Results 2,101-2,120 of 4,073 for speaker:Mary Mitchell O'Connor

Seanad: Competition (Amendment) Bill 2016: Report and Final Stages (10 Nov 2016)

Mary Mitchell O'Connor: On the advice of the Attorney General, I am proposing a new Long Title to the Bill because some other Government amendments seek to amend the Competition Act 2002 by inserting a new Part and a new Schedule into that Act regarding the application of section 4 to collective bargaining and agreements in respect of certain categories of workers.

Seanad: Competition (Amendment) Bill 2016: Report and Final Stages (10 Nov 2016)

Mary Mitchell O'Connor: I am proposing the deletion of section 1. As my amendments seek to amend the Competition Act 2002 by inserting a new Part and a new Schedule into that Act, it is necessary to define that the "Principal Act" referred to in my amendments to later sections means the 2002 Act.

Seanad: Competition (Amendment) Bill 2016: Report and Final Stages (10 Nov 2016)

Mary Mitchell O'Connor: The need to protect vulnerable self-employed workers was often cited during previous debates on this Bill. As Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, I have a duty to ensure all workers, regardless of their situations, are protected by robust and transparent law. The Bill, as initiated, proposes to exempt people other than vulnerable self-employed workers from certain provisions of...

Seanad: Competition (Amendment) Bill 2016: Report and Final Stages (10 Nov 2016)

Mary Mitchell O'Connor: Amendment No. 5 is a standard provision for the Short Title and collective citation. In respect of the commencement of the Act, I may appoint different days for different purposes but in any event all parts shall be in operation three months after its enactment.

Seanad: Competition (Amendment) Bill 2016: Report and Final Stages (10 Nov 2016)

Mary Mitchell O'Connor: I confirm that there is nothing in the amendments to stop unions reapplying.

Seanad: Competition (Amendment) Bill 2016: Report and Final Stages (10 Nov 2016)

Mary Mitchell O'Connor: I, too, commend Senators Bacik and Nash on all of the work they have done. I am delighted to be here today and thank Senators for their nice comments. It has been a pleasure to put through this legislation because we have all worked together. I thank my departmental officials for their hard work. They worked with Senators to make sure that we got the exact sense of what needed to be done....

Seanad: Competition (Amendment) Bill 2016: Report and Final Stages (10 Nov 2016)

Mary Mitchell O'Connor: It is great that this legislation has been passed. We have worked hard in a collaborative manner with the Government to ensure a more targeted measure has been agreed and that the focus in the Bill is on vulnerable self-employed workers. I thank my officials for doing this work in a good, efficient and effective manner. I look forward to similar collaboration in the Oireachtas in the future.

Written Answers — Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: National Standards Authority of Ireland (15 Nov 2016)

Mary Mitchell O'Connor: The body responsible for the regulation of dispensing all products on forecourts is the National Standards Authority of Ireland (NSAI). Legal Metrology is responsible for the implementation of the Metrology Acts 1980-1996 and related Regulations. It does this through certifying and inspecting measurement instruments and the quantities of pre-packaged products. A wide range of measuring...

Written Answers — Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Local Enterprise Offices (15 Nov 2016)

Mary Mitchell O'Connor: My Department or enterprise agencies do not provide supports for this type of development. However, the promoter could engage with the Local Enterprise Office (LEO) who may be able to offer advice on any other form of support from various sources. At the appropriate time, the relevant Local Enterprise Office could also examine whatever spin-out projects that might emerge to consider if they...

Written Answers — Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Community Enterprise Centres (15 Nov 2016)

Mary Mitchell O'Connor: Announced in February 2015 as part of the Government’s Regional Action Plan for Jobs, the Community Enterprise Initiative Scheme is part of the Government’s €250 million regional strategy aimed at accelerating jobs recovery in every part of the country. In line with the Government’s regional strategy, the primary objective of the Community Enterprise Initiative...

