Results 38,761-38,780 of 40,897 for speaker:Simon Coveney

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Report of the Commission on the Defence Forces: Discussion (4 Oct 2022)

Simon Coveney: It is great to see so many members interested in this report. I hope we will have time to go through the high-level action plan later on because I know members will have detailed questions on how we are taking things forward. I very much welcome this opportunity to engage with the members of the joint committee on matters relating to the Report of the Commission on the Defence Forces, and I...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Report of the Commission on the Defence Forces: Discussion (4 Oct 2022)

Simon Coveney: There is a whole load of issues there and it is up to the Chairman as to how much detail he wants me to go into, particularly on where we are at on the early actions, because they lead into the answers to many of the other questions.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Report of the Commission on the Defence Forces: Discussion (4 Oct 2022)

Simon Coveney: That is helpful. On the 38 early actions, some members will have a copy of Building for the Future - Change from Within, which is the high-level action plan for the report. On pages 16 and 17 are the 38 recommendations for early actions, which in some cases put foundations in place to do more and in others are definitive actions from which people will notice change. We have moved, for...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Report of the Commission on the Defence Forces: Discussion (4 Oct 2022)

Simon Coveney: I hope that is helpful. It probably covered nearly all of the questions that I was asked. I apologise, I have not covered the organisational capability review, OCR. This issue has been raised repeatedly and I am pretty sure I have answered this question a number of times. Why did the Commission on the Defence Forces not look at the Department as well? The Department got a pretty robust...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Report of the Commission on the Defence Forces: Discussion (4 Oct 2022)

Simon Coveney: It is up already. I was not sure whether it was.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Report of the Commission on the Defence Forces: Discussion (4 Oct 2022)

Simon Coveney: We can all do that, but what we are doing here will span across multiple Governments and whoever is in government in three, four, five or ten years' time will be part of implementing these issues. I have done what I can to try to make this as factual as possible and to keep politics out of it. I go to the naval base pretty regularly. I live very close to it. Every time I go for a run,...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Report of the Commission on the Defence Forces: Discussion (4 Oct 2022)

Simon Coveney: Yes. That also relates to participation in courses. It is about trying to drive a priority of getting more women into the Defence Forces and also getting them higher up the scale in the Defence Forces, into positions of influence and so on. We are going to have a head of transformation who in all likelihood will be a woman and that person will also be a civilian. The head of HR will also...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Report of the Commission on the Defence Forces: Discussion (4 Oct 2022)

Simon Coveney: We can absolutely come back with that. There is no issue there.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Report of the Commission on the Defence Forces: Discussion (4 Oct 2022)

Simon Coveney: They are January 2022 prices, so they are actually closer to 2021 prices.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Report of the Commission on the Defence Forces: Discussion (4 Oct 2022)

Simon Coveney: We have only just gotten one across the line but I will try to answer that.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Report of the Commission on the Defence Forces: Discussion (4 Oct 2022)

Simon Coveney: I will try to answer every question if I can. I will answer Deputy Berry's eight questions first. I certainly hope we will have time to debate this in the Dáil. As Minister for Defence, the more we can debate defence issues, the better. We have to ensure that there is a realistic understanding of why defence matters, why we need to resource it properly, why the work of the commission...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: Report of the Commission on the Defence Forces: Discussion (4 Oct 2022)

Simon Coveney: All I will say to the committee is that we are working on this. I spoke to the Minister for Health about it as recently as last week and he also understands the urgency of the situation. It is not just the Defence Forces, by the way; other people are waiting for this and it needs to be paid soon. To be fair, the Minister, Deputy Stephen Donnelly, is very much on the same page in wanting to...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Northern Ireland (6 Oct 2022)

Simon Coveney: I propose to take Questions Nos. 12, 16, 35 and 48 together. As I set out earlier, we have a real opportunity for a return to substantive talks aimed at finding jointly agreed solutions around the implementation of the Protocol on Northern Ireland. I have been clear in my view that with political leadership the genuine issues arising in the implementation of the Protocol can be resolved, in...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: European Union (6 Oct 2022)

Simon Coveney: The EU is a union of laws and values. The rule of law is a fundamental principle for all EU Member States and it is of vital importance that the rule of law is preserved, protected, and promoted across the Union. I welcome Commission President Ursula von der Leyen’s strong words on protecting the Rule of Law and our European values in her most recent State of the Union address. Ireland...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: European Union (6 Oct 2022)

Simon Coveney: The Government is deeply concerned by the sudden and extensive gas leaks detected in the Nord Stream 1 and 2 pipelines last week. There has been ongoing contact with our EU partners since early last week at political and senior official level on this issue. I spoke with my Danish counterpart on Wednesday last week to express Ireland’s support and solidarity with Denmark and the Danish...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Foreign Policy (6 Oct 2022)

Simon Coveney: Global Ireland 2025 is a whole-of-Government strategy that aims to double Ireland’s global impact and influence in the period 2018 to 2025. A mid-term review, is currently being coordinated across Government by the Department the Taoiseach. It is planned that the review will be completed by the end of the year, and subsequently made public. The review process has been very positive,...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Passport Services (6 Oct 2022)

Simon Coveney: The introduction of Passport Online in 2017 has allowed for the centralisation of passport processing, resulting in greater efficiencies for the Passport Service and our citizens. Passport Online is the quickest and easiest channel for passport applicants. Passport Online is used by over 90% of applicants and is available to 97% of applicants worldwide. Currently, 84% of online adult...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Human Rights (6 Oct 2022)

Simon Coveney: I propose to take Questions Nos. 18 and 40 together. Since its formation over the summer, the Government has continued the pattern of active engagement with the new government in Colombia, in line with the Global Ireland 'Strategy for Latin America and the Caribbean to 2025'. I met with the new Colombian Foreign Minister, Álvaro Leyva, at the United Nations in September. We discussed...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Dublin-Monaghan Bombings (6 Oct 2022)

Simon Coveney: This year marked the 48th anniversary of the appalling attacks of the Dublin and Monaghan bombings in which 33 people were murdered, the largest loss of life on a single day in the Troubles. Together with the families of those killed and injured, the Taoiseach attended a ceremony in Talbot St this year to remember those that lost their lives in those attacks. The Taoiseach assured those...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Middle East (6 Oct 2022)

Simon Coveney: The Middle East Peace Process, as well as the situation in the occupied Palestinian territory, remain key priorities for Ireland and continue to be a significant focus of my engagement. I welcomed the opportunity to meet with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, as well as with my counterpart, Foreign Minister Riad Malki, during their recent visit to Dublin on 17-18 September. Their visit...