Results 36,141-36,160 of 40,330 for speaker:Leo Varadkar

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (19 May 2022)

Leo Varadkar: I thank the Deputy. It is useful to put on the record of the House that in the past ten years the number of special classes has increased from approximately 500 to 2,000. We now have almost 20,000 special needs assistants, which is not far off double the number we had ten years ago. New special schools have opened in Cork and Dublin this year. There has been a huge increase in resources...

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (19 May 2022)

Leo Varadkar: I acknowledge that this is a significant issue not only in Wexford but across the country. The HSE has considerable resources. Last year was the first in a very long time that it was not in a position to spend all of its budget. The budget has been increased to approximately €22 billion. The difficulty the HSE often has is finding suitable qualified staff. This is a real challenge...

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (19 May 2022)

Leo Varadkar: I responded to a question on this from Deputy Cian O'Callaghan earlier, so I do not want to expand too much on what I said. I want to reiterate that these are serious allegations, and serious allegations should be investigated seriously. People are entitled to due process and fair procedure, and that will happen. It is a matter for the Minister, Deputy Darragh O'Brien, to consider whether...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Freight Sector (19 May 2022)

Leo Varadkar: Advancing the transition to a low carbon economy is a policy priority for me and the Government. My Department has overseen the development of nine new Regional Enterprise Plans to 2024, including for the Mid-West, which covers Counties Limerick, Clare, and Tipperary. I was very pleased to launch the Mid-West Plan with Ministers of State, English and Troy, in Nenagh on the 18th...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Enterprise Support Services (19 May 2022)

Leo Varadkar: I thank Deputy Kehoe for his question. I know he is keen to promote job creation and enterprise in Wexford and we had a productive meeting earlier this year to see what more we could do to develop enterprise in the county. As you know, in March we launched a new Regional Enterprise Plan to 2024 for the South-East. Its five strategic objectives are: 1. Start and grow – Encouraging...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Job Creation (19 May 2022)

Leo Varadkar: I believe we can achieve a record 2.5 million people in work by 2024. That means full employment – a job for anybody who wants one. It also means ensuring job opportunities in all parts of Ireland to achieve balanced regional development. The recently launched Regional Enterprise Plans will be working to meet these objectives over the coming years. The Department of...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Industrial Development (19 May 2022)

Leo Varadkar: The Dublin region is home to 905 IDA client companies employing 123,708 staff. The region has repeatedly attracted significant investment across all sectors and activities with prominent investment in ICT, International Financial Services, Pharmaceuticals and Global Business Services. FDI in Dublin also has a high concentration of R&D investment particularly in the Tech sector. The...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Departmental Consultations (19 May 2022)

Leo Varadkar: Ireland's first National Plan on Business and Human Rights 2017-2020 was launched by the Department of Foreign Affairs towards the end of 2017. Ireland was the 19th country in the world to publish such a plan in response to the endorsement of the United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights by the Human Rights Council in 2011. The implementation of this whole-of-government...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Legislative Measures (19 May 2022)

Leo Varadkar: The Council and European Parliament reached a political agreement on the proposed Digital Services Act on 23 April 2022. There are still some technical points to be resolved and other work to be done on the text before the Council and Parliament give their final approvals. As things stand, I expect that the Digital Services Act will be adopted into EU law in October or November of this year....

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Living Wage (19 May 2022)

Leo Varadkar: I have spoken previously about how the pandemic has caused many of us to reconsider and re-evaluate what an essential worker is. We now understand it is a much broader group of workers than people would have originally described, many of whom are on low pay and in the private sector. The Government has been clear that a legacy of the pandemic should be better pay, terms and conditions for...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Universal Basic Income (19 May 2022)

Leo Varadkar: 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". In 2021, I formally requested that the Low Pay Commission examine this commitment. To inform its considerations, the Low Pay...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Living Wage (19 May 2022)

Leo Varadkar: I have spoken previously about how the pandemic has caused many of us to reconsider and re-evaluate what an essential worker is. We now understand it is a much broader group of workers than people would have originally described, many of whom are on low pay and in the private sector. The Government has been clear that a legacy of the pandemic should be better pay, terms and conditions for...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Job Losses (19 May 2022)

Leo Varadkar: I am acutely aware of the employment challenges arising from the Pandemic, war in Ukraine and global inflation as identified by the Deputy. The Government’s Economic Recovery Plan (ERP), published on 1 June 2021, set out renewed supports, investments and policies to underpin Pandemic economic recovery and transition, to support the full resumption of economic activity, and get...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Departmental Policies (19 May 2022)

Leo Varadkar: The invasion of Ukraine has exacerbated the economic pressures that Ireland and other economies were already experiencing in the wake of the supply chain disruptions brought by the pandemic. The war, and the necessary introduction of sanctions against Russia, is also disrupting supply chains and leading to large rises in international prices for energy, food and other commodities. In the...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Industrial Development (19 May 2022)

Leo Varadkar: Regional development is at the centre of IDA Ireland's current strategy “Driving Recovery & Sustainable Growth 2021-2024”. Of the target 800 investments in the Strategy, half are targeted at regional locations. As the Deputy may be aware, IDA Ireland announces mid and end year results. The latest results, released in December last year, show a very strong first year of...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Low Pay (19 May 2022)

Leo Varadkar: I have spoken previously about how the pandemic has caused many of us to reconsider and re-evaluate what an essential worker is. We now understand it is a much broader group of workers than people would have originally described, many of whom are on low pay and in the private sector. The Government has been clear that a legacy of the pandemic should be better pay, terms and conditions for...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Industrial Development (19 May 2022)

Leo Varadkar: Regional development is at the centre of IDA Ireland's current strategy “Driving Recovery & Sustainable Growth 2021-2024”. Of the target 800 investments in the Strategy, half are targeted at regional locations. As the Deputy may be aware, IDA Ireland announces mid and end year results. The latest results, released in December last year, show a very strong first year of...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Flexible Work Practices (19 May 2022)

Leo Varadkar: My Department published the National Remote Work Strategy on January 15th, 2021. The Strategy identified 15 actions to ensure that remote work is a permanent feature in the Irish workplace in a way that maximises its economic, social and environmental benefits. My Department led the implementation of the Strategy’s actions through an Interdepartmental Group. There has been...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Industrial Development (19 May 2022)

Leo Varadkar: Regional development is at the centre of IDA Ireland's current strategy “Driving Recovery & Sustainable Growth 2021-2024”. Under this Strategy, which seeks to further enhance FDI’s place at the centre of a resilient, sustainable, and inclusive Irish economy, the IDA is targeting half of all investments to regional locations. As the Deputy may be aware, IDA Ireland...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Foreign Direct Investment (19 May 2022)

Leo Varadkar: Environmental sustainability is a strategic imperative for IDA Ireland and the agency has set several sustainability objectives, which include promoting a sustainable approach to all investment, supporting decarbonisation and responsible production, and winning sustainability investments to drive a green recovery. To enable the achievement of these objectives IDA Ireland has established a...