Written Answers — Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Trade Data (15 Nov 2016)

Mary Mitchell O'Connor: Enterprise 2025, the Government's long-term enterprise policy is an ambitious strategy, with the objective of delivering growth over the next decade that is sustainable. The objective is to achieve full employment over the period to 2020, underpinned by innovation, productivity, cost effectiveness and competitiveness. The competitiveness of our imports as inputs to the productive sector of...

Written Answers — Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Exports Data (15 Nov 2016)

Mary Mitchell O'Connor: Enterprise 2025, the Government’s long-term enterprise policy is an ambitious strategy, with the objective of delivering growth over the next decade that is sustainable. The objective is to achieve strong export performance that is underpinned by innovation, productivity, cost effectiveness and competitiveness. According to the latest CSO Trade Statistics, Merchandise exports overall...

Written Answers — Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Brexit Issues (15 Nov 2016)

Mary Mitchell O'Connor: I propose to take Questions Nos. 696 and 699 together. Promoting cross-border trade in light of the potential impacts of Brexit is a key priority for the Government as a whole. It is, of course, hard to predict at this stage what the impact of Brexit will be for all of Ireland, including border counties such as Donegal. Much will depend on the nature of the deal that will be...

Written Answers — Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Brexit Issues (15 Nov 2016)

Mary Mitchell O'Connor: In terms of assessing the impacts of Brexit on businesses, I have tasked my Department officials with making Brexit their number one priority. I am establishing a new focused Brexit Unit within the Department, and a Brexit Senior Officials Group to monitor developments across the Department on a regular basis at official level. As chair of the Retail Consultation Forum, I am also very...

Written Answers — Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Brexit Issues (15 Nov 2016)

Mary Mitchell O'Connor: As Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, my focus is on improving Ireland’s competitiveness performance. Ensuring Ireland is a competitive location to establish and run a business is essential for job creation. Ireland’s competitiveness also impacts on the comparative cost of living between Ireland and other regions with which we compete, including between North and...

Written Answers — Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: IDA Site Visits (15 Nov 2016)

Mary Mitchell O'Connor: The number of site visits for the first two quarters of 2016 is set out in the following table. The number of site visits to the end of the third quarter, which incorporates the period directly after the result of the EU-UK referendum, is also set out for comparison. IDA Ireland operates in an environment of ever increasing worldwide competition for foreign direct investment. For...

Written Answers — Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Job Losses (15 Nov 2016)

Mary Mitchell O'Connor: IDA Ireland, Enterprise Ireland (EI) and Westmeath Local Enterprise Office continue to work hard to mitigate the impact of the job losses in Westmeath caused by the closure of the company concerned. Good progress was made in this respect in 2015, with a total of 750 new jobs being created in the county. IDA Ireland, for its part, is engaging with both current and prospective clients...

Written Answers — Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: IDA Supports (15 Nov 2016)

Mary Mitchell O'Connor: IDA Ireland’s mission is to attract high-value foreign direct investment (FDI) to the country. The Agency achieves that by actively marketing Ireland as an investment location for international companies as well as supporting the growth and expansion of its client base already here. In furtherance of those goals, the Agency may provide grants to companies wishing to locate or expand...

Written Answers — Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Retail Sector (15 Nov 2016)

Mary Mitchell O'Connor: As chair of the Retail Consultation Forum, I am very aware of the specific issues faced by the retail sector. The Forum provides a platform for my Department to engage directly with the concerns of retailers and its work programme is focused on maintaining the competitiveness of the sector. In so doing, we ensure that retail businesses are supported in identifying challenges that may impact...

Written Answers — Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Departmental Expenditure (16 Nov 2016)

Mary Mitchell O'Connor: In the Revised Estimates Volume for 2016 my Department was allocated €503m in capital expenditure for 2016. In the Mid-Year Expenditure Review in July this year my Department was shown as having an indicative capital allocation of €525m for 2017. However, following successful negotiations in the recent Estimates 2017 process the Department was allocated €555m....