Results 30,121-30,140 of 40,897 for speaker:Simon Coveney

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Military Aircraft Landings (14 Feb 2019)

Simon Coveney: Under the Air Navigation (Carriage of War, Weapons and dangerous Goods) Order 1973, as amended, civil aircraft are prohibited from carrying weapons or munitions in Irish sovereign airspace or into Irish airports unless they receive an exemption from the Minister for Transport. In considering such applications, the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport seeks the advice of relevant...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Consultancy Contracts Expenditure (14 Feb 2019)

Simon Coveney: My Department has not engaged the named consultancy firm to perform work from 2015 to date and no expenditure has been incurred during this period.

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Brexit Issues (14 Feb 2019)

Simon Coveney: The Government has noted the statement by the UK Minister of State for Immigration Caroline Nokes MP on 5 February and is aware of the concerns raised by the Committee on the Administration of Justice in this regard. The Government has noted and welcomes that Prime Minister May acknowledged in her speech in Belfast on 5 February that there have been serious concerns raised about how UK...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Miscellaneous Provisions (Withdrawal of the UK from the EU on 29 March 2019) Bill 2019: Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade (14 Feb 2019)

Simon Coveney: I thank the Chairman and members for this opportunity to come before the committee, particularly in advance of next week when we will publish the legislation on which, hopefully, I can give them some information now. I thank the committee for the invitation to be here today to discuss the Miscellaneous Provisions (Withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union on 29 March 2019)...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Miscellaneous Provisions (Withdrawal of the UK from the EU on 29 March 2019) Bill 2019: Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade (14 Feb 2019)

Simon Coveney: On why I think the legislation will not be needed, we will need to get it ready to be enacted. However, I am of the view that a strong majority of MPs in Westminster do not want a no-deal Brexit and will act to avoid it, although I cannot be sure that will be the case. The reality is that any sane individual who looks at the consequences of a no-deal Brexit for Britain and Ireland in...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Miscellaneous Provisions (Withdrawal of the UK from the EU on 29 March 2019) Bill 2019: Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade (14 Feb 2019)

Simon Coveney: It is the UK that is speaking about alternative arrangements to the backstop and not us.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Miscellaneous Provisions (Withdrawal of the UK from the EU on 29 March 2019) Bill 2019: Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade (14 Feb 2019)

Simon Coveney: No, I do not think so. The pressure is not on Ireland, it is on London.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Miscellaneous Provisions (Withdrawal of the UK from the EU on 29 March 2019) Bill 2019: Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade (14 Feb 2019)

Simon Coveney: Border infrastructure North-South or east-west was never to be dealt with in the Bill.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Miscellaneous Provisions (Withdrawal of the UK from the EU on 29 March 2019) Bill 2019: Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade (14 Feb 2019)

Simon Coveney: Apart from the very last section-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Miscellaneous Provisions (Withdrawal of the UK from the EU on 29 March 2019) Bill 2019: Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade (14 Feb 2019)

Simon Coveney: -----that essentially allows the UK to be considered a member state through a transition period if there is agreement on the withdrawal. All the rest of the Bill is for a no-deal Brexit.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Miscellaneous Provisions (Withdrawal of the UK from the EU on 29 March 2019) Bill 2019: Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade (14 Feb 2019)

Simon Coveney: In response to Deputy Cullinane, we had set the date of 22 February in early January. I am comfortable that we can do this in time. If we introduce emergency legislation, it needs to be reasonably close to the emergency. If we had been doing this in November or December, it would have taken up a huge amount of parliamentary time. Many people might have predicted at that stage that we...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Miscellaneous Provisions (Withdrawal of the UK from the EU on 29 March 2019) Bill 2019: Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade (14 Feb 2019)

Simon Coveney: I would have to see the context in which he said it, but this is an EU competence and EU directive. Ireland cannot-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Miscellaneous Provisions (Withdrawal of the UK from the EU on 29 March 2019) Bill 2019: Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade (14 Feb 2019)

Simon Coveney: Yes. We cannot do our own thing. We have spoken to the Commission about it because the European Union could put in place a reciprocal arrangement with the United Kingdom, as it has done on a temporary basis for hauliers, for example, in the event that there is a no-deal Brexit. However, from a contingency point of view, the insurance industry is doing the right thing just in case to ensure...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Miscellaneous Provisions (Withdrawal of the UK from the EU on 29 March 2019) Bill 2019: Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade (14 Feb 2019)

Simon Coveney: First, nobody can give a figure today for what Brexit will cost. We simply do not know. The Bill is primarily about the maintenance of the status quoin being able to continue to give grants to students, facilitate travel, healthcare and so forth. In fact, the absence of this legislation would involve an increased cost too, for example, if we could not use Altnagelvin Area Hospital. It...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Miscellaneous Provisions (Withdrawal of the UK from the EU on 29 March 2019) Bill 2019: Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade (14 Feb 2019)

Simon Coveney: With respect, I do not believe this was Sinn Féin's thinking.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Miscellaneous Provisions (Withdrawal of the UK from the EU on 29 March 2019) Bill 2019: Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade (14 Feb 2019)

Simon Coveney: My apologies, Chairman, but I did not answer Senator Richmond's question about the 19 legislative proposals coming from the Commission. Most will either take direct effect or we will cater for them in the statutory instruments we are introducing. There is no issue of delay. Most are changing EU law or making an exception to EU law on a temporary basis. Most of the contingency solutions...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Miscellaneous Provisions (Withdrawal of the UK from the EU on 29 March 2019) Bill 2019: Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade (14 Feb 2019)

Simon Coveney: What will happen on 29 March? We will have done everything we can by then and enacted legislation in time in order that, at 11 p.m. on 29 March, currently the time and date at and on which the United Kingdom will formally leave the European Union, this law will take effect. Students will be able to continue as previously. It may mean that cars travelling back and forth across the Border...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Passport Applications (19 Feb 2019)

Simon Coveney: All passports applications are subject to the provisions of the Passports Act 2008, as amended. The 2008 Act provides, among other things, in section 7(1) that I must be satisfied that a person is an Irish citizen before a passport can be issued to him or her. Irish citizenship is governed by the Irish Nationality and Citizenship Act 1956, as amended, which is under the responsibility of...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Passport Services (19 Feb 2019)

Simon Coveney: Passport printing and the personalisation of each passport requires highly specialised machinery, auxiliary equipment and a temperature-controlled environment. The Passport Service operates three passport printing machines, two of which are located in our main production facility in Balbriggan, Co. Dublin and one located in the Passport Office in Mount Street, Dublin. All applications...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Passport Applications Fees (19 Feb 2019)

Simon Coveney: The Passport Service does not provide a reduced fee to any category of adult applicant for a passport, whether for the renewal of a passport or for a first time application. A reduced fee is applied on applications for passports for minors in recognition of the fact that a minor’s passport is valid for only five years. Most adult passports will be issued for a period of ten years. ...