Results 17,001-17,020 of 50,683 for speaker:Micheál Martin

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2021
Vote 1 - President's Establishment (Revised)
Vote 2 - Department of the Taoiseach (Revised)
Vote 3 - Office of the Attorney General (Revised)
Vote 5 - Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (Revised)
Vote 6 - Chief State Solicitor's Office (Revised) (27 Apr 2021)

Micheál Martin: -----interpretation of what is in the media. I did not interrupt the Deputy. I want to make it very clear that I have had discussions with the First Minister and Deputy First Minister about variants as far back as variant B117. Our Chief Medical Officer has had discussions with Northern Ireland's Chief Medical Officer in respect of B117, which is one of the earliest variants and one we all...

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2021
Vote 1 - President's Establishment (Revised)
Vote 2 - Department of the Taoiseach (Revised)
Vote 3 - Office of the Attorney General (Revised)
Vote 5 - Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (Revised)
Vote 6 - Chief State Solicitor's Office (Revised) (27 Apr 2021)

Micheál Martin: Yes.

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2021
Vote 1 - President's Establishment (Revised)
Vote 2 - Department of the Taoiseach (Revised)
Vote 3 - Office of the Attorney General (Revised)
Vote 5 - Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (Revised)
Vote 6 - Chief State Solicitor's Office (Revised) (27 Apr 2021)

Micheál Martin: I always saw a distinction between what occurs in the political world and recruitment for non-political appointments, be they Civil Service appointments or appointments more generally to agencies. I did not enter politics with an eye on salaries. Obviously, I believe in the basic principle that a Deputy's salary should be linked to that of a principal officer because I can recall a time,...

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2021
Vote 1 - President's Establishment (Revised)
Vote 2 - Department of the Taoiseach (Revised)
Vote 3 - Office of the Attorney General (Revised)
Vote 5 - Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (Revised)
Vote 6 - Chief State Solicitor's Office (Revised) (27 Apr 2021)

Micheál Martin: My view is we need to send a very clear signal on our commitment to both reforming and transforming health performance more generally and the Department of Health into the future. The decision on the competition is independent, based on the Top Level Appointments Committee, TLAC, approach and model, but, even for the successor to the incumbent, I would still leave the salary at the level in...

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2021
Vote 1 - President's Establishment (Revised)
Vote 2 - Department of the Taoiseach (Revised)
Vote 3 - Office of the Attorney General (Revised)
Vote 5 - Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (Revised)
Vote 6 - Chief State Solicitor's Office (Revised) (27 Apr 2021)

Micheál Martin: The funding is primarily capital. There is also a reconciliation fund, which is administered by the Department of Foreign Affairs, and the PEACE fund, which is quite substantial. There is more than €1 billion in the PEACE fund, €500 million in the shared island fund and a number of millions in terms of the Department of Foreign Affairs budget for reconciliation and outreach to...

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2021
Vote 1 - President's Establishment (Revised)
Vote 2 - Department of the Taoiseach (Revised)
Vote 3 - Office of the Attorney General (Revised)
Vote 5 - Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (Revised)
Vote 6 - Chief State Solicitor's Office (Revised) (27 Apr 2021)

Micheál Martin: I have done so.

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2021
Vote 1 - President's Establishment (Revised)
Vote 2 - Department of the Taoiseach (Revised)
Vote 3 - Office of the Attorney General (Revised)
Vote 5 - Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (Revised)
Vote 6 - Chief State Solicitor's Office (Revised) (27 Apr 2021)

Micheál Martin: Scéimeanna den scoth a cuireadh a bhfeidhm ag an Rialtas atá sna híocaíochtaí sin, go háirithe na híocaíochtaí paindéime. Níl sé ar intinn againn aon ghearradh a dhéanamh ar na híocaíochtaí sin. Mar a dúramar, an cinneadh atá déanta againn ná go mbeidh siad ann go dtí deireadh mhí...

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2021
Vote 1 - President's Establishment (Revised)
Vote 2 - Department of the Taoiseach (Revised)
Vote 3 - Office of the Attorney General (Revised)
Vote 5 - Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (Revised)
Vote 6 - Chief State Solicitor's Office (Revised) (27 Apr 2021)

Micheál Martin: I thank the Deputy. The UK Government as a whole has set fairly ambitious targets as well in regard to climate. In Northern Ireland and in terms of the all-island context, we believe climate is an obvious issue for the shared island unit and the shared island dialogue series. There has been one very good series of all-island dialogues North and South. Climate does not recognise any border...

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2021
Vote 1 - President's Establishment (Revised)
Vote 2 - Department of the Taoiseach (Revised)
Vote 3 - Office of the Attorney General (Revised)
Vote 5 - Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (Revised)
Vote 6 - Chief State Solicitor's Office (Revised) (27 Apr 2021)

Micheál Martin: The Minister for Transport, Deputy Eamon Ryan, has announced an overall island strategy in regard to the development of the railway network, particularly high speed rail. That realm of public transport lends itself to an all-island approach, which would be to the benefit of all, not only from a climate change perspective but also from an economic and mobility perspective and the perspective...

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2021
Vote 1 - President's Establishment (Revised)
Vote 2 - Department of the Taoiseach (Revised)
Vote 3 - Office of the Attorney General (Revised)
Vote 5 - Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (Revised)
Vote 6 - Chief State Solicitor's Office (Revised) (27 Apr 2021)

Micheál Martin: I am particularly committed to the research area. It is something that I believe passionately in because I think it yields results for the longer term. It means that we can get things right overall as opposed to the short-term approach.

