Results 25,241-25,260 of 33,175 for speaker:Paschal Donohoe

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Public Sector Pay (2 Nov 2021)

Paschal Donohoe: I propose to take Questions Nos. 293, 294, 295, 296 and 297 together. By way of background, I am advised by Revenue that the rationalisation and integration of General Service and Departmental Taxes grading structures in Revenue followed an extensive industrial relations negotiation and communications process more than 18 years ago, in the lead-up to Integration Day on 1 January 2003....

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Environmental Policy (2 Nov 2021)

Paschal Donohoe: As referred to in my reply to PQ No 368 on 19th October 2021 it is for the European Commission, under the provisions of the regulation on the EU Taxonomy for sustainable activities, to propose for adoption a complementary climate delegated act on activities not covered in the first delegated act, which itself is not yet adopted. This complementary act is expected to determine whether nuclear...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Covid-19 Pandemic Supports (2 Nov 2021)

Paschal Donohoe: I am advised by the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment that in situations where employers are genuinely unable to meet their financial obligations, due to Covid-19 or any other reason, in paying statutory redundancy to their employees due to financial difficulties or insolvency, the State can fund statutory redundancy payments from the Social Insurance Fund (SIF) on their behalf. ...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Banking Sector (2 Nov 2021)

Paschal Donohoe: As the Deputy may be aware, as Minister for Finance, I have no role in the commercial decisions made by any bank in the State. This includes banks in which the State has a shareholding. Decisions in this regard, including the management of branch or ATM networks, are the sole responsibility of the board and management of the banks, which must be run on an independent and commercial...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Insurance Coverage (2 Nov 2021)

Paschal Donohoe: At the outset, I am very conscious that the issue raised by the Deputy is a sensitive issue, and that the death of a child is a tragic event for any parent. However, the Deputy will be aware that neither I, nor the Central Bank of Ireland, can intervene in the provision or pricing of insurance products, or have the power to direct insurance companies to provide cover in such circumstances....

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (4 Nov 2021)

Paschal Donohoe: I thank Deputy Doherty for raising this immensely important issue. I want to begin by acknowledging the extraordinary trauma, anxiety and stress that all those who have been afflicted by the awful change in the building blocks of their homes have confronted and endured. I have been aware of this issue because I worked as a member of the previous Government to bring forward the scheme, which...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (4 Nov 2021)

Paschal Donohoe: I thank the Deputy. The last thing I am concerned about is my schedule, whether it is busy or not. All that matters is how we as a Government can meet the needs being raised in the House by Deputy Doherty and others in a compassionate and fair way while also being conscious that the funding involved and the commitment from the Exchequer is very significant. The Ministers, Deputies Darragh...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (4 Nov 2021)

Paschal Donohoe: Deputy Doherty-----

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (4 Nov 2021)

Paschal Donohoe: I thank the Deputy for raising this matter. The Government and the Minister for Health, Deputy Stephen Donnelly, are very much aware of the change we are seeing in community transmission and the level of Covid-19 incidence across our country. Of course, we take heart in the fact we are in a very different position from where we were a year ago due to the success of the vaccination programme...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (4 Nov 2021)

Paschal Donohoe: There is great value in hope as we look to how we can lead our country through this awful disease but the strategy we have is not based on hope. We have a strategy that is based on putting in place public health guidance with immense resources from our country to equip our hospitals, GPs and nurses with all possible measures and supports to help them deal with the approaching challenge. The...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (4 Nov 2021)

Paschal Donohoe: In my experience of engaging directly with farmers and the agricultural community, those who most understand the challenges of sustainability and what is happening in nature in front of our eyes are those who earn a living from it and engage with it every day on their farms with their herds. I fully understand the anxiety about what the future could bring. It is a future and an anxiety that...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (4 Nov 2021)

Paschal Donohoe: I understand where the Deputy is coming from. This is the reason Pillar 2 funding is now €900 million higher than it was in the previous scheme between 2016 and 2020. This is an increase in funding of 30% for Pillar 2. Deputy Canney will know better than me that it is sometimes the case that funding made available through the CAP or through the Government directly has conditions and...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (4 Nov 2021)

Paschal Donohoe: I thank Deputy McNamara for raising this matter. This is an issue that the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, Deputy Michael McGrath, and I acknowledged in our budget day contributions. We acknowledged that we have seen, particularly across the summer period, a steady increase in the inflationary and cost-of-living pressures that many are facing. The Government is well aware of...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (4 Nov 2021)

Paschal Donohoe: In any comments that I make publicly, particularly on the work I do within the eurozone, I have to be conscious of and respect the independence that the European Central Bank has in these matters and I have to recognise that, for decisions that it makes that are significant for all of the economies in Europe, it is independent and it has to make those decisions independent of public and...

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (4 Nov 2021)

Paschal Donohoe: The only person or party talking about a stick and Irish farming is Deputy Doherty and Sinn Féin. I have made clear, as has the Government, that we want to co-operate and engage with our farming communities because we know they are central to the change that has to be made. The Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Deputy McConalogue, is well aware of the concerns that our...

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (4 Nov 2021)

Paschal Donohoe: I thank the Deputy for raising a very important matter. This is an issue that the Minister of State, Senator Hackett, is working on in order to respond to the issues the Deputy and other Deputies have raised in the House. Of course we are aware of the difficulties that exist with the release of licences for forestry. This year alone, 3,045 licences have been granted as opposed to 2,592 in...

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (4 Nov 2021)

Paschal Donohoe: The spiking of drinks is a heinous and awful crime. I am very much aware of the threats of violence and intimidation that are caused by those engaged in it. My message to all who fall victim to that appalling criminal practice is to please have trust in our hospitals and gardaí to come forward because the issue will be treated with the seriousness that it absolutely demands. On...

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (4 Nov 2021)

Paschal Donohoe: I am really aware of the importance of our screening programmes and the vital role they play in the detection and treatment of diseases that can be life-altering and life-threatening. This is the reason, in the aftermath of the darkest periods of Covid, that the Government was so determined to try to get our screening programmes operational again and to encourage all who have concerns to...

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (4 Nov 2021)

Paschal Donohoe: I understand that at the start of the year, the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Deputy Darragh O'Brien, made changes to the Planning and Development Regulations 2001 with the aim of providing certainty and clarity regarding the process for those looking to set up solar and wind farm projects. The Department is aware of the issue the Deputy raised and is examining it. It...

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (4 Nov 2021)

Paschal Donohoe: It is in recognition of the importance of SNAs and the difference they can make in our primary classrooms to young girls and boys that the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, Deputy Michael McGrath, and the Minister for Education, Deputy Foley, put in place a substantial plan to allow the recruitment of many additional SNAs next year. A plan was put in place to lead to the...