Results 8,721-8,740 of 32,583 for speaker:Richard Bruton

Industrial Relations (Amendment)(No.3): Report Stage (Resumed) and Final Stage (4 Jul 2012)

Richard Bruton: Section 12 inserts a new section 42A into the Act of 1946 to establish the principles and policies to which a JLC must have regard when formulating proposals to be submitted to the Labour Court for employment regulation orders. These principles and policies are set out in section 42A(6)(a) to (d). The Fianna Fáil amendment proposes to introduce the additional principle of the impact on...

Industrial Relations (Amendment)(No.3): Report Stage (Resumed) and Final Stage (4 Jul 2012)

Richard Bruton: The question of how working poverty will be addressed is a matter of public policy in terms of the family income supplement. It adds another dimension to the debate, but it would be more appropriate to a wider policy context, one in which the State determines the issues. For this reason, provision is made through the Department of Social Protection in the form of the family income...

Industrial Relations (Amendment)(No.3): Report Stage (Resumed) and Final Stage (4 Jul 2012)

Richard Bruton: The Deputy's amendment would remove the exclusions from the proposed definition of remuneration, restoring the position that obtained as regards the scope of employment regulation orders, EROs, that applied in their operation prior to the High Court decision in July 2011. This would have the effect of restoring arrangements with regard to Sunday working which were acknowledged by the...

Industrial Relations (Amendment)(No.3): Report Stage (Resumed) and Final Stage (4 Jul 2012)

Richard Bruton: I move amendment No. 27: In page 34, to delete lines 35 to 37 and substitute the following: " "(fa) a reference to any registered employment agreement or employment regulation order which applies to the employee and confirmation of where the employee may obtain a copy of such agreement or order,",". This is essentially a tidying-up amendment designed to ensure the provision is consistent with...

Industrial Relations (Amendment)(No.3): Report Stage (Resumed) and Final Stage (4 Jul 2012)

Richard Bruton: I thank the Deputies for their co-operation with the passage of the Bill and my officials for their work on it.

Written Answers — Departmental Staff: Departmental Staff (4 Jul 2012)

Richard Bruton: My Department introduced an Attendance Management Policy in March 2011 which applies to all staff of the Department and its associated Offices. The policy is based on Department of Finance Circular 09/2010 on the Management of Sick Leave. It sets out clear procedures for reporting, recording and management of sick leave and is intended to help managers adopt best practice approaches to...

Written Answers — Prompt Payments: Prompt Payments (4 Jul 2012)

Richard Bruton: Under the Government Decision of 2009 on Prompt Payments by Central Government, Departments and Agencies are required to report to my Department on the statistics relating to the number of payments made within 15 days, within 16 to 30 days and number made after 30 from receipt of invoices in the Departments. This information is published quarterly on my Department's website and also on the...

Written Answers — Credit Availability: Credit Availability (4 Jul 2012)

Richard Bruton: While my colleague the Minister for Finance, Mr. Michael Noonan TD has responsibility for the banks and bank lending, I am working closely with him to address the issue of access to credit for enterprise in Ireland at this critical time. Access to credit is a key element to building a vibrant and sustainable enterprise base. As the Deputy is aware, I am currently bringing two pieces of...

Written Answers — Departmental Staff: Departmental Staff (4 Jul 2012)

Richard Bruton: The attached tables indicate the number of increments paid in each of the salary ranges for 2011 and the estimated number that will be paid in 2012. The payment of increments is conditional on satisfactory performance and compliance with sick leave regulations. 2011 - Increments paid #100,001 Total Total Cost €303,116.16 €129,367.34 €77,724.21 €16,029.55 €46,726.05 €23,317.26...

Written Answers — Public Sector Staff: Public Sector Staff (4 Jul 2012)

Richard Bruton: During the last six months I re-appointed the former Director of Corporate Enforcement to the post of Acting Director of Corporate Enforcement for a period of up to six months. His pension is abated for the period that he has agreed to remain on in his post in an acting capacity. Also, at the request of the Chairman of the Inter-Departmental Committee to establish the facts of State...

