Results 8,841-8,860 of 16,537 for speaker:Brian Lenihan Jnr

Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest Bill 2009: Committee Stage (25 Feb 2009)

Brian Lenihan Jnr: I did not threaten the Deputy.

Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest Bill 2009: Committee Stage (25 Feb 2009)

Brian Lenihan Jnr: You are a long way from Government yet.

Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest Bill 2009: Committee Stage (Resumed) (25 Feb 2009)

Brian Lenihan Jnr: I have provided for the inclusion of a review section in the legislation. Section 13 provides for an annual review of the operation of the measures included in the Bill, consideration of whether the provisions continue to be necessary and the making of findings, as the Minister thinks appropriate. A report on the review will be laid before each House of the Oireachtas. There is nothing to...

Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest Bill 2009: Committee Stage (Resumed) (25 Feb 2009)

Brian Lenihan Jnr: No, I will not. This is Committee Stage and I can take a question when I have completed my contribution.

Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest Bill 2009: Committee Stage (Resumed) (25 Feb 2009)

Brian Lenihan Jnr: Next year I will carry out a review of the operation, effectiveness and impact of the legislation having regard to the overall economy and national economic competitiveness. A similar approach has been adopted under section 11 of the Minimum Wage Act 2000 in which the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment takes account of these considerations when setting the minimum...

Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest Bill 2009: Committee Stage (Resumed) (25 Feb 2009)

Brian Lenihan Jnr: The ICTU solidarity pact does not require a statutory mechanism. Such a mechanism is not required for re-engagement to take place between the social partners and the Government.

Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest Bill 2009: Committee Stage (Resumed) (25 Feb 2009)

Brian Lenihan Jnr: On the matters arising from the amendments before us, I emphasise that the obligation to conduct the review is on the Minister for Finance. Words such as "consultation", "consultant" and "subcontract" have been used. Under section 13, the obligation to do the review is imposed on the Minister. Clearly, the review must be done before 30 June 2010. This is not temporary legislation but...

Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest Bill 2009: Committee Stage (Resumed) (25 Feb 2009)

Brian Lenihan Jnr: It is not temporary legislation and because it is emergency legislation——

Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest Bill 2009: Committee Stage (Resumed) (25 Feb 2009)

Brian Lenihan Jnr: Yes.

Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest Bill 2009: Committee Stage (Resumed) (25 Feb 2009)

Brian Lenihan Jnr: Yes.

Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest Bill 2009: Committee Stage (Resumed) (25 Feb 2009)

Brian Lenihan Jnr: The Deputy refers to an emergency under the constitutional provision in Article 28. This is not an emergency under the constitutional provision in Article 38.

Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest Bill 2009: Committee Stage (Resumed) (25 Feb 2009)

Brian Lenihan Jnr: It is called an emergency because it is an emergency. While the Deputy may have been pleased to see the banks go west last September or the economy go west now, these important decisions must be taken now. This is the reason the legislation is before the House this afternoon and the reason the Government intends to implement it. This legislation must be enacted. Questions were raised about...

Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest Bill 2009: Committee Stage (Resumed) (25 Feb 2009)

Brian Lenihan Jnr: It would be inappropriate to exempt public servants in receipt of medical cards from this deduction, which applies to a wide base. As Deputies are aware, the purpose of a medical card is to ensure those with medical needs have access to health care without undue financial hardship. The guidelines for determining eligibility allow for the application of discretion over and above the income...

Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest Bill 2009: Committee Stage (Resumed) (25 Feb 2009)

Brian Lenihan Jnr: Deputies opposite insist on characterising this measure as a tax and are debating it in taxation terms. The measure is described in the legislation as a contribution, against which tax relief is available. I do not know of any form of taxation against which tax relief can be claimed other than, for example, local rates and elements of corporation tax. In regard to the cost of exempting...

Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest Bill 2009: Committee Stage (Resumed) (25 Feb 2009)

Brian Lenihan Jnr: It is not clear what Deputy Morgan has in mind in proposing this amendment. While he has made clear what is on his mind, in general, it is difficult to understand the intention of this amendment, which proposes to change the definition of "Minister" in this Bill from "Minister for Finance" to "Minister for Finance on behalf of the Oireachtas". That would be a departure from the usual...

Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest Bill 2009: Committee Stage (Resumed) (25 Feb 2009)

Brian Lenihan Jnr: I move amendment No. 4a: In page 4, line 22, after "Oireachtas" to insert the following: "or of a local authority (within the meaning of the Local Government Act 2001)". The purpose of this amendment is to provide explicitly for local authority members to be included in the definition of "public servant" in section 1 of the Bill. While it can be argued that they are covered in the definition...

Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest Bill 2009: Committee Stage (Resumed) (25 Feb 2009)

Brian Lenihan Jnr: Deputy Burton will be aware that I sit in this House as a Deputy for the same constituency as her. I am not here in any professional capacity. The Government takes legal advice from the Office of the Attorney General. The advice it has received in this instance is that it would not be in accordance with the Constitution to apply this measure to the President, to members of the Judiciary or...

Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest Bill 2009: Committee Stage (Resumed) (25 Feb 2009)

Brian Lenihan Jnr: The standard position on the specific queries is that judges can pay a pension contribution if they opt into the spouses' and children's pension scheme. The same constitutional provision applies to that particular scheme. The constitutional position is clear and the Government has been advised by the Attorney General on this issue. It is not a matter the Government has any power to vary....

Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest Bill 2009: Committee Stage (Resumed) (25 Feb 2009)

Brian Lenihan Jnr: Unlike tax, the contribution does not apply in general to citizens, but only to some citizens. Therefore, it is quite different from the tax regime. Deputy Behan referred to a decision involving the widow of a former Supreme Court judge, who tried to argue that the imposition of increased tax on the salary had been unconstitutional. The view taken by the court was that taxation on a...

Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest Bill 2009: Committee Stage (Resumed) (25 Feb 2009)

Brian Lenihan Jnr: That is the case.