Results 30,641-30,660 of 40,330 for speaker:Leo Varadkar

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (13 Nov 2019)

Leo Varadkar: On a point of information and clarity, the figures we have from the Central Statistics Office, which is under my Department and a well-regarded and reliable statistical agency, indicate that remittances from Ireland to Nigeria are about €17 million a year, which is not an enormous figure. For Poland, it is €342 million; Latvia, €50 million; Hungary, €28 million -...

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (13 Nov 2019)

Leo Varadkar: The Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport is studying the judgment and will respond to it in due course. There is always a possibility of an appeal. Consolidated road traffic legislation is long overdue. What has happened in recent years is that priority has been given to reforming road traffic legislation, which Deputy Broughan has rightly supported, with cracking down on...

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (13 Nov 2019)

Leo Varadkar: I thank the Deputies for their questions. This issue was raised yesterday by Deputy Micheál Martin, following which I sought and received a written update on the matter which was passed on to Deputy Michéal Martin's office yesterday. I will make sure it is passed on to the offices of Deputies Curran and Lisa Chambers today. Unfortunately, this is not a simple matter. The drug...

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (13 Nov 2019)

Leo Varadkar: The matter is being progressed, but it is not as straightforward as may have been thought a few months ago.

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (13 Nov 2019)

Leo Varadkar: I thank the Deputy. A decision was taken by the Government to approve the project which provides for a bypass around Adare and which will also link the port of Shannon Foynes with the main road network. I do not know if the application has yet been made to An Bord Pleanála. I understand the decision we made was to give approval to Limerick City Council and Transport Infrastructure...

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (13 Nov 2019)

Leo Varadkar: I share the Deputy's concern about the potential loss of jobs. I am advised by Enterprise Ireland that the company announced the news to its staff last Friday and also the possibility of winding down the operation in Arklow in January. The company is considering relocating operations to its headquarters in Germany. The statutory 30-day redundancy consultation period commenced on 8...

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (13 Nov 2019)

Leo Varadkar: I thank the Deputy for raising this matter. The HSE's budget for this year is the highest ever. It will be up by another €1 billion next year. A lot of resources are being dedicated to the health service. The budget for disability will be €2 billion for the first time next year. I do not know the details of the particular project and I will certainly ask the Minister of...

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (13 Nov 2019)

Leo Varadkar: This is a matter for the Revenue Commissioners, which generally have very good IT systems but there have been some problems in the past couple of days. It would be a decision for them to make rather than Government. If the website is down again and people who are genuinely trying to file on time cannot do so, it would be appropriate for the Revenue to extend the deadline again but that...

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (13 Nov 2019)

Leo Varadkar: I am very familiar with Swords but not with this particular dispute. I would always encourage employers to engage with staff and their representatives. As I mentioned in reply to another Deputy earlier, I am not familiar with the dispute so I am reluctant to comment on it. I will have it checked out.

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (13 Nov 2019)

Leo Varadkar: The rural regeneration fund is going well. It is a €1 billion fund, as the Deputy knows, that we have set aside to invest in rural communities, towns, villages and parishes all over the country. As is the case with any competitive fund, there is no guarantee that every constituency and county will get money every time. That is not how it works. It is based on an assessment of the...

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (13 Nov 2019)

Leo Varadkar: I am afraid I do not have any information on that issue but I will see the Minister for Health later and I will advise him that the Deputy raised the matter and ask him to reply to the Deputy directly.

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (13 Nov 2019)

Leo Varadkar: I can give the Deputy a commitment that we will look at it. I am not in a position to give him a commitment today about fast-tracking it. We have a roads programme and prioritising one project means de-prioritising another. We have to always bear that in mind. This project does not even have a route yet, or planning permission. It would seem to be premature to make that sort of...

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (13 Nov 2019)

Leo Varadkar: I thank the Deputies for raising this important issue. I assure them that the Government's objective is to make sure that St. Joseph's Shankill stays open, that the services are protected and are made sustainable into the future. Both the HSE and the NTPF are engaging with St. John of God community services on that matter. It is important and valid to put on the record that funding per...

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (13 Nov 2019)

Leo Varadkar: On the Cuisle centre, this matter was raised earlier in this session and yesterday, so respectfully I refer Deputies to the answers given by me and the Minister of State, Deputy Catherine Byrne, to those earlier questions. Turning to the matter raised by Deputy Scanlon regarding Sligo, some €10 million was provided in the budget this year to open an additional respite house in...

Ceisteanna (Atógáil) - Questions (Resumed): Taoiseach's Meetings and Engagements (13 Nov 2019)

Leo Varadkar: I propose to take Questions Nos. 1 to 3, inclusive, together. I was last in touch with Prime Minister Johnson on 27 October, after the withdrawal agreement Bill had passed on Second Stage in the House of Commons but the programme motion for the further passage of the Bill had been defeated. I also spoke to him on Saturday, 19 October, following the events in Westminster, when the UK...

Ceisteanna (Atógáil) - Questions (Resumed): Taoiseach's Meetings and Engagements (13 Nov 2019)

Leo Varadkar: I thank the Deputies for their questions. Deputy Micheál Martin is correct to point out that the UK is very much in election mode now. As a result, the normal engagement that occurs between governments is suspended. Having said that, we are staying in touch. I met Secretary of State Smith in Enniskillen last weekend. He is in close contact with the Tánaiste. Secretary of...

Ceisteanna (Atógáil) - Questions (Resumed): Cabinet Committee Meetings (13 Nov 2019)

Leo Varadkar: I propose to take Questions Nos. 4 to 6, inclusive, together. In June, I chaired a meeting of Cabinet committee G on justice and equality issues and, in July, I chaired a meeting of Cabinet committee B on social policy and public services. On 25 July, the Government decided to reorganise the Cabinet committee structures and established committees on the economy; social policy and public...

Ceisteanna (Atógáil) - Questions (Resumed): Cabinet Committee Meetings (13 Nov 2019)

Leo Varadkar: As Deputies are aware, the Cabinet meets every week and sometimes twice a week. Cabinet committees tend to meet quarterly. There are standing items on the agenda, usually a review of the implementation of overarching Government strategies such as Sláintecare, the climate action plan, the Action Plan for Rural Development, Project Ireland 2040 and Global Ireland 2025. We will often...

Ceisteanna (Atógáil) - Questions (Resumed): Cabinet Committee Meetings (13 Nov 2019)

Leo Varadkar: As they have been working since 2011, there has been no fundamental change.

Ceisteanna (Atógáil) - Questions (Resumed): Cabinet Committee Meetings (13 Nov 2019)

Leo Varadkar: No, I did not.