Results 32,081-32,100 of 40,330 for speaker:Leo Varadkar

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (8 Oct 2020)

Leo Varadkar: I am afraid I do not have information to hand on that matter but I appreciate that it is important and a matter of concern to constituents. I will let the Minister, Deputy O'Gorman, know that Deputy Smith raised it and ask him to reply directly.

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (8 Oct 2020)

Leo Varadkar: The Ceann Comhairle is at it too. It is October now.

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (8 Oct 2020)

Leo Varadkar: I thought that would end around September but it is still happening. I thank Deputy Gannon for raising the matter, which I understand is a difficulty. The solution is probably some form of blended learning. If pupils cannot be in the classroom because they are sick, are isolating or restricting movements or they live in a household with a vulnerable person, the ideal scenario would be...

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (8 Oct 2020)

Leo Varadkar: I really feel for taxi drivers, who have an incurred an enormous hit to their incomes. They are essential people and we want them to be there when we get through this pandemic. We want the industry and the individuals working in it to survive. I am not aware of the particular details as to what engagement has taken place between the Government and the group but if I can be of any...

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (8 Oct 2020)

Leo Varadkar: I am afraid I cannot but I certainly will ask the Minister for Health if he can answer any questions the Deputy has in this regard. Nobody wants to see women or any patients having to go through the courts to receive compensation where negligence has occurred but we have a real difficulty as sometimes the facts are disputed. Where facts are disputed, there must be some mechanism by which...

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (8 Oct 2020)

Leo Varadkar: As a result of the pandemic this year, there will be a big increase in the number of people who will want a vaccination against flu. As the Deputy knows, either for the first time or the first time in a very long time, children between ages two and 12 will get a vaccination against the flu and there will be a really good uptake this year. I found it quite alarming that in previous years,...

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (8 Oct 2020)

Leo Varadkar: It is really important that the aviation industry must survive this pandemic. I mean our airports, airlines and the related sectors, including aircraft maintenance and repair organisations. Ten or 12 years ago, during the previous recession, the construction industry collapsed and this was allowed because it was, in part, blamed for the crisis. We paid a very heavy price for that because...

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (8 Oct 2020)

Leo Varadkar: It is to be decided by the Minister for Transport.

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (8 Oct 2020)

Leo Varadkar: I thank the Deputy. I hear what he is saying. Students should not have to pay for accommodation they cannot use, or in some cases have been told not to use. The Deputy will realise that in some cases, such accommodation is owned by institutes of technology and universities, while in other cases it is not and there is, therefore, a different relationship between the student and the...

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (8 Oct 2020)

Leo Varadkar: Where drug and alcohol task forces work, community representation and involvement makes all the difference. That factor means a task force is not composed of people coming from outside the area and applying a top-down approach. The Deputy is spot on in that regard. I am not across this area in detail any more but I will raise the Deputy's query with the Minister of State, Deputy Feighan....

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (8 Oct 2020)

Leo Varadkar: I thank the Deputy. I had not expected that question. This issue is debated from time to time. As the Deputy knows, the Minister with responsibility for time is the Minister for Justice and Equality, Deputy McEntee. I will let her know the Deputy has made this suggestion. There are arguments on both sides of this, and believe it or not there is a European directive on it. We would have...

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (8 Oct 2020)

Leo Varadkar: I thank the Deputies. I have to confess that I was not aware an issue around the primary medical certificate had arisen in the courts. That is a matter of real concern. I will check that out for myself and will speak to the Minister for Finance about it. As Deputy Ó Cuív has rightly said, that mobility grant scheme has been closed to new entrants for seven or eight years, a very...

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (8 Oct 2020)

Leo Varadkar: I thank the Deputy. I very much regret any inconvenience caused to people from Wicklow, Meath or Kildare who are essential workers, perhaps in hospitals, in Dublin. As the Deputy is aware, Garda operations are a matter for the Garda Commissioner. We do not get too involved and that is probably for the best. However, I certainly will make sure this is part of the discussion in...

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (8 Oct 2020)

Leo Varadkar: One of the silver linings to the very dark cloud which is this pandemic is that it is causing us to reimagine our cities and city centres and, to a certain extent, to reclaim the streets for cycling, pedestrians and things such as outdoor dining, which the Deputy mentioned, notwithstanding the often inclement weather. In general, the Government leaves these matters to local authorities. It...

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (8 Oct 2020)

Leo Varadkar: The short answer to the Deputy's question is "Yes". Covid pandemic or no Covid pandemic, we should increase our critical care bed capacity to in the region of 400 or 500 beds. We should be doing that anyway. We have made progress in recent years, but it has not been enough. Efforts in that regard need to continue. As the Deputy appreciates, it is not as simple as just providing a bed....

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (8 Oct 2020)

Leo Varadkar: I thank the Deputies for raising the important issues they outlined relating to mental health, including individual cases, local services, LGBT young people and the Traveller and Roma communities. The commitment to develop and implement that strategy stands. I will ask the Minister of State with responsibility for mental health, Deputy Butler, to provide specific replies to the Deputies.

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (8 Oct 2020)

Leo Varadkar: There is an old adage that one cannot improve what one does not measure. We are very good at measuring many things in Ireland, whether it is GDP, GNI*, unemployment numbers or waiting list numbers, etc. What we do not really have is an index for the well-being of society. There is a specific programme for Government commitment to do exactly that. I am not sure of its status, but it is...

Mental Health Parity of Esteem Bill 2020: First Stage (8 Oct 2020)

Leo Varadkar: It is not opposed. I thank Deputy Ward for his initiative in putting forward this Bill.

Written Answers — Department of Trade, Enterprise and Employment: Export Credit Insurance (8 Oct 2020)

Leo Varadkar: My Department continuously considers options for appropriate and effective assistance to businesses and this includes the possibility of supports to ensure the continued availability of export credit insurance. I will keep this issue under close review in conjunction with my colleague, the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine.

Written Answers — Department of Trade, Enterprise and Employment: Company Closures (8 Oct 2020)

Leo Varadkar: The decision by Aptar that it is to close its facility in Ballinasloe is deeply disappointing. My primary concern, as always in these situations, is for the workers and families who have been impacted by this decision. Many of these workers have been with the company for many years. The Government will make every State support available to those affected in order to help them transition and...