Results 34,181-34,200 of 40,330 for speaker:Leo Varadkar

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Social Media (18 May 2021)

Leo Varadkar: Within my Department’s Communications Unit, there are currently seven staff employed to deal with press and public relations. Part of their work includes monitoring social media on an ongoing basis to ensure that the work of the Department and its Ministers is factually represented, and that clarifications or corrections are made if and when appropriate. Specific reports are not...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Departmental Investigations (18 May 2021)

Leo Varadkar: My Department has not engaged any private investigation companies or persons during the period in question.

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Economic Policy (18 May 2021)

Leo Varadkar: The Dublin Belfast Economic Corridor initiative is a collaborative project led by a network involving eight local authorities, North and South of the border, Dublin City University and Ulster University. I was pleased to have had the opportunity to take part in the launch of this initiative on 24 March along with the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage. While not directly...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Economic Policy (18 May 2021)

Leo Varadkar: The digital revolution has the potential to be one of the greatest disruptors in financial services over the next decade particularly in digital finance or ‘fintech’. Ireland is uniquely positioned to benefit from global investment in fintech. This is due in part to our excellent track record in attracting FDI, our entrepreneurial culture, a strong skills base and an established...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Data Protection (18 May 2021)

Leo Varadkar: I assume the Deputy is referring to personal data breaches under the General Data Protection Regulation (the "GDPR").  As the Deputy will be aware, the GDPR was introduced on 18th May 2018.  Information on personal data breaches for my Department and the Offices under the aegis of my Department from this date to the current date in 2021 is set out in the following Table. ...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: EU Directives (18 May 2021)

Leo Varadkar: Late payment in commercial transactions is governed by the European Communities (Late Payment in Commercial Transactions) Regulations 2012, as amended, which gives legal effect to Directive 2011/7/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 February 2011 on combating late payment in commercial transactions. Under these Regulations it is an implied term of every commercial...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Ports Policy (18 May 2021)

Leo Varadkar: I am not aware of specific issues raised in the details supplied. Matters related to the international transport of freight is a matter for the Minister for Transport. Assistance may be available from the Irish Embassy in Cairo in raising concerns regarding any detained cargo.

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: IDA Ireland (18 May 2021)

Leo Varadkar: Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) employment continued to grow in 2020 despite the impact of COVID-19.  The numbers directly employed in the multinational sector in Ireland grew to 257,394. Throughout 2020 IDA Ireland won 246 new investments resulting in the creation of 20,123 new jobs.  Of these, 95 investments were from new investors and 151 investments from existing companies....

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Social Media (18 May 2021)

Leo Varadkar: My Department conducts the vast majority of its communications through English, however is committed to also doing so through Irish for significant campaigns, most recently for Brexit and Covid. On Twitter between 1 May 2020 and 30 April 2021, my Department issued approximately 1,223 Twitter posts. Of these, approximately thirteen were translated into Irish. Of those posts seven were...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Departmental Funding (18 May 2021)

Leo Varadkar: I propose to take Questions Nos. 188 to 190, inclusive, together. While my Department does not generally provide direct funding to non-governmental organisations, it does fund the costs of Ireland’s membership of a number of international organisations (e.g. World Trade Organisation, International Labour Organisation, European Space Agency). The total funding provided to support...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Enterprise Support Schemes (19 May 2021)

Leo Varadkar: Since the onset of the pandemic, my Department has worked to ensure that measures are in place to help businesses seeking appropriate financing in response to the impacts of COVID-19. These schemes make financing more accessible to eligible businesses at lower interest rates than would otherwise be available. The Future Growth Loan Scheme was introduced in 2019 to make lending available...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Workplace Relations Commission (19 May 2021)

Leo Varadkar: I'm informed that the individual in question made a protected disclosure to my Department related to alleged wrongdoing in the Labour Inspection services of the WRC. The matter raised was investigated using an external professional company in the succeeding months. This investigation concluded that there was no systemic wrongdoing in the work of the Labour Inspectorate. This conclusion was...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Tax Reliefs (19 May 2021)

Leo Varadkar: The responsibility for tax policy lies with my colleague the Minister for Finance. In his Budget speech in October 2020, Minister Donohoe announced his intention to commence work on developing a tax credit for the digital gaming sector with a view to supporting qualifying activity from January 2022 onwards. The ultimate design of the tax credit, the expenditures which will qualify for the...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Online Content Moderation and Reactivation of Economy: Discussion (19 May 2021)

Leo Varadkar: I thank the Chairman and committee members for the invitation to discuss the employment of content moderators and the reactivation of the economy in the context of Covid-19. As the two issues are quite different, I will speak initially about content moderators and then move on to economic issues more generally. Although it is a new form of work, we can all agree that content moderation...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Online Content Moderation and Reactivation of Economy: Discussion (19 May 2021)

Leo Varadkar: I thank the Deputy for her question and for introducing the content moderators to me because it was very interesting to hear what they had to say. I think we all agree that they do a very difficult job. Some of the work they do can be done through artificial intelligence and algorithms but only a small amount of it. I am not a tech person but I suspect that for the foreseeable future we...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Online Content Moderation and Reactivation of Economy: Discussion (19 May 2021)

Leo Varadkar: I definitely do not think the solution to these problems is to close off public areas. I appreciate that the city council had to make the decision it made and I really sympathise with the residents. The Deputy can imagine what they have experienced. This was not just outdoor drinking; it was people urinating and defecating near their homes, and I do not think any of us can condone that. I...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Online Content Moderation and Reactivation of Economy: Discussion (19 May 2021)

Leo Varadkar: As the Deputy will be aware, the decision to open hotels before restaurants was based on public health advice and was in line with the advice from NPHET. We are often criticised for not following that advice and this is one occasion on which we did so to the letter, except for the fact that hotels are opening a few days earlier than NPHET suggested. It is for a practical reason, not a...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Online Content Moderation and Reactivation of Economy: Discussion (19 May 2021)

Leo Varadkar: Of course it is possible but it would be going against the advice of NPHET. My priority now, rather than having a complicated set of criteria for a two or three-week period, is to get the decision to allow restaurants and pubs to open indoors. If they knew they were going to able to do that in the first week or so of July, that two or three-week period might be more acceptable. I would be...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Online Content Moderation and Reactivation of Economy: Discussion (19 May 2021)

Leo Varadkar: I do not have a date in my diary to meet representatives of Facebook again any time soon. I usually meet them at intervals of six months to a year, as Facebook is a major employer and taxpayer in Ireland. I am sure a meeting will happen in the next few months. On tax warehousing, I hear what Senator Crowe is saying. It would be strange if we were telling businesses to get Government...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Online Content Moderation and Reactivation of Economy: Discussion (19 May 2021)

Leo Varadkar: Deputy Stanton makes a good point about the content that is posted online. There is a criminal justice element to this. I do not know whether there are protocols that Internet platforms follow and whether they simply take this content down or report it to the authorities in the relevant country. I will check that because one would think they would have a responsibility in that regard. ...