Results 35,161-35,180 of 40,330 for speaker:Leo Varadkar

Ceisteanna - Questions - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Company Registration (2 Nov 2021)

Leo Varadkar: As regards fake or bogus companies, the position is that once a company has been incorporated, it is subject to the provisions of company law and other legislation. This includes filing obligations with the CRO when company circumstances change and the filing of annual returns. In addition, newly incorporated companies have reporting obligations to the Revenue Commissioners and under...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Company Registration (2 Nov 2021)

Leo Varadkar: I am aware that the Deputy wrote to the Secretary General of my Department about this issue. I believe she replied on 30 July, setting out a detailed response to some of the matters raised, particularly regarding 100 companies being registered at one address, and companies even being registered at the same building that the CRO is based in. I think the reply is robust, but that is not to...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Employment Rights (2 Nov 2021)

Leo Varadkar: I thank the Deputy for raising the issue of working conditions in the hospitality sector. I have seen a synopsis of the report and the Oireachtas briefing document that Dr. Curran provided to the committee. The research by Dr. Deirdre Curran of NUI Galway, Inside Out Hospitality: A Study of Working Conditions in the Hospitality Sector in Ireland, was undertaken during 2019 and published in...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Employment Rights (2 Nov 2021)

Leo Varadkar: Principally, what we need to do is to encourage people to make complaints to the WRC and the HSA. No matter how many inspectors we have and no matter how robust the regime of inspection we have, it will only ever be possible to inspect a small minority of businesses at a particular level of frequency. As we all know from experience, starting with when the cigire came to school and then...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Employment Rights (2 Nov 2021)

Leo Varadkar: The budget provides for increases for the HSA and the WRC next year. When it comes to the WRC, the budget provides for the recruitment of an extra ten inspectors in addition to replacing those who retire. We can build on this in the years ahead. Another matter I am progressing is legislation on tips and gratuities. I hope to get this legislation done in the next couple of months. It...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Personal Injuries Assessment Board (2 Nov 2021)

Leo Varadkar: I thank the Deputy for his question. Insurance reform is a priority for the Government and for me, as Tánaiste. Premiums have been too high for too long and I know some businesses and volunteer groups continue to struggle to find insurance at any price. The Personal Injury Guidelines were commenced on 24 April 2021. This met the programme for Government commitment to recognise the...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Personal Injuries Assessment Board (2 Nov 2021)

Leo Varadkar: I thank the Deputy. It is clear that a fall in the awards that are given to people who have been injured should result in a fall in insurance premiums but it is not the case that a 40% or 50% fall in awards through the PIAB will not result in a 40% or 50% fall in premiums. That is because many or, indeed, most cases do not go through the PIAB. Many are settled before that and that is why...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Personal Injuries Assessment Board (2 Nov 2021)

Leo Varadkar: At the most recent Cabinet committee meeting on insurance, we did an assessment of sectors where it is not possible to get insurance. That involved speaking to insurance companies and brokers. There is a small number of sectors where it is not possible to get insurance at the moment. We are following up on that and trying to understand it better to see what we can do to help the situation....

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Industrial Development (2 Nov 2021)

Leo Varadkar: Generally speaking, the regional property programme has been really successful where IDA Ireland identifies a site and is able to provide what it calls an advanced building solution, which I think is a terrible term. It is basically a building that can be used for many different purposes. We then find it is possible to get investment because there is a big difference between taking a...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Industrial Development (2 Nov 2021)

Leo Varadkar: The acquisition of property by a State agency is not something that I, as Minister, can get too involved in as it would not be appropriate to do so. However, I certainly hear the case the Deputy is making for facilitating both the potential future expansion of the Abbott site and having an advanced business solution at another location. I know IDA Ireland is aware of the case for such an...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Industrial Development (2 Nov 2021)

Leo Varadkar: I was very pleased to visit Longford last week, where I was met by Deputy Flaherty, Senator Carrigy and the Minister of State, Deputy Peter Burke. The timely provision of appropriate and cost-effective property and infrastructure solutions to meet the needs of multinational companies thinking of investing in Ireland remains essential to winning foreign direct investment, FDI. Over the past...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Low Pay Commission (2 Nov 2021)

Leo Varadkar: As I said in September, the programme for Government includes a commitment to "request the Low Pay Commission to examine universal basic income, informed by a review of previous international pilots, and resulting in a universal basic income pilot in the lifetime of the Government". Earlier this year, I formally requested that the Low Pay Commission examine this issue. To inform its...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Low Pay Commission (2 Nov 2021)

Leo Varadkar: It is entirely reasonable for the Deputy to table a question in November about something she asked about in September. Two months is a long time and it is important that we are held to account in that regard and that progress is made. I have always been clear that the proposal for a basic income for artists and the universal basic income were not the same thing. I did not like the fact...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Low Pay Commission (2 Nov 2021)

Leo Varadkar: I would hope to have a report by the end of the year and will be happy to publish it once I have seen it. I would certainly like to commission the pilot under the term of this Government. Perhaps this is just semantics and just people using terminology differently, as can happen sometimes. The task force proposes universal basic income for artists, which to me is a contradiction in terms....

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Trade Agreements (2 Nov 2021)

Leo Varadkar: Ratifying CETA is Government policy and an objective of mine as Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment. As a country, we owe our relative prosperity to the goods and services produced by our people and our land, which we sell around the world. This formula has worked well. It is based on international trade, our attractiveness as a place to invest and our ability to enter into...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Living Wage (2 Nov 2021)

Leo Varadkar: The Government has been clear in our belief that a legacy of the pandemic must be better pay, terms and conditions for everyone, particularly for those on low pay. We are committed, therefore, to progressing to a living wage over the lifetime of this Government. Currently there is no official living wage in Ireland. The Living Wage Technical Group, which comprises members including Vincentian...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Flexible Work Practices (2 Nov 2021)

Leo Varadkar: The pandemic has presented an opportunity to make a permanent change in the way we work - to make remote and blended working a much bigger part of normal working life and achieve a better work-life-balance. In January I published the National Remote Work Strategy. Its objective is to ensure that remote work is a permanent feature in the Irish workplace, in a way that maximises economic,...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Flexible Work Practices (2 Nov 2021)

Leo Varadkar: The pandemic presents an opportunity to make a permanent change in the way we work - to make remote and blended working a much bigger part of normal working life and achieve a better work-life balance. After the pandemic, I believe people should have a choice to work from home or in the office, so long as the work gets done and business and service needs are met. The right to request...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Legislative Measures (2 Nov 2021)

Leo Varadkar: Insurance reform is one of my top priorities as Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment. The Cabinet Committee Sub-Group on Insurance Reform, which I chair, published the Action Plan for Insurance Reform in December 2020. Significant legislative reforms have already been completed. The Personal Injuries Guidelines came into effect on the 24th of April, which has...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Departmental Funding (2 Nov 2021)

Leo Varadkar: Embracing digital technologies is crucial for our post pandemic economic recovery. A competitive, innovative and resilient enterprise base is essential to provide high-quality jobs and employment opportunities for people to live and prosper in all regions. Businesses can harness digital technology in many ways – to understand their customers better, to reduce their costs and to...