Results 5,461-5,480 of 5,688 for speaker:Alan Dillon

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Business Supports (11 Feb 2025)

Alan Dillon: The Government has already brought forward significant changes to eligibility criteria for the Local Enterprise Office digitalisation schemes. Digital Start was first introduced in 2022 and is now called Digital for Business. I am pleased to inform the Deputy that the eligibility criteria for the Digital for Business consultancy scheme has been widened to make businesses with up to 50...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Business Supports (11 Feb 2025)

Alan Dillon: Using the Communications channels of the network of the 31 Local Enterprise Offices, the Grow Digital portal and the National Enterprise Hub, we want to get the message out that deploying digital tools and technologies, including AI-based tools, can help our small businesses to save time and money, and ultimately make them more competitive. The Local Enterprise Offices (LEOs), located...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Work Permits (11 Feb 2025)

Alan Dillon: The Employment Permits Section of my Department informs me that the application mentioned in the details supplied is currently under consideration by the processing team. The Employment Permits Section operates a dedicated mailbox for TD queries in respect of Employment Permit applications - tdepqueries@enterprise.gov.ie.

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Industrial Relations (11 Feb 2025)

Alan Dillon: One of the goals of the EU Directive on Adequate Minimum Wages, under Article 4, is to increase the number of workers covered by collective bargaining on wage setting. The Directive requires Member States with a collective bargaining coverage below 80%, such as Ireland, to provide “for a framework of enabling conditions for collective bargaining” and to publish an action...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Business Supports (11 Feb 2025)

Alan Dillon: The company in question received the following payment for the years 2022-2024 from Enterprise Ireland. Client Offer Payment 2022 € Payment 2023 € Payment 2024 € Market Discovery Fund €76,226 Company Development €211,665 R and...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Flexible Work Practices (11 Feb 2025)

Alan Dillon: The Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) is an independent, statutory body under the aegis of my Department. The WRC’s primary functions include the inspection of employment law compliance, the provision of information on employment law, mediation, adjudication, conciliation, facilitation, and advisory services. To date the WRC has received 36 individual complaints under the...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Work Permits (13 Feb 2025)

Alan Dillon: Ireland operates a managed employment permits system maximising the benefits of economic migration and minimising the risk of disrupting Ireland’s labour market. The system is vacancy led and managed through the operation of the Occupations Lists: the Critical Skills Occupations List (CSOL) and the Ineligible Occupations List (IOL). The CSOL specifies employments in high demand for...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Employment Rights (20 Feb 2025)

Alan Dillon: I thank the Deputy for raising this important matter. As he will be aware, Ireland has a comprehensive body of employment, equality and industrial relations legislation. Ireland’s system of industrial relations is essentially voluntary in nature. It has been the consistent policy of successive governments to support the industrial relations institutional framework. Indeed, the...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Employment Rights (20 Feb 2025)

Alan Dillon: As I said in my earlier contribution, Ireland has a robust suite of employment rights legislation to protect and support workers in redundancy situations. In the first instance, responsibility for the resolution of industrial disputes between employers and workers rests with the employer and the workers and their representatives. The programme for Government supports the critical role of...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Employment Rights (20 Feb 2025)

Alan Dillon: I am not familiar with the detail of this specific case, but Ireland's system of industrial relations is essentially voluntary in nature. It has been a consistent policy of consecutive governments to support the development of the institutional framework within the WRC and the Labour Court. In this instance, we did receive advance notice of collective redundancies from the company which...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Regional Airports (20 Feb 2025)

Alan Dillon: I thank Deputy Conway-Walsh for raising this important matter. I look forward to working with her in delivering the SDZ at Ireland West Airport Knock. Balanced regional development is a key focus of this Government. My Department contributes to this objective through the work of its enterprise development agencies, Enterprise Ireland and the IDA as well as through the network of 31 LEOs...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Regional Airports (20 Feb 2025)

Alan Dillon: I think we are all in agreement that this is a critical piece of enterprise-enabling infrastructure for the west and north west. We have support from the Minister, Deputy Burke, and the Minister of State, Deputy Smyth, who also have regional responsibilities. The development requires focus and commitment. I welcome the appointment of Dominick Healy in August last year. He is a very...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Regional Airports (20 Feb 2025)

Alan Dillon: This Government has been steadfast in its support for Ireland West Airport Knock through the regional airports programme. More than €20 million has been invested in key infrastructure, safety and security projects at the airport. There were record passenger numbers again. The trajectory for that airport is important. Work is being done with the board of Ireland West Airport Knock...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Low Pay (20 Feb 2025)

Alan Dillon: I thank Deputy Murphy for raising this really important matter. As he will be aware, the Low Pay Commission recommended the abolition of the subminimum rates in March 2024. The Low Pay Commission highlighted in its report that this is a complex issue. It stated that the Government will need to give the findings and recommendations detailed consideration and deliberation, and highlighted...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Low Pay (20 Feb 2025)

Alan Dillon: Gabhaim buíochas leis an Teachta. Certainly, it is a more nuanced issue than he is suggesting. It is really important that our Department compiles the economic impact assessment which will provide more up-to-date data. The previous Low Pay Commission and ESRI reports on the use of subminimum rates were back in 2022. We want to independently evaluate the economic impact. We also want...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Low Pay (20 Feb 2025)

Alan Dillon: Go raibh maith agat. It is an issue I have raised with the Department in preparation for today's Oral Questions. We do want this economic impact assessment to be provided, evaluated and reviewed. As I said, we have made substantial increases in the national minimum wage. The current system for youth rates is a percentage of the full minimum wage. They have also seen an increase in recent...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Departmental Contracts (20 Feb 2025)

Alan Dillon: I thank Deputy Coppinger for raising this important matter. My Department complies with public procurement guidelines for goods and services and relevant EU and national legal requirements and obligations. The aim of these European and national rules is to promote an open, competitive and non-discriminatory public procurement regime which delivers best value for money. Public procurement...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Departmental Contracts (20 Feb 2025)

Alan Dillon: I thank the Deputy. I am not fully familiar with the Veolia situation. The current approach is comprehensive, adequate and proportionate and aligns with the EU principles of openness, fairness and transparency. With all State contracts, each bidder in the procurement process must sign a statement confirming that if it is awarded any service contract, it will in the performance of that...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Departmental Contracts (20 Feb 2025)

Alan Dillon: We have a really strong track record in respect of our Office of Government Procurement and contract obligations. I am not aware of the situation the Deputy has raised with the company in question. There is a cohort of mechanisms in place within the employment law framework here in Ireland in conjunction with the Labour Court and the WRC, and also within the Departments of enterprise and...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Energy Policy (20 Feb 2025)

Alan Dillon: I thank the Deputy for raising this important matter. The national hydrogen strategy was published in July 2023 and is our first major policy statement on renewable hydrogen. It marks an important first step in developing an indigenous hydrogen industry in Ireland. The strategy sets out our strategic vision for the role that hydrogen will play in Ireland’s energy system and as a key...