Results 3,001-3,020 of 3,895 for speaker:John Halligan

Select Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: European Southern Observatory Membership: Motion (20 Jun 2018)

John Halligan: It is based on the net national income, NNI, of every country.

Select Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: European Southern Observatory Membership: Motion (20 Jun 2018)

John Halligan: As the members will know, I am a supporter of CERN. Representatives of CERN will come to Ireland in July and we will have a further meeting with them to discuss the prospects of joining CERN. People may ask why we are joining the European Southern Observatory, ESO, over CERN. The reason is very simple. Researchers and developers involved in astronomy in Ireland are regarded very highly...

Select Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: European Southern Observatory Membership: Motion (20 Jun 2018)

John Halligan: We will not be in a position to join CERN in 2018, in case members might think we can reach a deal in July and join in 2018. There will be protracted negotiations that will probably go on until the end of the year. We will most certainly have a look to see where we stand in terms of associate membership or full membership next year. We cannot join in 2018.

Select Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: European Southern Observatory Membership: Motion (20 Jun 2018)

John Halligan: To be frank, it is. The Department with the help of the members present have been fighting tooth and nail to ensure we get extra funding for the European Space Agency where we get a great return. I have addressed the Cabinet on the issue of joining ESO, which we think is very important for Ireland, our researchers, our universities and our businesses. It has been a tough fight for my...

Select Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: European Southern Observatory Membership: Motion (20 Jun 2018)

John Halligan: I should say the intense demands on the capital programme and the tight fiscal space we are in means that we did have to make a decision on the best organisation to join in view of the money we available right now. We chose to join ESO. We will meet representatives of CERN, as the Deputy said, in July and we will see whether we can negotiate a deal with it. As I said, and at the risk of...

Select Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: European Southern Observatory Membership: Motion (20 Jun 2018)

John Halligan: Yes. It might be worth having a look at a deal. I appreciate the Deputy's interest in the European Space Agency and CERN, I-LOFAR and so on. The Chairman has my word that we will keep the committee informed on how our negotiations with CERN go in July. After we meet them, we will talk to the committee as soon as we can. We cannot get the ratifications through without the support of the...

Select Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: European Southern Observatory Membership: Motion (20 Jun 2018)

John Halligan: One would be a prominent astronomer in Ireland.

Select Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: European Southern Observatory Membership: Motion (20 Jun 2018)

John Halligan: Absolutely. My Department has always been upfront with representatives of the political parties, such as Fianna Fáil and Sinn Féin. We know the keen interest both Deputies have in research and development. We will feed back to the Deputies and the political parties because we require their support.

Select Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: European Southern Observatory Membership: Motion (20 Jun 2018)

John Halligan: I do not wish to be condescending to the members who have been so supportive of research and development. We are grateful for that. They have been incisive in their questions over the past number of months on all issues of research and development, which is important to us. We recognise that in the tight fiscal space money has to be spent on health, education, housing and so on, but we...

Select Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: European Southern Observatory Membership: Motion (20 Jun 2018)

John Halligan: It is excellent.

Select Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: European Southern Observatory Membership: Motion (20 Jun 2018)

John Halligan: We will be delighted to do so.

Consumer Protection (Amendment) Bill 2017: Second Stage [Private Members] (21 Jun 2018)

John Halligan: I am happy to contribute to the debate on this Bill and commend Deputy Niall Collins for bringing it before the House. It is progressive legislation. Although it is not the subject of this debate, I also commend Deputies Catherine Murphy and Róisín Shortall for introducing their Private Members' Bill, the Consumer Rights (Gift Vouchers) Bill 2017. The main provision of the...

Consumer Protection (Amendment) Bill 2017: Second Stage [Private Members] (21 Jun 2018)

John Halligan: I wish to make quite clear to Deputy Collins that the Bill will not be delayed. The Government will support the Bill and will not oppose it. As I said, there are some issues. We discussed the aspect of businesses that may have some difficulties. The One4all vouchers, for example, have a potential issue in that it is a business where a whole tranche of money is held by the company and put...

Consumer Protection (Amendment) Bill 2017: Second Stage [Private Members] (21 Jun 2018)

John Halligan: Yes.

Consumer Protection (Amendment) Bill 2017: Second Stage [Private Members] (21 Jun 2018)

John Halligan: We are all working together.

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Education and Training Boards Funding (26 Jun 2018)

John Halligan: The SOLAS allocation to Education and Training Boards for 2018 for adult literacy and basic skills provision is €32,755,074. A breakdown of this figure is available in the attached spreadsheet. There is a separate allocation of €45,736,130 for the Specialist Training Provider programme, that includes provision for learners with intellectual disabilities. 2018 Initial...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Apprenticeship Programmes (26 Jun 2018)

John Halligan: An Annual Student Contribution is levied on all students attending Institutes of Technology (IoTs).  Previously this Annual Student Contribution was paid by FÁS/SOLAS with apprentices themselves paying the part of the contribution relating to examination fees. As part of Budget 2014, SOLAS ceased making payments to IoTs and apprentices pay the full pro rata Annual Student...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Post-Leaving Certificate Courses Fees (26 Jun 2018)

John Halligan: The only centrally determined payment for the Post Leaving Certificate (PLC) programme is the €200 PLC participant contribution. This amount is not payable by persons with a medical card, as well as a number of other categories, which means that approximately 60% of PLC participants do not pay the contribution. The estimated cost to remove the PLC participant...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Transport Expenditure (26 Jun 2018)

John Halligan: School transport is a significant operation managed by Bus Éireann on behalf of the Department. Currently over 116,000 children, including over 12,000 children with special educational needs, are being transported in over 4,500 vehicles on a daily basis to primary and post-primary schools throughout the country covering over 100 million kilometres annually at a total cost of almost...

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: School Transport Provision (26 Jun 2018)

John Halligan: School transport is a significant operation managed by Bus Éireann on behalf of the Department. Currently over 116,000 children, including almost 12,000 children with special educational needs, are being transported in over 4,500 vehicles on a daily basis to primary and post-primary schools throughout the country covering over 100 million kilometres annually at a total cost of almost...