Results 36,601-36,620 of 40,330 for speaker:Leo Varadkar

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (22 Sep 2022)

Leo Varadkar: I do not know if that has been done but I will ask the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage to get back to the Deputy directly. I accept the point she is making. Construction inflation is running at about 12% a year at the moment and that would have to be reflected in any scheme the Government provides.

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (22 Sep 2022)

Leo Varadkar: As we both know, Tipperary is a very large county geographically and has benefited from increased Garda resources in recent years. I agree with the Deputy that more will be necessary. He can be confident that will be the case. The number of people going through Templemore is going to increase very significantly in the coming months. I cannot comment on the issue of the chief...

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (22 Sep 2022)

Leo Varadkar: I thank the Deputy for raising this matter. Section 39 bodies and agencies are a very diverse group. They range from very big healthcare providers, hospices or disability service providers to some very small charitable groups with only a small number of employees. It is a complicated area. I think both the Deputy and Ministers across Cabinet would agree that in the real world, if the HSE...

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (22 Sep 2022)

Leo Varadkar: It was a real pleasure to spend the day with the Deputy and his team in Kerry last Friday. We did not get to Kilgarvan but we did get to Castlemaine. No visit to Kerry is complete without a visit to Castlemaine. The large-scale sport infrastructure programme is being discussed at the moment between the Departments of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media and Public...

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (22 Sep 2022)

Leo Varadkar: It is not good and it is not acceptable that those services should be cancelled in that way. As the Deputy said, there will be problems from time to time but if the problems become too frequent, there is something else going on. I certainly will alert the Minister, Deputy Eamon Ryan, that the Deputy has raised the issue and ask him to talk to the him directly about it.

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Banking Sector (22 Sep 2022)

Leo Varadkar: During 2022 the Strategic Banking Corporation of Ireland (SBCI) have been operating a number of loan schemes for my department that are targeted towards SMEs, including farmers, fishers and small mid-caps. Some of these loan schemes first require that SBCI approve a business’ eligibility for the scheme before the business can make a loan application to a participating lender. ...

Financial Resolution No. 5: Small Benefits Exemption (27 Sep 2022)

Leo Varadkar: I move: (1) THAT section 112B of the Taxes Consolidation Act 1997 (No. 39 of 1997) be amended in subsection (1)– (a) by the substitution of the following definition for the definition of “qualifying incentive”: “ ‘qualifying incentive’ means a relevant incentive that is the first or the second relevant incentive given to an employee in a...

Financial Resolution No. 5: Small Benefits Exemption (27 Sep 2022)

Leo Varadkar: Deputies are entitled to their own opinions, but they are not entitled to their own facts. They are being very disingenuous. This is one of the most progressive income tax systems in the world.

Financial Resolution No. 5: Small Benefits Exemption (27 Sep 2022)

Leo Varadkar: If Deputies look at the budget in the round, which they should do, they will see that the Department of Finance analysis shows this was a progressive budget. Those on the lowest incomes gain the most whether it is done by centiles or any way Deputies want. These are the facts. This was a progressive budget. What Deputy Shortall has done is to have focused solely on the tax package. Some...

Financial Resolution No. 5: Small Benefits Exemption (27 Sep 2022)

Leo Varadkar: I am being interrupted because they hate the facts. It is like saying somebody who lives with five other people does not benefit from the living alone allowance. If Deputies want to look at the benefits for the squeezed middle, if they are defined as people who earn less than €37,000, they have to look at it in the round. They have to look at the social wage, as the Irish Congress...

Financial Resolution No. 6 – General (27 Sep 2022)

Leo Varadkar: I move: THAT it is expedient to amend the law relating to inland revenue (including value-added tax and excise) and to make further provision in connection with finance.

National Surplus (Reserve Fund for Exceptional Contingencies) Act 2019: Motion (27 Sep 2022)

Leo Varadkar: I move: That Dáil Éireann approves, pursuant to section 5(4) of the National Surplus (Reserve Fund for Exceptional Contingencies) Act 2019 (No. 18 of 2019), the making of a payment of the sum of €1,500,000,000 (€1.5 billion) in the year 2022 and a payment of the sum of €3,500,000,000 (€3.5 billion) in the year 2023 from the Central Fund or the growing...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Industrial Development (27 Sep 2022)

Leo Varadkar: Regional development is at the centre of IDA’s current strategy: Driving Recovery & Sustainable Growth 2021-2024, whereby IDA Ireland is targeting half of all investments (400) from 2021- 2024 to regional locations. Longford and Westmeath, along with Laois and Offaly, make up the IDA’s Midlands Region. There are 49 IDA client companies employing 6,838 people in this...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Trade Agreements (27 Sep 2022)

Leo Varadkar: As the Deputy will be aware, the EU reached political agreement in their trade negotiations with the Mercosur region in June 2019. The Agreement will cement the close political and economic relations between the EU and Mercosur countries and represents a clear commitment from both regions to rules-based international trade. In 2021, Ireland exported nearly €0.5 billion worth of...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Industrial Development (27 Sep 2022)

Leo Varadkar: 2021 was a record-breaking year for Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) employment, with total employment in IDA client companies now standing at 275,384, up over 29,000 on 2020. Growth in the regions was particularly buoyant, with 53% or 133 projects of the 249 investments won by IDA going to regional locations. Employment growth was recorded in every region of the country. There are currently 8...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Industrial Development (27 Sep 2022)

Leo Varadkar: I propose to take Questions Nos. 11 and 16 to 21, inclusive, together. Since 2010, IDA Ireland’s successive strategies have focussed on market diversification which is reflected by the levels of investment from the US falling from 70% in 2014 strategy to 64% of investment in the 2019 strategy. IDA Ireland’s Growth Markets team continues to build awareness of Ireland’s...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Departmental Reviews (27 Sep 2022)

Leo Varadkar: The requested details in respect of studies, reviews and research projects currently underway or recently commissioned by the Department are set out in the table below. At this time, it not yet possible to be definitive about all costs for all of the projects listed.  Study/Review/Research Project Anticipated Date for Completion Company Conducting Study ...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Industrial Development (27 Sep 2022)

Leo Varadkar: Events of the last few years including Brexit, the Covid-19 pandemic, and the war in Ukraine, have heightened companies’ focus on economic resilience and the supply chain risks associated with international production. Responding to developments in international trade, combined with rising costs and geopolitical uncertainty, companies across all sectors have taken steps to increase the...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Business Regulation (27 Sep 2022)

Leo Varadkar: A proposal for a Directive on Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence was published by the European Commission in February 2022. The proposal focuses on establishing a system within company law and corporate governance to address adverse human rights and environmental impacts arising from companies' own operations, their subsidiaries' operations and their value chains. Companies are required...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: State Bodies (27 Sep 2022)

Leo Varadkar: As the Deputy is aware, 2021 was a record year for foreign direct investment and in the first half of this year we have exceeded that again, with investment up 9% on the same period last year. IDA Ireland in July reported significant investment growth in the first half of 2022, returning FDI employment creation plans to above the pre-pandemic 2019 record levels, despite a continuing...