Results 30,421-30,440 of 40,330 for speaker:Leo Varadkar

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (23 Oct 2019)

Leo Varadkar: It is an area where there are many families and older people and it also affects my own home and my own family. We cannot give people clarity until we have clarity ourselves and, once we have that, we will provide it.

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (23 Oct 2019)

Leo Varadkar: The way it works is that the risk to health is low but a boil water notice cannot be lifted until there are three clear samples. Even though the water may well be safe to drink, three clear samples must go to a laboratory to prove that before the boil water notice can be lifted. My understanding is the Leixlip plant is operated by Fingal County Council and, therefore, is not privately...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (23 Oct 2019)

Leo Varadkar: An EPA audit was done back in March. I do not know if there is any connection between that and this incident but there were five main findings on that occasion and Irish Water and Fingal County Council have responded to those audit findings.

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (23 Oct 2019)

Leo Varadkar: I do not know if there is any connection between the audit in March and this incident but we will certainly find that out for the Deputy and, once I know, I will pass on the information.

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (23 Oct 2019)

Leo Varadkar: I thank the Deputy and join with him in expressing my regret at the news that jobs are to be lost at Molex in Shannon and Novartis in Cork. These are not connected. One is a pharmaceutical company and the other is in manufacturing and while the IDA had some advanced notice that there may be issues with Novartis, there was no prior awareness of job losses at Molex. This will be a big blow...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (23 Oct 2019)

Leo Varadkar: We have standing regional enterprise plan steering committees, which are made up of Enterprise Ireland, the IDA, the Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection, the local authority, the universities and the local enterprise offices, as well as local stakeholders. They are exactly the same people one would call together to be on a task force and it is now a standing arrangement....

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (23 Oct 2019)

Leo Varadkar: Companies do not always give advance notice. They have their own commercial reasons for not doing so.

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (23 Oct 2019)

Leo Varadkar: I thank the Deputy for raising the issue of health services in Galway again. It is very much acknowledged by the Government that Galway requires additional capacity when it comes to our health service. It is a growing city and county, and UHG is the medical centre of excellence for the western and Connacht region. Over the past couple of years, there has been very significant investment in...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (23 Oct 2019)

Leo Varadkar: The Deputy has my absolute assurance that I will continue to put pressure on the Department of Health and the HSE on these issues. Galway needs this investment. It has had investment recently with the new 75-bed block.

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (23 Oct 2019)

Leo Varadkar: The radiation oncology centre is now under construction but it needs the new emergency department and maternity and paediatric block. I will put pressure on the Department and the HSE to get that done. The money is available, but we need to get it through the planning process, get it to tender and get it built. On orthopaedics, as the Deputy has rightly pointed out, throughout the...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (23 Oct 2019)

Leo Varadkar: -----for people waiting for hip replacements, knee replacements and orthopaedic procedures. For example, in July 2017, more than 2,500 people had been waiting for more than 12 weeks for a hip or knee replacement. That has been reduced by half to 1,300.

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (23 Oct 2019)

Leo Varadkar: We have had real success in reducing waiting times for people who need an operation or procedure.

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (23 Oct 2019)

Leo Varadkar: When I became Taoiseach, just over 50,000 people were waiting more than 12 weeks for an operation. That is now down to thirty-something thousand, so it is an area where we are making a lot of progress.

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (23 Oct 2019)

Leo Varadkar: As the Deputy acknowledged, the Minister, Deputy Humphreys, was in the region this morning, meeting the relevant authorities, the workers and management. We will examine whether it meets the criteria for the European Globalisation Fund. Those criteria are very clear and we will either meet them or not. If we meet the criteria, we will certainly make an application. Irrespective of what...

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (23 Oct 2019)

Leo Varadkar: I thank the Deputy for raising this important issue. I certainly expect anybody and any body to comply with a court order which applies to them. I am not in a position to answer the Deputy's questions today, but I will ask the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment to contact him with a reply.

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (23 Oct 2019)

Leo Varadkar: I am familiar with this issue. Since this Government of Fine Gael and Independents came to office, we have increased the State pension by €15 per week and by €20 per week for those living alone as of January. However, this is a company pension fund. It may well be a State-owned enterprise but it is still a company pension fund. The way company funds work is that during the...

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (23 Oct 2019)

Leo Varadkar: The Deputy is correct. In the last few weeks, we have been able to give the go-ahead to the new road between Castlebar and Westport and between Ballyvourney and Macroom.

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (23 Oct 2019)

Leo Varadkar: We are keen to make progress on some other projects too, including the Adare and Foynes projects. There is a memorandum imminent. I had understood that the timeline was for the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport, Deputy Ross, to bring it to Cabinet next week but I am not sure if that is yet possible-----

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (23 Oct 2019)

Leo Varadkar: -----but it is definitely on the way.

Ceisteanna (Atógáil) - Questions (Resumed): Taoiseach's Meetings and Engagements (23 Oct 2019)

Leo Varadkar: I propose to take Questions Nos. 1 to 7, inclusive, together. I attended the recent General Assembly of the United Nations in New York between 23 and 25 September, where I had the opportunity to meet many of my EU colleagues, including President Tusk, with whom I took stock of the then state of play on Brexit. While in New York I had a bilateral meeting with Prime Minister Johnson, at...