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2021
Vote 1 - President's Establishment (Revised)
Vote 2 - Department of the Taoiseach (Revised)
Vote 3 - Office of the Attorney General (Revised)
Vote 5 - Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (Revised)
Vote 6 - Chief State Solicitor's Office (Revised) (27 Apr 2021)

Micheál Martin: The Government's objective right now is to prevent any further surges, hence the cautious approach to date in reopening sectors of society. Our strategy has worked since Christmas but it has been very difficult for people and it has been very difficult for various sectors of the economy in particular. Companies have been hanging in there to try to keep themselves alive during a very...

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2021
Vote 1 - President's Establishment (Revised)
Vote 2 - Department of the Taoiseach (Revised)
Vote 3 - Office of the Attorney General (Revised)
Vote 5 - Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (Revised)
Vote 6 - Chief State Solicitor's Office (Revised) (27 Apr 2021)

Micheál Martin: What is important is that the supports we put in place are quite comprehensive and at a very high level relative to other economies. Many people in the different sectors have actually articulated their appreciation for the level of supports. They did not catch everybody in some respects. There are still some minority groupings who did not quite get caught due to the criteria attached to...

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2021
Vote 1 - President's Establishment (Revised)
Vote 2 - Department of the Taoiseach (Revised)
Vote 3 - Office of the Attorney General (Revised)
Vote 5 - Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (Revised)
Vote 6 - Chief State Solicitor's Office (Revised) (27 Apr 2021)

Micheál Martin: First, I will take the Deputy's overall point, if I have interpreted it correctly, that we need to maintain dialogue at all times, in terms of all the perspectives in Northern Ireland - political, civic and community perspectives - and engage at a multi level. Let us use a "benign approach", as the Deputy put it. I would say that we must be proactively constructive in developing good...

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2021
Vote 1 - President's Establishment (Revised)
Vote 2 - Department of the Taoiseach (Revised)
Vote 3 - Office of the Attorney General (Revised)
Vote 5 - Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (Revised)
Vote 6 - Chief State Solicitor's Office (Revised) (27 Apr 2021)

Micheál Martin: I thank the Deputy. The Secretary General and his team in my Department deserve commendation for the work they did in regard to Brexit over a period of time, as do the Secretary General of the Department of Foreign Affairs, the Minister, Deputy Coveney, and others. Our objectives were achieved. We do not like Brexit and we think Brexit was not a good idea. What we need now is to do a...

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2021
Vote 1 - President's Establishment (Revised)
Vote 2 - Department of the Taoiseach (Revised)
Vote 3 - Office of the Attorney General (Revised)
Vote 5 - Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (Revised)
Vote 6 - Chief State Solicitor's Office (Revised) (27 Apr 2021)

Micheál Martin: First, fundamentally, in regard to the Secretary General's position, it was a policy decision and I have made my points already in respect of my views on the need to genuinely move on the health service and transform it. That does not depend on one position and I take the Chairman's point on that. I understand where people are coming from and people are entitled to have different...

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2021
Vote 1 - President's Establishment (Revised)
Vote 2 - Department of the Taoiseach (Revised)
Vote 3 - Office of the Attorney General (Revised)
Vote 5 - Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (Revised)
Vote 6 - Chief State Solicitor's Office (Revised) (27 Apr 2021)

Micheál Martin: The Chairman made comments to the effect that he has not seen anything in services.

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2021
Vote 1 - President's Establishment (Revised)
Vote 2 - Department of the Taoiseach (Revised)
Vote 3 - Office of the Attorney General (Revised)
Vote 5 - Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (Revised)
Vote 6 - Chief State Solicitor's Office (Revised) (27 Apr 2021)

Micheál Martin: I am not saying the figures are based on the increase.

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2021
Vote 1 - President's Establishment (Revised)
Vote 2 - Department of the Taoiseach (Revised)
Vote 3 - Office of the Attorney General (Revised)
Vote 5 - Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (Revised)
Vote 6 - Chief State Solicitor's Office (Revised) (27 Apr 2021)

Micheál Martin: I never said that. Neither do I want the impression to go out that there has been no increase in services at all in health this year. The opposite is the case. There has been an unprecedented increase in health service budgets this year across the board, in terms of acute services, home care packages, diagnostics and primary care. The key now is to embed that into the future of our health...

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2021
Vote 1 - President's Establishment (Revised)
Vote 2 - Department of the Taoiseach (Revised)
Vote 3 - Office of the Attorney General (Revised)
Vote 5 - Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (Revised)
Vote 6 - Chief State Solicitor's Office (Revised) (27 Apr 2021)

Micheál Martin: No, I am not. This is specific to the Department of Health.

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2021
Vote 1 - President's Establishment (Revised)
Vote 2 - Department of the Taoiseach (Revised)
Vote 3 - Office of the Attorney General (Revised)
Vote 5 - Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (Revised)
Vote 6 - Chief State Solicitor's Office (Revised) (27 Apr 2021)

Micheál Martin: I do not. This is very specific to the Department of Health. I made my points earlier in respect of why I think this Department, more so than other Departments, has a burden of responsibilities-----