Results 121-140 of 11,702 for speaker:Colm Burke

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation, and Taoiseach: Engagement with the Minister of State with responsibility for the Office of Public Works (2 Jul 2025)

Colm Burke: The problem I have is that the date for a public consultation has not been signed off on. If the Minister of State announces the date today for a public consultation, that will take a period of time. In fairness, it has to because the public must be notified of the consultation and be entitled to make contributions to it. I am wondering what more can be done. We have locked down an entire...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation, and Taoiseach: Engagement with the Minister of State with responsibility for the Office of Public Works (2 Jul 2025)

Colm Burke: Okay. I wish to address the increased cost of flood relief schemes and the average time they take from start to finish. With the Glashaboy scheme, we had major flooding in 2010 but it was 2022 before we got into a contract stage. Is there a better way to fast-track this as happened at the Department of Education and Youth? The time between a school project being looked for to when it...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation, and Taoiseach: Engagement with the Minister of State with responsibility for the Office of Public Works (2 Jul 2025)

Colm Burke: Another project in west Cork has been pulled by the OPW because of the cost. That project is regarded as too big. It concerns a coastal station. I have been involved in that for the past four to five years. The latest on that is that it was pulled because the cost was way too much and they are now going back into planning again to go forward with a smaller building and a smaller project....

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation, and Taoiseach: Engagement with the Minister of State with responsibility for the Office of Public Works (2 Jul 2025)

Colm Burke: In the case I referred to in west Cork, there was a delay of about four years in purchasing the land. The solicitors had sent in the contracts for the sale and it took four years before it got to the signature stage. That delay was not a result of a planning objection. There was no objection to planning on the coastal section, so it is the process I am talking about. The time it took for...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation, and Taoiseach: Engagement with the Minister of State with responsibility for the Office of Public Works (2 Jul 2025)

Colm Burke: Could this issue be looked at? This was a simple situation of a contract sitting on someone's desk for four years with no one being able to make a decision on it. Likewise, we had an issue with the Garda station in Glanmire some years ago that took six years from the time the contract was submitted. This was before the Minister of State's time. Then there was a decision by the Department...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Management of Hospital Waiting Lists and Insourcing and Outsourcing of Treatment: Discussion (2 Jul 2025)

Colm Burke: I know that the vast majority of people in the HSE work extremely hard and are committed to delivering a service for the population. I notice a lot of focus on moving from five days to seven days. One of the issues that came to my attention about two years ago is about use of operating theatres in the HSE compared to the private sector. For instance, I know of one hospital where no patient...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Management of Hospital Waiting Lists and Insourcing and Outsourcing of Treatment: Discussion (2 Jul 2025)

Colm Burke: Regarding everything finishing at 5 p.m. in outpatient day clinics, has the HSE looked at where it can roster staff in such a way that some people work from 8 a.m. until 2 p.m. and others work from 2 p.m. until 8 p.m.? Has that been looked at to make the system more efficient? We have the manpower to do it but the organisation of said manpower seems to be a problem.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Management of Hospital Waiting Lists and Insourcing and Outsourcing of Treatment: Discussion (2 Jul 2025)

Colm Burke: Have we actually increased the volume of people? The figures show that we have not done so in real terms, taking into account the huge increase in the workforce.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Management of Hospital Waiting Lists and Insourcing and Outsourcing of Treatment: Discussion (2 Jul 2025)

Colm Burke: There was a consultant running a clinic in a particular hospital four years ago and then an additional two consultants were appointed. There are now three consultants dealing with the particular area. The question then is about support staff. Have we done enough to make sure that the backup support staff are there to work with the consultants? That is one of the issues coming up; that...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Management of Hospital Waiting Lists and Insourcing and Outsourcing of Treatment: Discussion (2 Jul 2025)

Colm Burke: We have not got the figures on treatment abroad. In the Cork area, we have a huge number of people still travelling abroad for ophthalmology. What have we done regarding increasing the volume? I know we have opened the new unit in the South Infirmary and there are two new theatres but have we seen an increase in the numbers going through the system as a result of this development? A new...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Management of Hospital Waiting Lists and Insourcing and Outsourcing of Treatment: Discussion (2 Jul 2025)

Colm Burke: Regarding forward planning, one of the issues I have raised in the last two weeks is that of dental treatment. We do not appear to be doing forward planning for key areas. For instance, with the ophthalmology service in Cork, it took us eight or nine years to get it up and running. Are we now looking at forward planning for a number of key areas where we will have an increase in numbers?...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Management of Hospital Waiting Lists and Insourcing and Outsourcing of Treatment: Discussion (2 Jul 2025)

Colm Burke: I want to go back briefly to the issue of closing down at 5 p.m. and many services being closed on Saturdays. It is fine to say we will get consultants and registrars to be available, but will we have the backup staff that they require to operate those clinics?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Management of Hospital Waiting Lists and Insourcing and Outsourcing of Treatment: Discussion (2 Jul 2025)

Colm Burke: What percentage increase does Mr. Gloster see with regard to trying to improve the service? We are paying quite a lot of money to outsource work. We are dealing with the treatment purchase fund and the treatment abroad fund. We have a lot of money going there, whereas if it were spent within the hospitals, we would get continuous service and a better outcome for patients in real terms.

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Artificial Intelligence (2 Jul 2025)

Colm Burke: 177. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality his plans to introduce legislation that will criminalise individuals who use artificial intelligence to produce and distribute deepfake images and videos; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [36381/25]

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Citizenship Applications (2 Jul 2025)

Colm Burke: 178. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the timeframe for processing of Irish citizenship applications via Irish association, in particular those who submitted additional requested documentation as per the new guidelines published by his Department in April 2025, taking into account that no timeframe has been given and many applicants have been waiting over five...

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Wildlife Protection (2 Jul 2025)

Colm Burke: 195. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the current number of deer management units (DMU’s) nationally; the current number of staff employed in each DMU; the current number of vacancies in each DMU, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [36364/25]

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Departmental Staff (2 Jul 2025)

Colm Burke: 196. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the number of vacancies currently in each departmental local office; whether the number of FRS operatives across all regions has been reduced in the past 18 months, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [36365/25]

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Nitrates Usage (2 Jul 2025)

Colm Burke: 197. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine for an update in relation to the retention of the Nitrates Derogation as per the Nitrates Derogation Renewal Plan published in August 2024; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [36366/25]

Written Answers — Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Agriculture Schemes (2 Jul 2025)

Colm Burke: 198. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine for an update regarding the ‘Better Farming for Water’ advisory programme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [36367/25]

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: National Planning Framework (1 Jul 2025)

Colm Burke: Regarding forward planning, we need to address the concentration of development in Dublin and the greater Dublin area. We need to focus very much on places like Cork, Limerick and Galway. There is clear evidence that the growth in jobs continues in Cork. Therefore, we must develop the housing in order to accommodate those new jobs. I do not believe we are working hard enough to develop...