Results 33,801-33,820 of 34,956 for speaker:Seán Fleming

Seanad: Consumer Credit (Amendment) Bill 2022: Committee and Remaining Stages (22 Jun 2022)

Seán Fleming: I thank the Senator for moving the amendment on behalf of his colleagues. I am aware that his party has a great interest in this legislation and I engaged with Deputy Doherty in the Dáil on the same amendment on all Stages of the Bill in recent weeks. Lower interest rates are better for consumers and that is why the key purpose of this legislation is to reduce interest rates. Members...

Seanad: Consumer Credit (Amendment) Bill 2022: Committee and Remaining Stages (22 Jun 2022)

Seán Fleming: I understand the Senator's point regarding credit unions. Wearing my hat as Minister of State with responsibility for credit unions, I would encourage everyone who is seeking a short-term loan for a family event - it is something that people used to do - to join his or her local credit union where possible. I fear that some of the people in question have exhausted their credit limits with...

Emergency Budget: Motion [Private Members] (28 Jun 2022)

Seán Fleming: I move amendment No. 1: To delete all words after "Dáil Éireann" and substitute the following: "notes that: — the annual rate of consumer price inflation, as measured by the European Union's Harmonised Index of Consumer Prices, has picked up sharply in recent months, reaching a multi-decade high of 8.3 per cent in May; — the key driver of inflation at present...

Emergency Budget: Motion [Private Members] (28 Jun 2022)

Seán Fleming: It said the measure proportionately benefited people on lower incomes compared with those on higher incomes. For people with an income of only a few hundred euro a week, the extra €200 meant much more to them than it did to a person on a higher income. Another report noted that measures to reduce taxes and levies on diesel and petrol, which Sinn Féin calls for every day of the...

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate: School Meals Programme (29 Jun 2022)

Seán Fleming: I thank the Deputy for raising this issue. I take his point completely and will bring it back to the Minister. The school meals programme provides funding towards the provision of food to 1,506 schools and organisations, benefiting 230,000 children. The objective of the programme is to provide regular, nutritious food to children to enable them to take full advantage of the education...

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate: School Meals Programme (29 Jun 2022)

Seán Fleming: I appreciate the disappointment and frustration for the new DEIS schools that are keen to access the school meals programme. The level of interest in the programme is a clear sign of the need for its expansion and that is something we are committed to doing. I have had contact from schools that did not make the new DEIS allocations this year. That is the next group in line because there...

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate: Tax Reliefs (29 Jun 2022)

Seán Fleming: I thank the Deputies for raising this matter. I should point out that the issue of subsiding gluten-free foods for those with coeliac disease is a matter in the first instance for the Minister for Health. However, if the Deputies are suggesting that gluten-free foods for those with coeliac disease should be subsidised via the tax system, I will point out that decisions regarding tax reliefs...

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate: Tax Reliefs (29 Jun 2022)

Seán Fleming: I thank the Deputies for their comments. I apologise for the insensitive reference in my script.

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate: Tax Reliefs (29 Jun 2022)

Seán Fleming: The issue mentioned is probably dealt with in legislation, but I accept that the context in which I read it out was insensitive. I hope that the Deputy will accept my bona fides in that respect. I stated that the question of subsidising gluten-free foods for those with coeliac disease was a matter for the Minister for Health in the first instance, but let me explain. If it is not...

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Energy Policy (29 Jun 2022)

Seán Fleming: I thank Senator Boylan for raising this important matter. The climate action plan sets out a road map to cut Ireland's greenhouse gas emissions by 51% by 2030 and to reach net zero emissions by 2050. Decarbonising Ireland's electricity system will play a vital role in this transition and, therefore, the Government has agreed a more ambitious commitment to increase the proportion of...

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Energy Policy (29 Jun 2022)

Seán Fleming: Demand-side response involves users of electricity reducing their usage from their normal or current consumption patterns when required. It is an increasingly important element of the management of electricity networks worldwide. It can also provide significant benefits for customers through reduced bills and gives them greater control over the energy they use and produce. Action 100 of...

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Vaccination Programme (29 Jun 2022)

Seán Fleming: I thank Senator Conway for raising this issue, which many people throughout the country are discussing. Ireland's Covid-19 vaccination programme is based on the principles of safety, effectiveness and fairness and has the objective of reducing severe illness, hospitalisations and deaths from Covid-19 infection. The vaccination programme is underpinned by independent expert clinical advice...

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Vaccination Programme (29 Jun 2022)

Seán Fleming: I thank the Senator for being so specific in his request for type 1 diabetes and type 2 diabetes to be decoupled in view of the severe issues facing people with type 1 diabetes, who are often on pumps and in a more severe condition. I commit to the Senator that, before the day is out, I will personally communicate the views he has expressed directly to the Minister.

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Policy (15 Sep 2022)

Seán Fleming: 208. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government when the Working Group established in 2020 to examine issues in relation to unsold affordable properties is expected to report; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [45286/22]

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Third Level Fees (20 Sep 2022)

Seán Fleming: 451. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if a student (details supplied) who attended college in the academic year 2016/2017 and who is now going to attend a different college in academic year 2022/2023 will be approved tuition fees for the four-year duration of this new course; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [45859/22]

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Insurance Industry (22 Sep 2022)

Seán Fleming: The programme for Government recognises that insurance costs are a significant issue for some businesses, motorists, and households, as well as for sporting, community, and voluntary groups. Accordingly, the Cabinet committee subgroup on insurance reform was established to prioritise this area for further action. This reform work is being driven through the action plan for insurance reform,...

Seanad: Budget 2023 (Finance): Statements (27 Sep 2022)

Seán Fleming: I am pleased to have the opportunity to appear before the Seanad today to contribute to the debate on budget 2023, which the Minister for Finance and the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform presented to Dáil Éireann this afternoon. As with the budgets of the past few years, budget 2023 is being framed against a difficult and uncertain economic environment. While we all...

Seanad: Budget 2023 (Finance): Statements (27 Sep 2022)

Seán Fleming: I thank the Senators for their contributions. I have taken copious notes of what each Member said and I will bring them back directly to the two Ministers, Deputies Donohoe and McGrath. I know Members will be discussing some of the expenditure measures in more detail immediately ahead. I want to touch on the comments people made. Some of them were repeated and some people had different...

Seanad: Budget 2023 (Finance): Statements (27 Sep 2022)

Seán Fleming: In rent pressure zones, there can be a specific increase that is specifically limited to the figures in the zones. Obviously, when there is change of tenancies, that is a different situation. The next issue was mentioned by several Senators. Again, I will repeat the phrase that there was an element of truth in what they said, but it was not the full truth - one Senator gave the full truth...

Seanad: Budget 2023 (Finance): Statements (27 Sep 2022)

Seán Fleming: Again, there are mixed views on the efficiency of Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland, SEAI. Some said it was a very efficient organisation and others said it was quite slow. Others said we should spend more on retrofitting, but started off by saying they would abolish every scheme that is there already. If we abolish all the schemes that are up and running and starting to have an...