Results 5,981-6,000 of 10,459 for speaker:Bertie Ahern

Social Partnership Agreements. (3 Oct 2006)

Bertie Ahern: I propose to take Questions Nos. 8 to 20, inclusive, together. Together with my colleagues, the Minister for Health and Children, Deputy Harney, and the Minister for Finance, Deputy Cowen, I met the social partners on Wednesday, 14 June last at the conclusion of the negotiations on a new social partnership agreement. The negotiations on this occasion were particularly protracted, which was...

Social Partnership Agreements. (3 Oct 2006)

Bertie Ahern: In respect of Deputy Kenny's first question, the NESC has carried out such an analysis and has produced a recent report on migration policy. This report provides the Government with a comprehensive review of a recent experience of substantial immigration and assesses its impact on the Irish economy and society. It makes several strategic recommendations about the policies that must be...

Social Partnership Agreements. (3 Oct 2006)

Bertie Ahern: I will try to deal with the questions quickly. The inflation group was set up under Sustaining Progress to examine ways to bring down domestically generated inflation. It comprised officials from my Department and the Departments of Finance and Enterprise, Trade and Employment as well as representatives from ICTU and IBEC. Under the Towards 2016 agreement, we reconstituted the group with...

Social Partnership Agreements. (3 Oct 2006)

Bertie Ahern: That is a matter for each local authority. I know the Minister talks about it from time to time, but it should be done by the local authority. It is their role and responsibility to do it and that is clearly set out. On issues of energy, Deputy Sargent knows this issue has moved from being an issue that was not much of an issue at European Council meetings or elsewhere to being a central...

Allocation of Time: Motion. (3 Oct 2006)

Bertie Ahern: On the order which is agreed, I make the point I answered questions on this for an hour last week. I was asked would I answer questions for 35 minutes.

Allocation of Time: Motion. (3 Oct 2006)

Bertie Ahern: Then I was asked would I add Leaders' Questions time. Then I was asked would I give another 15 minutes. There are 60 minutes for question time. I think I have taken an entirely reasonable position on this. I would have thought that I am the centre of the issue and it is not unreasonable for me to have 15 minutes and others to have 25 minutes.

Disclosures relating to the Mahon Tribunal: Statements (3 Oct 2006)

Bertie Ahern: In the discharge of my public duties, the interests of the Irish people have always taken precedence over everything else. I believe the Irish people recognise that this is so. Over the past week, I have encountered people in different parts of the country and I have been touched by their sense of balance about this issue and their innate common decency about the personal dilemma that I had...

Disclosures relating to the Mahon Tribunal: Statements (3 Oct 2006)

Bertie Ahern: There is a long period for detailed questions. For today, I will ignore the later political points made. I do not think any fair examination of this issue would accept that sleaze, cronyism, corruption, big business interests running the political process, conflicts of interests, patronage or any of the points made by the last few speakers are correct by any stretch of the imagination. I...

Disclosures relating to the Mahon Tribunal: Statements (3 Oct 2006)

Bertie Ahern: We have served the interests of all the people in our policies, not the interests of business interests, and we have worked to achieve that.

Leaders' Questions (3 Oct 2006)

Bertie Ahern: I do not think we have seen any cynicism or hypocrisy today. I still believe as strongly in probity as I ever did. Deputy Kenny asked two direct questions. He asked if I used that money for the purchase of my house. The answer is "No". I purchased my house with an Irish Permanent Building Society loan and some money from my current account which was not linked to this current account. I...

Leaders' Questions (3 Oct 2006)

Bertie Ahern: Deputy Kenny said the money was collected around the table, as if I was sitting there and watching it, but that is not what happened. At the end of the night, Mr. Tim Kilroe, who owned the hotel, gave me the money. It was not collected like that. If I sat there in any capacity and saw that happen, I would not have accepted it, and I think the Deputy knows that. It was not that kind of...

Leaders' Questions (3 Oct 2006)

Bertie Ahern: There are no twists. I will give a factual position. I am conscious that I am not just talking to this House. The position that operates for most Members in this House today under the Ethics in Public Office Act is that if they have a fundraising function they put the funds raised into a political account and record the names of the donors and whether somebody has contributed over €500....

Leaders' Questions (3 Oct 2006)

Bertie Ahern: I want to answer the Fine Gael leader's question. I opted to tell the whole truth, 100% truth, and did not say that something that was a personal sum was a political donation. If I had been in Manchester last Friday and received the same donation, I could have taken the list of names from Tim Kilroe, put that money into my political account and made a declaration. The reason I did not and...

Leaders' Questions (3 Oct 2006)

Bertie Ahern: I am making a distinction. I have no problem with the current situation but to say that what I did was totally unethical is untrue. If I had been hypocritical, with a slight adjustment, I would have said it was a fundraiser. It was not a fundraiser because I used it for myself and that was the reason I made the distinction. However, I still say it was an error. It was a lack of judgment...

Leaders' Questions (3 Oct 2006)

Bertie Ahern: I am not trying to cherry-pick the questions. The point I made on the political funds was that at that time there was no such thing as a political account. Everybody at that time would have lodged fundraising moneys, if they did not relate to the constituency, into their own accounts. I did not do so because I always kept them separate even though there was no obligation to do that. I...

Leaders' Questions (3 Oct 2006)

Bertie Ahern: That is the point I am making. Because I was honest I said it was not a political donation and I kept it separate. Deputy Rabbitte referred to my Cavan contribution when the media asked me to make a lengthy reply — a question arises as to whether one should or should not do so in these instances, but I did so in order to be helpful — but they were certainly not my friends who asked for this.

Leaders' Questions (3 Oct 2006)

Bertie Ahern: I accept, if that is what is stated there, that it is incorrect. I made it clear throughout that it was not them. On the NCB issue, the initial loan which I received from eight friends, included money from Pádraic O'Connor. This money came to me in the form of a bank draft. It was not a cheque and could not therefore have been a company cheque. I think everyone is aware that bank drafts...

Leaders' Questions (3 Oct 2006)

Bertie Ahern: ——was in Manchester six or seven times during 1994.

Leaders' Questions (3 Oct 2006)

Bertie Ahern: A number of people, including the Tánaiste, said that there were a number of questions that I should answer in detail, and in my speech and my answers today that is precisely what I am doing.

Leaders' Questions (3 Oct 2006)

Bertie Ahern: The Tánaiste and members of Government were not concocting anything over the weekend. We were working on the energy Green Paper, the national development plan and the Book of Estimates.