Written Answers — Employment Appeals Tribunal: Employment Appeals Tribunal (5 Jul 2012)

Richard Bruton: Under the Redundancy Payment Scheme eligible employees (with at least two years continuous service in fully insurable employment) are entitled to a minimum statutory lump sum payment on being made redundant. A redundancy situation arises in general where an employee's job no longer exists and he/she is not replaced. An employee is entitled to two weeks pay for every year of service, with a...

Microenterprise Loan Fund Bill 2012: Order for Report Stage (10 Jul 2012)

Richard Bruton: I move: "That Report Stage be taken now."

Microenterprise Loan Fund Bill 2012: Report Stage (10 Jul 2012)

Richard Bruton: We debated these issues on Committee Stage. Before discussing amendment No. 3, I wish to clarify a point. In case Deputy Tóibín believes there is just €10 million available for lending from this fund, the sum of €10 million is the equity going into the micro finance fund from the Department's budget. That is the equity on which borrowings of up to €25 million can be leveraged. In...

Microenterprise Loan Fund Bill 2012: Report Stage (10 Jul 2012)

Richard Bruton: The vehicle we chose to establish is one that seeks to lean on the established experience of Social Finance Foundation. It was designed to be in operation in conjunction with the scheme as quickly as possible using the established experienced network. Social Finance Foundation has constituted an established network and had been channelling money to First Step Microfinance. It has...

Microenterprise Loan Fund Bill 2012: Report Stage (10 Jul 2012)

Richard Bruton: I thank the Deputies, particularly Deputy Tóibín, who has been present for all Stages. I believe the initiative has cross-party support. It is filling a gap that other countries have filled long before us. The Deputy, to be fair to him, has been advocating this measure for a considerable period. It was considered many times but we have succeeded in getting it across the line. I thank...

Written Answers — Departmental Correspondence: Departmental Correspondence (10 Jul 2012)

Richard Bruton: The issues referred to by the Deputy were examined by the appropriate authorities, including the Office of the Ombudsman and no basis for any complaint was upheld. Any new evidence in relation to this matter should be brought to the attention of the relevant authorities for appropriate attention.

Written Answers — Departmental Staff: Departmental Staff (10 Jul 2012)

Richard Bruton: The table below shows the breakdown of sick leave in the categories requested: 0.5-5.5 days 296 6 - 10.5 days 132 11 - 15.5 days 61 16 - 20.5 days 39 21 days and over 119 242 staff of my Department took no sick leave in 2011. There were 230 available working days per staff member in 2011. The ten highest instances of sick leave were as follows: 1 230 2 230 3 230 4 230 5 203 6...

Written Answers — Departmental Bodies: Departmental Bodies (10 Jul 2012)

Richard Bruton: I recently met with the Consumers' Association of Ireland which apprised me of its current financial position. The Association also raised the possibility of future exchequer support. I advised the Association that, notwithstanding difficulties it may be experiencing in managing its finances, exchequer support could only be considered where the expending of public funds would represent value...

Written Answers — Employment Rights: Employment Rights (10 Jul 2012)

Richard Bruton: Joint Labour Committee, Employment Regulation Orders no longer have the force of law. However, the Government is currently progressing legislation to provide for a new system of Employment Regulation Orders. The Judgement of Mr. Justice Feeney delivered,in the High Court, on the 7th of July 2011 declaring that the provisions of sections 42, 43, and 45 of the 1946 Industrial Relations Act...

Written Answers — Work Permits: Work Permits (10 Jul 2012)

Richard Bruton: Ireland remains a very open and welcoming country for non-Irish nationals in our Labour Force. Quarter 1 2012 labour market statistics show there are 274,000 non-Irish nationals in our labour force of just over 2 million. Ireland remains a very attractive location for Foreign Direct Investment. Favourable demographics and consistent investment in education ensure a plentiful supply of highly...