Results 49,141-49,160 of 51,305 for speaker:Micheál Martin

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht – Questions on Policy or Legislation (5 Mar 2025)

Micheál Martin: I hope that is not what we are talking about.

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht – Questions on Policy or Legislation (5 Mar 2025)

Micheál Martin: That is why there is prioritisation in the tenant in situ scheme that has been announced by the Minister for housing with approximately €325 million allocated, which is a substantial sum. There should be prioritisation because the original idea of this was to prevent people from falling into homelessness. Additional to that, of course, there is significant investment under way in the...

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht – Questions on Policy or Legislation (5 Mar 2025)

Micheál Martin: My understanding is that a clinical audit is being conducted by an external international expert on surgery for children with developmental dysplasia of the hip across CHI and the National Orthopaedic Hospital at Cappagh. Development dysplasia of the hip is a problem with the way a baby's hip joint forms and some children with DDH may require surgery. The purpose of this audit is to assess...

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht – Questions on Policy or Legislation (5 Mar 2025)

Micheál Martin: Deputy Doherty raised this yesterday and I answered it comprehensively in terms of the information that I had. There is a new school nearing completion, as the Deputy says, and there are some proposals in terms of additionality to try to facilitate children who need places there. It seems the new school is already at capacity. I can get the note to the Deputy on the up-to-date position.

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht – Questions on Policy or Legislation (5 Mar 2025)

Micheál Martin: I am disappointed with the Deputy's approach in the sense that the PUP was essential for people.

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht – Questions on Policy or Legislation (5 Mar 2025)

Micheál Martin: You do, actually.

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht – Questions on Policy or Legislation (5 Mar 2025)

Micheál Martin: Sorry, you do. You are just playing it all ways.

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht – Questions on Policy or Legislation (5 Mar 2025)

Micheál Martin: I just want to make the point. I am not making a different point; it is a very important point. If the State did not intervene in the emergency fashion that it intervened, businesses would have gone under and people would have been destitute and impoverished. That does not excuse fraud but if the State had been more cautious and slower and went through every single case, people would have...

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht – Questions on Policy or Legislation (5 Mar 2025)

Micheál Martin: The State took people on trust. The State said we have to intervene comprehensively and decisively and help people in their hour of need. That is what we did.

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht – Questions on Policy or Legislation (5 Mar 2025)

Micheál Martin: You come back four years later and you say, "You are wasting money and you are full of it," etc. That is just disingenuous distortion. That is what that is.

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht – Questions on Policy or Legislation (5 Mar 2025)

Micheál Martin: I want to say this: we will go after the overpayments.

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht – Questions on Policy or Legislation (5 Mar 2025)

Micheál Martin: The Department will go after the overpayments.

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht – Questions on Policy or Legislation (5 Mar 2025)

Micheál Martin: Fraud must always be pursued and dealt with-----

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht – Questions on Policy or Legislation (5 Mar 2025)

Micheál Martin: -----but there is always a balance in life. Let us give people credit. A lot of people did the right thing during Covid-----

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht – Questions on Policy or Legislation (5 Mar 2025)

Micheál Martin: -----particularly the Department of Social Protection.

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht – Questions on Policy or Legislation (5 Mar 2025)

Micheál Martin: The Government is committed to dealing with the means test in respect of the carer's allowance and it will be in the next budget that progress on that front will commence. We will have to wait until budget time and the lead-up to the budget on that issue. It is a very important issue that is in the programme for Government and all parties to the programme for Government are very committed...

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht – Questions on Policy or Legislation (5 Mar 2025)

Micheál Martin: The economy has been extremely strong in recent years. That has helped the profitability of many companies, including banks. By the way, the Central Bank governs the supervision of banks, as the Deputy knows. However, I do believe that in the next while we should focus on finance available to building and house building in particular, that both the cost of that finance would be reduced and...

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht – Questions on Policy or Legislation (5 Mar 2025)

Micheál Martin: No. There have been huge mortgage drawdowns for first-time buyers in recent years and banks benefit from that, but we need more housing. If you talk to anyone about house building the cost of finance is a big inhibitor. It is a big problem. We need to look at the cost of finance to get to 50,000. I am interested in solutions not sloganeering or politicking and so on.

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht – Questions on Policy or Legislation (5 Mar 2025)

Micheál Martin: Deputy O’Connor has been pursuing this issue for some time, to be fair to him. He has made some progress but he would like it to be faster. I mean that seriously. These things can take time. He has my support and that of Government in respect of this project. I will see to it if we can, through the various agencies, get a design consultant appointed.

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht – Questions on Policy or Legislation (5 Mar 2025)

Micheál Martin: Yes, Deputy McGreehan has spoken to me on this and I will talk to her again later. First, the Irish Government has been very proactive on the Middle East and the Palestinian question in recognising the State of Palestine and taking a very strong position in supporting UNWRA as the only viable UN agency that can enable education in the West Bank, Gaza, Jordan, Lebanon and elsewhere as well as...