Results 1,941-1,960 of 47,282 for speaker:Simon Harris

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (1 May 2025)

Simon Harris: On the legacy Act, the Irish Government took a case not because of pressure from any political party but because it believes in international law, human rights and the Good Friday Agreement. We took one in a very difficult situation. We did not want to find ourselves in that position, but I can report to the House very good and constructive engagement between me and the Secretary of State...

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (1 May 2025)

Simon Harris: As the Deputy can imagine, since both of us live in the area, I share her frustration on this. We know very well that as the review was carried out, there were some people, including in our constituency, who saw significant fare reductions, but there have also been what I regard as anomalies in that some towns have seen significant fare increases. In this regard, the Deputy rightly referred...

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (1 May 2025)

Simon Harris: Nothing like that has happened at all. The Government has established a housing activation office. We would be delighted to constructively engage with the Deputy and all of the Opposition in terms of how this office can work effectively. We have all seen the need to break down silos, second people and bring in expertise. We should not be referring to people outside the House by their...

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (1 May 2025)

Simon Harris: The Minister, Deputy Calleary, tells me he intends to engage directly with the Minister, Deputy Browne, on planning guidelines specifically for the Gaeltacht. I will ask the Minister to engage directly with the Deputy in regard to her feedback on the issue.

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (1 May 2025)

Simon Harris: The Government and I share the Deputy's view on what we are seeing in terms of the stopping of aid getting into Gaza. It is despicable and it is causing untold harm, to put it very mildly. One cannot find the words to capture how horrific the situation is in Gaza. I thank the Deputy for his comments regarding the Government's intervention on behalf of Ireland at the ICJ. I assure him that...

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (1 May 2025)

Simon Harris: I fully agree with the Deputy's description of what needs to happen. The word "partnership" is really important. We have such good examples of childcare providers across the country. We also have significant gaps in provision. I meet people who are frustrated when they hear we have reduced the cost of childcare. They say, "That is great but I cannot get a place". Cost and access, along,...

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (1 May 2025)

Simon Harris: I thank the Deputy for raising the important issue of pedestrian safety and the need for the Government to make sure we adequately fund and provide support to local authorities for that purpose. In recent years, there have been a number of initiatives, including the walking to school programme, where there has been a real effort to make walking routes safer, particularly for schoolchildren...

Ceisteanna ó na Comhaltaí Eile - Other Members’ Questions (1 May 2025)

Simon Harris: Gabhaim buíochas leis an Teachta. I thank Deputy Heneghan for the question and for raising these two issues regarding the Irish language, particularly the school in his constituency, Gaelcholáiste Reachrann, and also Foras na Gaeilge and its funding. Let me address both of them. I hear and understand the Deputy's frustration but as he knows, this school is going to be a very...

Ceisteanna ó na Comhaltaí Eile - Other Members’ Questions (1 May 2025)

Simon Harris: The Deputy was certainly very clear in his question, in case I did not understand it the first time. I know the Minister intends to visit and she will be happy to work with the Deputy and colleagues in Dublin Bay North with regard to arranging that. I certainly want to assure all the students and staff there, who I know have been waiting a long time as I have heard this raised in the...

Ceisteanna ó na Comhaltaí Eile - Other Members’ Questions (1 May 2025)

Simon Harris: I cannot say much more. I was quite clear.

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (1 May 2025)

Simon Harris: I thank Deputy Doherty. He is right with regard to making sure people can be assisted with the cost of living but I would point out this Government has taken a number of measures, and that wages in Ireland are now growing ahead of inflation. We have taken action with regard to reducing childcare costs. That is just one example. We have made school books free and provided free school...

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (1 May 2025)

Simon Harris: I thank Deputy Sheehan and assure him the Government is getting along very well, and Ministers are active and busy in a whole range of areas. If there have not been sightings of different Ministers together - I will have to inquire into that - it is probably because they have been too busy doing their jobs. We are at one with regard to the need to establish a housing activation office. I...

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (1 May 2025)

Simon Harris: He can bring forward his proposals and we will consider them.

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (1 May 2025)

Simon Harris: I thank the Deputy. I was taking in a lot of figures there; I appreciate that the Deputy has done a lot of work on this. The purpose of the Deputy's question is largely around the issue of carbon tax. On the issue of speed limits, it is about trying to get it right. It is about recognising - we all share this view - that far too many people die on Irish roads. Being very honest, the...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (1 May 2025)

Simon Harris: I know it.

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (1 May 2025)

Simon Harris: I often say that we need more common sense in our politics. The problem is that common sense is a subjective concept. There is common sense in collecting revenue through a carbon tax and in specifically doing what we have committed to in our programme for Government. In a very honest and an upfront way, the programme for Government states that we are going to continue to use carbon tax...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (1 May 2025)

Simon Harris: I thank Deputy Murphy. I do not believe anybody can credibly suggest that this Government is anti-worker. In fact, there are many more workers in this country as a result of this Government's and successive governments' efforts to create jobs in every town, village and city throughout our island. To have workers, you need to have jobs. There are many more people in employment. Many of us...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (1 May 2025)

Simon Harris: It is not that anybody is breaching the minimum wage; it is that we have a tiered system of minimum wage in this country. The Deputy and I have different views on that but people are following the minimum wage. It is just tiered and applies differently to different people in different age brackets. That is the system that we have had in place. After the Deputy goes into that café and...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (1 May 2025)

Simon Harris: We support young people in so many ways. I found myself having to shout at the radio the other day about broken promises in relation to statutory sick pay. Read the Fine Gael manifesto. We were very clear during the general election in relation to five days of statutory sick pay. It is there; it is in black and white. We made it clear to people. There was no statutory sick pay scheme...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (1 May 2025)

Simon Harris: That is what we are doing. It was not Sinn Féín's idea or ours; it was a good idea that came from the Housing Commission and we are trying to act on that. The Minister was quite right this week to bring forward a proposal to Cabinet to move that forward. The only decision the Government of Ireland took this week was in that regard.