec Reid, John Hume and all the people who tried. We got the peace process and then we saw Stormont stop and start repeatedly, but anois ag dul ar aghaidh,...

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (14 Feb 2024)

Mattie McGrath: Adult education tutors have been campaigning for a public service contract with a common, sector-wide incremental payscale for many years. The campaign finally bore fruit when in May of last year the Department of further and higher education published a contract proposal. However, that proposal was full of ambiguity and was not acceptable to the tutors. As was said earlier, they will be...

Joint Committee on Tourism, Culture, Arts, Sport And Media: Transparency of RTÉ Expenditure of Public Funds and Governance Issues: Discussion (Resumed) (14 Feb 2024)

Mattie McGrath: I thank our guests for coming in today. I am very disappointed with so many things going on and that no real progress has been made. My main questions is to ask how on earth could RTÉ have reappointed Deloitte as the organisation’s auditors? That firm gave a clean bill of health to RTÉ in 2023 and my question is to ask how could it have given that? Is RTÉ keeping...

Joint Committee on Tourism, Culture, Arts, Sport And Media: Transparency of RTÉ Expenditure of Public Funds and Governance Issues: Discussion (Resumed) (14 Feb 2024)

Mattie McGrath: I thank the Chair for the clarification. We need more than apologies. I questioned Ms Doherty at the committee here about the discrimination against female employees being forced to leave at 65 years of age when contracts were being signed with male employees up until the age of 70. This has been going on and the rot has been in there for a long time. We have been told here today that...

Joint Committee on Tourism, Culture, Arts, Sport And Media: Transparency of RTÉ Expenditure of Public Funds and Governance Issues: Discussion (Resumed) (14 Feb 2024)

Mattie McGrath: "Betrayed" is what I said.

Joint Committee on Tourism, Culture, Arts, Sport And Media: Transparency of RTÉ Expenditure of Public Funds and Governance Issues: Discussion (Resumed) (14 Feb 2024)

Mattie McGrath: Thanks for that but, as I said, RTÉ appointed Deloitte, which gave a clean bill of health, despite the fact that the station was facing ruin. It was out of money and depending on a cash injection from the Government. I accept that the board are temporary appointments and I have sat on many voluntary boards, as I am sure many of my colleagues have. We spent two hours one night at a...

Joint Committee on Tourism, Culture, Arts, Sport And Media: Transparency of RTÉ Expenditure of Public Funds and Governance Issues: Discussion (Resumed) (14 Feb 2024)

Mattie McGrath: But, surely, what else would they do? That is their job.

Joint Committee on Tourism, Culture, Arts, Sport And Media: Transparency of RTÉ Expenditure of Public Funds and Governance Issues: Discussion (Resumed) (14 Feb 2024)

Mattie McGrath: I do not expect the firm to be given a bonus for that. Deloitte gave RTÉ a clean bill of health when it should not have, full stop. I am a small businessman, like I am sure are some people around here, and if we operated in this way we would not last weeks, never mind years. Our witnesses have mentioned €15 million of a kind of contingency fund to deal with the multiple tax...

Joint Committee on Tourism, Culture, Arts, Sport And Media: Transparency of RTÉ Expenditure of Public Funds and Governance Issues: Discussion (Resumed) (14 Feb 2024)

Mattie McGrath: Mr. Bakhurst is missing my point. I or any of my companies cannot tell Revenue that we have put a fund aside there and we will wait to see. It does not happen for PRSI or PAYE workers who pay their taxes and for ordinary business people who have to do audited accounts, pony up, face the music and pay up. It is a saga.

Joint Committee on Tourism, Culture, Arts, Sport And Media: Transparency of RTÉ Expenditure of Public Funds and Governance Issues: Discussion (Resumed) (14 Feb 2024)

Mattie McGrath: Companies are closed down every day. A businessman was on to me yesterday where Revenue just closed down all his accounts. Why does it not do that to RTÉ and why is it such a sacred cow that Revenue allows it to get-----

Joint Committee on Tourism, Culture, Arts, Sport And Media: Transparency of RTÉ Expenditure of Public Funds and Governance Issues: Discussion (Resumed) (14 Feb 2024)

Mattie McGrath: RTÉ thinks it is.

Joint Committee on Tourism, Culture, Arts, Sport And Media: Transparency of RTÉ Expenditure of Public Funds and Governance Issues: Discussion (Resumed) (14 Feb 2024)

Mattie McGrath: Revenue is treating RTÉ as a sacred cow because it is allowing RTÉ that flexibility. RTÉ is talking about 600 or perhaps 400 cases where RTÉ does not know. Revenue closed down a company in my town yesterday, it froze all its bank accounts for a much lower sum of money than that. That is how Revenue deals with people. It is very aggressive but there is a special...

Joint Committee on Tourism, Culture, Arts, Sport And Media: Transparency of RTÉ Expenditure of Public Funds and Governance Issues: Discussion (Resumed) (14 Feb 2024)

Mattie McGrath: There is nothing complicated about it for every citizen and every small business. Nothing. They have to pay their dues and their tax has to be collected. RTÉ had shoddy deals with private contractors and that has been going on for decades. Deloitte’s annual inspection of RTÉ’s books was mentioned by our witnesses and it includes an evaluation of internal controls...

Joint Committee on Tourism, Culture, Arts, Sport And Media: Transparency of RTÉ Expenditure of Public Funds and Governance Issues: Discussion (Resumed) (14 Feb 2024)

Mattie McGrath: It has not been clarified. No. Has RTÉ reappointed Deloitte or is it looking at reappointing that firm? Ms O’Leary did not seem to be sure there.

Joint Committee on Tourism, Culture, Arts, Sport And Media: Transparency of RTÉ Expenditure of Public Funds and Governance Issues: Discussion (Resumed) (14 Feb 2024)

Mattie McGrath: Why did RTÉ not do this before the firm was reappointed, after all of this mess?

Joint Committee on Tourism, Culture, Arts, Sport And Media: Transparency of RTÉ Expenditure of Public Funds and Governance Issues: Discussion (Resumed) (14 Feb 2024)

Mattie McGrath: That is not an excuse.

Joint Committee on Tourism, Culture, Arts, Sport And Media: Transparency of RTÉ Expenditure of Public Funds and Governance Issues: Discussion (Resumed) (14 Feb 2024)

Mattie McGrath: Through the Chair, it had not done its job.

Joint Committee on Tourism, Culture, Arts, Sport And Media: Transparency of RTÉ Expenditure of Public Funds and Governance Issues: Discussion (Resumed) (14 Feb 2024)

Mattie McGrath: It did?