Results 27,061-27,080 of 40,330 for speaker:Leo Varadkar

Written Answers — Department of An Taoiseach: Departmental Staff Data (16 Oct 2018)

Leo Varadkar: I propose to take Questions Nos. 109 and 110 together. Six appointments have been made to the Principal Officer grade within my Department since 7 July 2015 arising from internal or open competitions. Of these, four arose from internal competitions, one from the 2015 Principal Officer open competition and one from the 2017 Principal Officer open competition run by the Public Appointments...

Written Answers — Department of An Taoiseach: Taoiseach's Meetings and Engagements (16 Oct 2018)

Leo Varadkar: As I stated in the House on the 11th October 2018, I was invited by Science Foundation Ireland to present Mr. David McCourt with the Science Foundation Ireland St. Patrick's Day Medal at a public event held in Washington DC in March 2018. This was reported in the media at the time. We did not discuss the national broadband programme. I have had no other meeting or discussion with Mr...

Written Answers — Department of An Taoiseach: Departmental Administrative Arrangements (16 Oct 2018)

Leo Varadkar: The Economic Division in my Department supports me and the Government in developing and implementing policy: - to deliver sustainable and regionally balanced economic growth and quality jobs, and - to promote effective planning and delivery of infrastructural developments, including housing. The Cabinet Committees and associated Senior Officials Groups supported by the Division help to...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (23 Oct 2018)

Leo Varadkar: The Government appreciates and understands that we have enormous challenges in our health service particularly when it comes to access, overcrowding in our emergency departments, the fact that many patients have to wait far too long to see a specialist or far too long for the operation or procedure they need. There are other truths as well. When we ask 14,000 of our patients, as we do...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (23 Oct 2018)

Leo Varadkar: That of course is of no comfort to anyone who is waiting but it does mean that over the summer approximately 1,000 fewer people were waiting on trolleys than was the case for the summer of last year. If we consider waiting times, yes, there are far too many people on waiting lists but the most important point is how long they wait. People now wait on average fewer than six months for an...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (23 Oct 2018)

Leo Varadkar: The budget provides for a record level of investment in our health service, more than €17 billion next year, more than an extra €1 billion than was provided for health last year. There was a protest some weeks ago demanding an extra €1 billion for health. We have provided more than that for next year. We need more and more to make sure that money gets to the patient....

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (23 Oct 2018)

Leo Varadkar: I will answer the Deputy's question with a straight answer. The Government accepts we have a problem in recruiting and retaining consultants in our public hospital system. What is being done about it? We have a three-year pay agreement, which involves pay increases and pay restoration for consultants, including two pay increases next year and an increment. We have negotiated with ICTU an...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (23 Oct 2018)

Leo Varadkar: -----the number of outpatient appointments-----

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (23 Oct 2018)

Leo Varadkar: -----happening and the number of procedures being done.

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (23 Oct 2018)

Leo Varadkar: Unfortunately there is no direct link between spending-----

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (23 Oct 2018)

Leo Varadkar: -----and staffing on the one hand, and outcome and activity on the other.

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (23 Oct 2018)

Leo Varadkar: We potentially need a new approach that links pay to outcomes, as is the case, for example, in the NHS and other systems.

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (23 Oct 2018)

Leo Varadkar: We also need to be realistic that there are hospitals that get applications and those that do not.

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (23 Oct 2018)

Leo Varadkar: I thank the Deputy for her words of condolence to the family, friends, constituents and party of Seymour Crawford, who is being buried this afternoon in Monaghan. I had the opportunity to visit the house yesterday. Many of us served with Seymour for a period. He truly was a wonderful public representative, a gentle giant and a good friend to many of us. There will be an opportunity at a...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (23 Oct 2018)

Leo Varadkar: The HSE service plan for 2019 is only currently being drafted and is not finalised. As Head of the Government, I want to ensure that the extra €1 billion of taxpayers' money we are putting into the health service next year, or at least as much of it as possible, gets to the patients. That means additional home care packages, new medicine, new equipment and new buildings. I would...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (23 Oct 2018)

Leo Varadkar: On the mother and baby home in Tuam, the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs, Deputy Katherine Zappone, will make a statement at 3 p.m. It is fair to say that the she has put an enormous amount of work into studying this matter over the past two years. The Cabinet accepted her recommendations today. I would like to give the Minister the opportunity to outline her recommendations in...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (23 Oct 2018)

Leo Varadkar: Once again, it is important that we remind ourselves of the purpose of Caranua. It was established to provide practical and financial support to survivors of residential institutions. It has already provided support in the region of €100 million to survivors and former residents of those institutions to help them with their lives. It is certainly not designed to abuse anyone; it is...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (23 Oct 2018)

Leo Varadkar: The Government is committed to the national maternity hospital relocation project. We want to see it go to tender, if not this year certainly next year and we want to see it go to construction next year. It involves the development of a new maternity hospital on the campus of St. Vincent's at Elm Park and also improvements to that hospital. The new hospital will be funded by the State and...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (23 Oct 2018)

Leo Varadkar: As it is still a matter under discussion involving the Department of Health, the national maternity hospital and St. Vincent's Healthcare Group, I am not in a position to give commitments until we know what the outcome will be. We have a good precedent in the national children's hospital, which I was involved in and which the Minister, Deputy Harris, has also been involved in. We took Our...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (23 Oct 2018)

Leo Varadkar: -----Temple Street Children's University Hospital, which had an association with a religious body in the Mater Hospital, and the National Children's Hospital in Tallaght, which had an association with the Church of Ireland, and have taken them together and put them on a site that is publicly owned and which will be under a statutory board. We have a good example already of how we have taken...