Results 23,581-23,600 of 40,330 for speaker:Leo Varadkar
- Order of Business (7 Nov 2017)
Leo Varadkar: I am sorry to hear the Deputy does not believe it was as good a meeting as I thought it was.
- Order of Business (7 Nov 2017)
Leo Varadkar: I will revert to the Deputies with an answer on the issue they raise. Before I can issue a money message, I need to know how much it would cost the taxpayer. As the budget has been done for next year, we do not have substantial amounts of unallocated money. I cannot issue money messages for money that is not available to spend. I acknowledge, however, that we have a problem with the...
- Order of Business (7 Nov 2017)
Leo Varadkar: There is no legislation promised.
- Order of Business (7 Nov 2017)
Leo Varadkar: I will ask the Minister for Health to respond directly to the Deputy.
- Order of Business (7 Nov 2017)
Leo Varadkar: I will ask the Minister for Health to respond directly to the Deputy as he is dealing with this matter.
- Order of Business (7 Nov 2017)
Leo Varadkar: I am not sure whether the Deputy is speaking about trolleys or waiting lists, or both. These are obviously separate issues. The waiting list initiative, in terms of reducing the time people have to wait for hospital appointments for operations and procedures, is very much under way. I am not sure if it was ever formally announced but it is under way. That is why the number of people...
- Order of Business (7 Nov 2017)
Leo Varadkar: I will have to check with the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment, Deputy Denis Naughten, about that but I certainly agree that we require legislation in this area in order to make it a specific offence.
- Order of Business (7 Nov 2017)
Leo Varadkar: I can assure the Deputy that there will be no gerrymandering. The boundaries will be drawn by an independent boundary commission, just as they have been for many decades now. The issue that has yet to be decided is the terms of reference of the boundary commission, but certainly no boundaries have been drawn yet and I imagine that the person to whom the Deputy refers is simply engaging in...
- Order of Business (7 Nov 2017)
Leo Varadkar: Work on drafting the Bill is under way but there is no date for publication yet.
- Order of Business (7 Nov 2017)
Leo Varadkar: There was certainly additional funding this year for home care packages and there will be again in 2018.
- Order of Business (7 Nov 2017)
Leo Varadkar: On this issue, I think many people are getting ahead of themselves. I received the draft memo for the first time today and have not even read it yet. We are nowhere near making decisions on these things.
- Order of Business (7 Nov 2017)
Leo Varadkar: I am very aware of this issue. The difficulty in getting respite is a huge issue in my constituency, as I am sure it is in the Deputy's constituency. There is the associated difficulty of people with disabilities who are perhaps in their 40s and 50s living with parents who are now in their 70s or 80s, and the need for them to move into a community home of some sort. It is a real problem...
- Order of Business (7 Nov 2017)
Leo Varadkar: If I am incorrect on that matter, I stand corrected, although I am informed from the Department that, since 2008, there has been a total increase in the average earnings of full-time workers of 2.2%.
- Order of Business (7 Nov 2017)
Leo Varadkar: Where some people say there has been no pay increase for ten years, and the Deputy is saying there has been a cut and a part-reversal, the information I have from the Department is that there has actually been a 2.2% increase in average earnings of full-time workers. This is exactly why these issues are best examined by the Labour Court, which can listen to both sides, assess the different...
- Order of Business (7 Nov 2017)
Leo Varadkar: That is a question that is probably best put to the Minister for Finance but there is no such sweetheart deal.
- Order of Business (7 Nov 2017)
Leo Varadkar: I am sure that if there was such a one, I would have heard of it, and I would be very shocked if I suddenly found out in a few months time that there was such a deal.
- Order of Business (7 Nov 2017)
Leo Varadkar: I understand that is going to Report Stage. I spoke to the Minister for Health about this in the past couple of weeks and I think that now, after some time, we have a resolution in regard to the issue relating to physiotherapists and physical therapists. As it is at Report Stage, I hope it will be done by the end of year.
- Order of Business (7 Nov 2017)
Leo Varadkar: I am not sure whether the Democratic People's Republic of Korea has ratified the convention-----
- Order of Business (7 Nov 2017)
Leo Varadkar: -----but there are many countries that do not treat people with disabilities very well and in which they have fewer rights and services than here. However, they have ratified the convention. In itself that tells the story - different countries adopt a different approach. Most countries just ratify and then forget about it. We do something very different and something much better, as we...
- Order of Business (7 Nov 2017)
Leo Varadkar: It is absolutely our intention to ratify it as soon as we possibly can.