Results 3,041-3,060 of 3,425 for speaker:Emer Higgins

Ireland's Recognition of the State of Palestine: Statements (28 May 2024)

Emer Higgins: Since 2020, when I was first elected, time and time again I have risen to my feet in support of fundamental rights for Palestinians. Today we raise the Palestinian flag above Dáil Éireann. Today we signal our support for a two-state solution. Today we are proud to be Irish. It is a momentous, significant and historic day. Spain and Norway join us in our recognition of the State...

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Horse Racing Industry (29 May 2024)

Emer Higgins: I did not realise that homework was part of your powers, a Chathaoirligh. How interesting.

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Horse Racing Industry (29 May 2024)

Emer Higgins: I thank Senator Boyhan for his kind words and wishing me well. On behalf of the Minister, Deputy McConalogue, I thank the Senator for his submission and for giving us the chance to discuss this topic. As Senator Boyhan was elected on the agricultural panel, which obviously also includes fisheries, I know this is an area of huge interest and advocacy for him. I am delighted to be able to...

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Horse Racing Industry (29 May 2024)

Emer Higgins: The Senator is absolutely right that our horse racing industry is the envy of the world and we cannot take that for granted. The rapidly changing international environment continues to pose challenges to the Irish economy. Coupled with Ireland being a small and open economy naturally prone to volatility, it can be somewhat difficult to fully predict what the future holds. That is why it is...

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Naturalisation Applications (29 May 2024)

Emer Higgins: On behalf of the Minister, Deputy McEntee, I thank the Senator for raising this matter in the Seanad today. He has described this as a social inclusion measure. We absolutely need to aspire to be more socially inclusive. As he said, citizenship ceremonies are wonderful events. I know that our new citizens cherish being part of them. They are a day to acknowledge the journey that has...

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Naturalisation Applications (29 May 2024)

Emer Higgins: I again thank the Senator for raising this matter, which I have taken on behalf of the Minister, Deputy McEntee. I will provide his feedback to her. The Senator is right. Some other EU countries have seen merit in introducing a civic test. I am informed that officials in the Department of Justice continually review all immigration applications and legislation to ensure they remain fit for...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: EU Directives (28 May 2024)

Emer Higgins: The Directive on Adequate Minimum Wages in the European Union was published on 19th October 2022 and must be transposed into Irish law by 15th November 2024. The Directive aims to ensure that workers across the European Union are protected by adequate minimum wages allowing for a decent living wherever they work. Article 4 of the Directive, Promotion of Collective Bargaining on Wage...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Wage-setting Mechanisms (28 May 2024)

Emer Higgins: On the 25th August 2023, the then Minister for Business Employment and Retail signed the Employment Regulation Order (ERO) for the Security Sector which came into force on 4th September 2023. The ERO provided for a wage increase to €12.90 per hour from that date. The full details of the ERO are available here: si-no-424-of-2023-employment-regulation-order-security-indus...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Wage-setting Mechanisms (28 May 2024)

Emer Higgins: On the 25th August 2023, the then Minister for Business Employment and Retail signed the Employment Regulation Order (ERO) for the Security Sector which came into force on 4th September 2023. The ERO provided for a wage increase to €12.90 per hour from that date. The full details of the ERO are available here: si-no-424-of-2023-employment-regulation-order-security-indus...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Employment Schemes (28 May 2024)

Emer Higgins: The latest employment survey results from Enterprise Ireland present a positive outlook for the Irish economy, particularly in the sectors under its remit. According to the Annual Employment Survey 2023, there has been a notable increase in employment levels across industrial and service companies. This growth is not just confined to the capital city but is spread across the country, with...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Trade Promotion (28 May 2024)

Emer Higgins: The Trading Online Voucher (TOV) Scheme helps businesses develop their online trading capability and can cover various areas including developing a website, digital marketing, social media for business and search engine optimisation. The TOVs are administered by the Local Enterprise Offices. In 2023, there were 1,715 Trading Online Vouchers approved, and there was an expenditure of...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Wage-setting Mechanisms (28 May 2024)

Emer Higgins: On the 25th August 2023, the then Minister for Business Employment and Retail signed the Employment Regulation Order (ERO) for the Security Sector which came into force on 4th September 2023. The ERO provided for a wage increase to €12.90 per hour from that date. The full details of the ERO are available here: si-no-424-of-2023-employment-regulation-order-security-indus...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Work Permits (28 May 2024)

Emer Higgins: The 2023 Review of the Employment Permits Occupation Lists and Review of Minimum Annual Remuneration (MAR) Reports have delivered comprehensive changes to the employment permits system, with changes to 43 occupations and the introduction of a Roadmap for increasing salary thresholds for employment permits. The first adjustments commenced on 17 January this year, and they affect new permit...

Health (Assisted Human Reproduction) Bill 2022: Report and Final Stages (29 May 2024)

Emer Higgins: I know we are getting towards the end of the Bill, so, speaking on the amendment, I take this opportunity to thank the Minister, the Minister, Helen McEntee, and their officials for all the work they have put into legally recognising surrogacy in Ireland. I served as the Vice Chair of the Oireachtas Joint Committee on International Surrogacy and, under the stewardship of Deputy Whitmore and...

Health (Assisted Human Reproduction) Bill 2022: Report and Final Stages (29 May 2024)

Emer Higgins: Yes, I will get to the amendment in a moment. Utilising, as I said, the lived experience and the legal knowledge of colleagues across that committee, including Senator Mary Seery Kearney, with the help of campaigners and expert witnesses, who gave powerful testimony, we put together a very comprehensive report, which has informed the Bill, and from which many amendments that were tabled...

Health (Assisted Human Reproduction) Bill 2022: Report and Final Stages (29 May 2024)

Emer Higgins: I thank the Acting Chairman. I will do so. While I absolutely welcome these much-needed and long-awaited changes, the legal underpinning of familial rights and their recognition, validation and realisation, I accept the legislation is not perfect, which is why I wanted to speak to the amendment. The Bill is not perfect - I do not think any legislation is - but in this instance, as the...

Health (Assisted Human Reproduction) Bill 2022: Report and Final Stages (29 May 2024)

Emer Higgins: Is that okay, Deputy?

Health (Assisted Human Reproduction) Bill 2022: Report and Final Stages (29 May 2024)

Emer Higgins: It would make logistical sense if this could be dealt with in the District Court. This was something we discussed at length in the committee, and it came up again and again from an access and accessibility perspective. I welcome what the Deputy said about cost because while my preference is that this be heard in the District Court, my higher and ultimate preference is that this is done in a...

Health (Assisted Human Reproduction) Bill 2022: Report and Final Stages (29 May 2024)

Emer Higgins: I thank the Minister for Health, the Minister. Deputy McEntee, and the officials in both their Departments who worked on this, the Office of the Attorney General, the Oireachtas health committee, my fellow members of the Joint Committee on International Surrogacy, which was a special committee put in place to look at this, especially its Chair, Deputy Whitmore, and my colleague, Senator Mary...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Employment Rights (29 May 2024)

Emer Higgins: On the 25th August 2023, the then Minister for Business Employment and Retail signed the Employment Regulation Order (ERO) for the Security Sector which came into force on 4th September 2023. The ERO provided for a wage increase to €12.90 per hour from that date. The full details of the ERO are available here: si-no-424-of-2023-employment-regulation-order-security-indus...