Results 8,101-8,120 of 32,583 for speaker:Richard Bruton

Seanad: Protection of Employees (Temporary Agency Work) Bill 2011: Second Stage (28 Feb 2012)

Richard Bruton: We are introducing a mechanism which allows for flexibility but I accept that it will not suit everyone. Everything in the area of industrial relations involves balancing the views of different people. I am of the opinion that what we have put forward is a fair system in the context of achieving such a balance. The Labour Court has a long record in being fair to both sides and it will be...

Seanad: Protection of Employees (Temporary Agency Work) Bill 2011: Second Stage (28 Feb 2012)

Richard Bruton: Exactly. As already stated, Senator Mullins referred to the comparator and highlighted the position of people who were recruited in 2007 versus that of agency workers who were taken on afterward. The issue which arises is what is the fair rate on 5 December. The issue is not the rate used in 2007. The employer in question must show that in selecting a fair rate to set on 5 December, it...

Job Creation (29 Feb 2012)

Richard Bruton: The action plan for jobs has set a target of supporting the creation of 100,000 net new jobs over the period 2012 to 2016. Even in good times, businesses close and jobs are lost so, as the Deputy recognises, a significantly larger number of new jobs will clearly need to be generated on a gross basis over the period in question to achieve the target. Such jobs are not created by my...

Job Creation (29 Feb 2012)

Richard Bruton: As I explained, we have a figure of more than 100,000 gross in respect of the agencies - IDA Ireland and Enterprise Ireland - and there is a figure in respect of county enterprise boards. There is also a figure which has been used as to the multiplier effect of one job - the supply chain impact. We are indicating approximately 250,000 across that set of the economy. Of course, we are not...

Job Creation (29 Feb 2012)

Richard Bruton: The Deputy has raised a number of points. As I pointed out in my reply - I am sorry but perhaps I glossed over it - there is no reliable data on gross job creation in the economy. The CSO did a once-off study, which is worth looking at, where it estimated that in 2010, gross job creation was approximately 12%. I suppose that would be equivalent to a little over 200,000 jobs in that year....

County Enterprise Boards (29 Feb 2012)

Richard Bruton: The new structure of local enterprise offices, LEOs, will build on the significant work done by the county enterprise boards to date. It will be achieved through the dissolution of the existing CEBs and the creation of a new micro enterprise and small business unit within Enterprise Ireland that will work with the local authorities to establish a local enterprise office in each local...

County Enterprise Boards (29 Feb 2012)

Richard Bruton: I could not agree more with the Deputy. The implication of this is vital. There are two dimensions, one of which is creating a strong small business unit in Enterprise Ireland, which will create excellence and standards, allocate budgets and hold local authorities to benchmarks of business friendly standards. There will be that level of engagement from a centre of excellence in Enterprise...

County Enterprise Boards (29 Feb 2012)

Richard Bruton: Nurturing social enterprise and commercial enterprise at local level is vital. Much of what county enterprise boards and Enterprise Ireland do is demand-led. We must nurture but we must also see them come forward with proposals. There is a strong regional mandate of Enterprise Ireland to nurture businesses. In the south east, we put in extra resources to create a better seedbed for...

County Enterprise Boards (29 Feb 2012)

Richard Bruton: There are 105 Enterprise Ireland community enterprise centres.

County Enterprise Boards (29 Feb 2012)

Richard Bruton: The action plan for jobs has the objective of supporting the creation of 100,000 net new jobs over the period to 2016, with a longer-term objective of having 2 million people at work by 2020. The action plan does not pretend to be an instant solution to the scale of the unemployment problems we are facing. It is, rather, about addressing the fundamental requirements to enable businesses to...

County Enterprise Boards (29 Feb 2012)

Richard Bruton: I do not know whether Deputy Healy got a chance to go to the Mansion House today, where 92 of the most exciting companies in Ireland committed to create 1,600 jobs over the next two and half years across every region. They are the sort of people who will create the economic future of this country. Their story needs to be celebrated more. It would do the Deputy a power of good to go down...

County Enterprise Boards (29 Feb 2012)

Richard Bruton: The Deputy knows the Government is constrained in its public finances. Effectively, the country has been in a form of receivership. Only one agency will lend to us, namely the troika, and we have to abide by certain stringencies that result from that. Within that, we are using the money we have extremely creatively. The strategic investment fund and NewERA are taking €250 million from...

Trade Missions (29 Feb 2012)

Richard Bruton: The Government has introduced a new approach to trade promotion and trade missions. A total of 18 trade missions are planned for 2012, compared to 12 in 2011 and 13 in 2010. This is a step change in the number of trade missions. This increase in activity will also see a more intense focus on BRIC economies. This year, trade missions will be made to Brazil, Russia, India, China, South...

Trade Missions (29 Feb 2012)

Richard Bruton: Those two questions are somewhat unrelated. There is also a new sectoral emphasis and a recognition that opportunities - particularly in the emerging markets - exist around specific sectors. For example, the education sector presents an important opportunity and consequently the Minister for Education and Skills, Deputy Ruairí Quinn, will be leading trade missions. The reference to...

Trade Missions (29 Feb 2012)

Richard Bruton: I will have to get the Deputy a separate briefing on that. In general terms, Enterprise Ireland has about 31 locations overseas and they support export missions. Under the new arrangement, we are also seeking to mobilise diplomatic representation. In those individual countries, there is a collective group which I acknowledge was introduced by the previous government. Representatives of...

Redundancy Payments (29 Feb 2012)

Richard Bruton: The cases referred to specifically by the Deputy relate to a range of circumstances for which several legislative provisions exist. In the cases of Vita Cortex and Lagan Brick, the issues at the heart of the disputes fall primarily in the industrial relations sphere. While I remain concerned the issues at the centre of these disputes have yet to be resolved, I believe the parties to each of...

Redundancy Payments (29 Feb 2012)

Richard Bruton: I sought to draw attention to the fact the disputes in question are different in their nature. I signalled we need to look again at the law in the cases of the Jane Norman and La Senza disputes where effectively an administration decision in the UK courts led to these companies closing. There is an exemption in law from the terms of the Protection of Employment Act 1977 where a company is...

Redundancy Payments (29 Feb 2012)

Richard Bruton: The Deputy raised this issue on the previous occasion and I have checked it out. What happened in respect of Jane Norman is that some of the outlets were sold to an entirely new company by the administrator when it was appointed. The new company also purchased the brand "Jane Norman". Jane Norman Limited remained the company that had a responsibility to the workers employed. The new...

Redundancy Payments (29 Feb 2012)

Richard Bruton: Yes, but the company is operating legally.

Redundancy Payments (29 Feb 2012)

Richard Bruton: Many issues have been raised. The Minister for Social Protection has been intimately involved with the Vita Cortex situation and moved rapidly to ensure that the process that is in place under law where an employer is unable to pay was triggered. I acknowledge that there is a long waiting list for redundancy payments but in this case the Minister intervened directly to ensure that there...