Results 56,021-56,040 of 74,100 for speaker:Bernard Durkan

Joint Oireachtas Committee on European Union Affairs: Alliance Building to Strengthen the European Union (Resumed): Institute of International and European Affairs (26 Jun 2019)

Bernard Durkan: I welcome our guests. I congratulate and thank them for the constructive work they have done in their respective capacities during the years to meet the challenges in modern Europe. We have all contributed to this debate and hope it will be successful, but it will not be easy. There are new challenges and opportunities. We must presume to take full advantage of every opportunity that...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: National Oral Health Policy: Discussion (Resumed) (26 Jun 2019)

Bernard Durkan: I welcome our guests and thank them for their responses and a number of questions arise. How would our guest speakers rate water fluoridation as a fundamental support to good general health and dental hygiene? How does one then specifically respond to the lobbyists who are opposed to it, as and when required? How are specific groups targeted such as, for instance those in the...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: National Oral Health Policy: Discussion (Resumed) (26 Jun 2019)

Bernard Durkan: I do not wish to ask awkward questions but there are some other countries that do not do fluoridation.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: National Oral Health Policy: Discussion (Resumed) (26 Jun 2019)

Bernard Durkan: How successful are these?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: National Oral Health Policy: Discussion (Resumed) (26 Jun 2019)

Bernard Durkan: It is not just a question of, for want of a better example, bad breath. There are serious underlying health issues with particular reference to diabetes.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: National Oral Health Policy: Discussion (Resumed) (26 Jun 2019)

Bernard Durkan: How do we get that across to all segments of the population? In the past, I have criticised the fact that we often lack information. We lack the information needed to make the necessary changes in our lifestyles to try to prevent the kinds of interventions that eventually become necessary. How do we do that?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: National Oral Health Policy: Discussion (Resumed) (26 Jun 2019)

Bernard Durkan: Orthodontics has been an issue for many years, particularly in cases involving children with double impacts or where teeth progressing from the roof of their mouths arrive. There is a critical age that is regarded as being the proper time to interact. In the meantime, the pain and suffering of the child while waiting for that age to progress can sometimes be severe. The amount of...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: National Oral Health Policy: Discussion (Resumed) (26 Jun 2019)

Bernard Durkan: What about waiting lists? Are there waiting lists?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: National Oral Health Policy: Discussion (Resumed) (26 Jun 2019)

Bernard Durkan: To what extent does that affect the period during which the pain treatment must be dealt with while awaiting a satisfactory conclusion?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: National Oral Health Policy: Discussion (Resumed) (26 Jun 2019)

Bernard Durkan: There could be, which is why I am pursuing the question. There could be a situation where the child may go past 12, 14 or 16 years of age while still awaiting an outcome - perhaps on very good advice. However, the child may reach the age of 18 or 19 years of age and be left with a serious problem that requires major surgery to correct, whereas if the service and attention had been available...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: National Oral Health Policy: Discussion (Resumed) (26 Jun 2019)

Bernard Durkan: I know the Chairman is anxious for me to finish, but I have been waiting a long time. When one has a long drought, one generally drinks from the pool for a little bit longer, similarly with dental care and orthodontics. We have covered the interaction with the general population but I have not really got any great response on interaction with the Irish Dental Association even though...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: National Oral Health Policy: Discussion (Resumed) (26 Jun 2019)

Bernard Durkan: Yes.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: National Oral Health Policy: Discussion (Resumed) (26 Jun 2019)

Bernard Durkan: That obligation extends to putting in place a formal structure as opposed to an occasional structure.

Ceisteanna - Questions - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Enterprise Support Schemes (27 Jun 2019)

Bernard Durkan: Well done.

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Departmental Priorities (27 Jun 2019)

Bernard Durkan: 9. To ask the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation the extent to which she expects innovation to play a major role in Ireland's internal trade in addition to maximising export opportunities from the island of Ireland, particularly in the aftermath of Brexit; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [27180/19]

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Departmental Priorities (27 Jun 2019)

Bernard Durkan: This question seeks to ascertain the extent to which innovation is to become an integral part of developing trade in this country and within the island of Ireland while at the same time allowing us to utilise all opportunities for increased exports abroad.

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Departmental Priorities (27 Jun 2019)

Bernard Durkan: Does the Minister of State expect to see greater opportunities and greater urgency to engage in innovation in national and international trade with beneficial consequences for the country? Have objectives or targets been set, particularly in the European Union? Notwithstanding the fact that Ireland ranks tenth among the EU 27, can we improve our performance?

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Departmental Priorities (27 Jun 2019)

Bernard Durkan: To what extent does the Minister of State foresee opportunities for the development of an all-island economy, notwithstanding Brexit, and to what extent can innovation be used in that context?

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Brexit Preparations (27 Jun 2019)

Bernard Durkan: 12. To ask the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation the extent to which she and her officials continue to interact with the business community in order to maximise opportunities at home and abroad with particular reference to import substitution in the aftermath of Brexit; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [27179/19]

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Brexit Preparations (27 Jun 2019)

Bernard Durkan: I will forgo my opening statement and hear the reply.