Results 31,861-31,880 of 51,089 for speaker:Micheál Martin

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (30 Sep 2020)

Micheál Martin: First, as I said yesterday, this act was wrong, in my view. I am very clearly of the view that such iconic historic buildings and locations should be preserved or, at a minimum, incorporated in whatever developments are taking place. I instanced the Moore Street development and the discussions that took quite considerable time and involved Deputies from all sides of this House, including...

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (30 Sep 2020)

Micheál Martin: Yes, the Department of Education and Skills has, I understand, found two errors in the leaving certificate 2020 calculated grades. My understanding is that the Minister for Education and Skills will be making a comprehensive statement today on what has occurred, the measures taken to rectify that, the re-checking of that process and bringing in independent external evaluation. Above all, we...

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (30 Sep 2020)

Micheál Martin: Our priority has to be the students themselves in terms of how they receive this information. Students may receive grade upgrades for some of their grades as a result of these errors, and they have to be communicated with first.

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (30 Sep 2020)

Micheál Martin: I support the Housing First strategy. I also note the initiatives taken by the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government to date, particularly with regard to the 2,500 voids which will be brought back into use as a result of an initiative under the July stimulus package. Although I do not have the exact figure with me, a significant number of these properties will go to homeless...

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (30 Sep 2020)

Micheál Martin: My colleague, the Minister of State, Deputy Naughton, who has responsibility for the postal sector, has met both An Post management and the Irish Postmasters' Union, IPU, and will consider the content of the IPU's report as matter of urgency. As the Deputy knows, An Post has a strategic plan for the medium and long-term future. This covers the period from 2017 to 2021. In order to...

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (30 Sep 2020)

Micheál Martin: I appreciate the Deputy's question. The HSE has already commenced a recruitment campaign for 700 swabbers and 500 contact tracers as part of its plans to expand and increase permanent capacity within the testing and tracing system. The call initiative which the Deputy referenced yielded some results but perhaps not what had originally been expected. Of those who came forward, not all were...

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (30 Sep 2020)

Micheál Martin: It is not a sham and it is not shambolic. The Deputy should not say that.

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (30 Sep 2020)

Micheál Martin: I do not know about the individual case the Deputy has spoken about. I can check it out for him. If he sends me the details we and the HSE can track down what went wrong or find the explanation.

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (30 Sep 2020)

Micheál Martin: If the Deputy watched the RTÉ bulletins last evening, he would have seen that the amount of testing going on is far-----

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (30 Sep 2020)

Micheál Martin: RTÉ cannot be turned off.

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (30 Sep 2020)

Micheál Martin: The Deputy should not advocate for that.

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (30 Sep 2020)

Micheál Martin: The volume of testing being carried out is far in excess of the volume carried out in the earlier period of the pandemic. The capacity has expanded and grown to try to meet the increasing demand. The testing system is meeting demand, unlike other systems in Europe. Covid is very challenging.

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (30 Sep 2020)

Micheál Martin: We need to avoid the kind of language the Deputy has used in condemning the people involved.

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (30 Sep 2020)

Micheál Martin: Admhaím go bhfuil an-chuid gheallúintí tugtha maidir leis an mBille seo. Is é an tuiscint atá agam ná go mbeidh leasuithe don Bhille ag teacht os comhair an Rialtais an tseachtain seo chugainn. Mar is eol don Teachta, ba mhaith leis an Rialtas an Bille a threisiú. Le cúnamh Dé, beimid in ann an Bille a fhoilsiú agus a thabhairt os comhair...

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (30 Sep 2020)

Micheál Martin: I think Deputy Healy-Rae needs get with it and get a bit real. There is nothing wrong with asking a person if he or she has been in a pub if a contact tracer is trying to track down-----

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (30 Sep 2020)

Micheál Martin: It is not the first question. It is a sensible question to ask, as are other questions. We should not be consistently trying to undermine the public health message.

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (30 Sep 2020)

Micheál Martin: I think that is what is going on here and we need to cop on.

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (30 Sep 2020)

Micheál Martin: This is the national parliament. This is the Oireachtas. We need to stand behind public health personnel, who are doing their jobs to prevent the spread of the disease or virus. This is pandering to base politics. The Deputy is trying to win votes from different sectors. That is what is going on here. I think we have had enough of it and wider society has had enough of it.

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (30 Sep 2020)

Micheál Martin: I welcome the fact that enterprises are reopened but there is a limit now to what is going on in terms of trying to pick and undermine everything that people are doing to try to protect broader public health.

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (30 Sep 2020)

Micheál Martin: Sports Ireland is available to all of the sports organisations. They have a direct line to Sports Ireland to discuss the application of the public health measures in respect of sport. Sport is and has been a great factor in terms of morale, mental well-being and facilitating people who are engaged in sport to get through Covid-19. Obviously, there are limits, limitations and constraints...