Results 9,361-9,380 of 13,375 for speaker:Pat Rabbitte

Broadcasting Services (1 May 2012)

Pat Rabbitte: I acknowledge the conviction shown by Deputies Tuffy and McHugh on this matter and I accept their passion is motivated by the best of reasons. However, they will be surprised to learn that by the end of 2012, the deficit at RTE will have reached €50 million, an unconscionable sum, of which the great preponderance is in the redundancy programme. The organisation faces an acute financial...

Written Answers — Natural Gas Network: Natural Gas Network (1 May 2012)

Pat Rabbitte: The development and expansion of the natural gas network is in the first instance a commercial matter for Gaslink, a subsidiary of Bord Gáis Éireann (BGÉ), which is mandated under Section 8 of the Gas Act 1976, as amended, to develop and maintain the national network system for the supply of natural gas that is both economical and efficient. The Commission for Energy Regulation (CER) is...

Written Answers — Broadcasting Services: Broadcasting Services (1 May 2012)

Pat Rabbitte: RTÉ has built, owns and controls the Saorview TV network and is responsible for the roll-out, coverage and operation of that network. This is in accordance with Part 8 of the Broadcasting Act 2009, which provides that the development of the RTÉ network is an operational matter for RTÉ and therefore not one in which I, as Minister, have a function. That said, I have made enquiries of...

Written Answers — Telecommunications Services: Telecommunications Services (1 May 2012)

Pat Rabbitte: Ireland's telecommunications market has been open to competition since 1999 and since then has developed into a well-regulated market supporting a multiplicity of commercial operators providing services over a diverse range of technology platforms. Despite the current economic difficulties, significant private sector investment continues to be made in the provision of broadband products and...

Written Answers — Energy Conservation: Energy Conservation (1 May 2012)

Pat Rabbitte: I refer the Deputy to my reply to Question No. 765 from him of 18 April last. There has been no change in the matter since then.

Written Answers — Departmental Bodies: Departmental Bodies (1 May 2012)

Pat Rabbitte: While no agencies have been abolished or merged by my Department in 2011 or to date in 2012, my Department oversaw the creation of Inland Fisheries Ireland in 2010 which replaced 8 Fisheries Boards, 8 Fisheries cooperatives and the National Salmon Commission. My Department is currently reviewing the rationalisation proposals for agencies under its aegis as set out in the Public Service...

Written Answers — Broadcasting Services: Broadcasting Services (1 May 2012)

Pat Rabbitte: Responsibility for the regulation of premium rate phone numbers, and advertising of these, including those referred to in the Deputies question, is a matter for the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland (BAI) and the Commission for Communications Regulation (ComReg). The BAI and ComReg are independent statutory bodies and as such I as Minister have no role in this matter. The enactment of the...

Written Answers — Sale of State Assets: Sale of State Assets (1 May 2012)

Pat Rabbitte: The Government has decided that Bord Gáis Éireann's (BGÉ) Energy business will be included as part of the assets disposal programme. Bord Gáis Energy operates as a competitive, dual-fuel, all-island energy business, with some 470,000 gas customers and over 400,000 electricity customers. Bord Gáis Energy sells gas and electricity in all market segments; with related activities including...

Media Mergers (2 May 2012)

Pat Rabbitte: In July last year the Government approved the draft heads of a new consumer and competition Bill as submitted by the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation. Part of that decision involved giving effect in legislation to the recommendations of the Report of the Advisory Group on Media Mergers and to transfer responsibility for public interest considerations relating to media mergers...

Media Mergers (2 May 2012)

Pat Rabbitte: As the Deputy knows, broadcasting is currently the responsibility of this Department. After the Bill to which he refers is enacted, this Department will be also responsible for print media. In terms of how early that is likely to happen, it has to await the enactment of the major revision of competition law that is in the new competition and consumer Bill. It is a major Bill. The Deputy...

Offshore Exploration (2 May 2012)

Pat Rabbitte: The Deputy will be aware that neither I nor the Minister of State, Deputy Fergus O'Dowd, has received the report on offshore oil and gas exploration from the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Communications, Natural Resources and Agriculture. I understand the committee has engaged with the subject matter of this report for more than six months and over that time has invited a range of parties to...

Offshore Exploration (2 May 2012)

Pat Rabbitte: I acknowledge that it is an all-party report. I acknowledge also the seriousness with which the members of the committee went about their work. I am aware of some of the submissions made to the committee. I understand from the Chairman that it is a report of some merit and if Deputy Ferris says it will be published next Wednesday, I welcome that. I assure the Deputy that it will be taken...

Offshore Exploration (2 May 2012)

Pat Rabbitte: I am happy to commit to having a debate on the report in the House as soon as such may be organised. The Deputy will have to appreciate that I have not yet received the report.

Offshore Exploration (2 May 2012)

Pat Rabbitte: The proposal to which the Deputy refers was made in a print media article that began with a statement that Ireland was about to sign away almost all of our resources on terms by far the worst in the developed world. In reply I pointed out that both claims were factually wrong and demonstrated that the fiscal terms applying to profits from oil and gas production in Ireland were pitched at a...

Offshore Exploration (2 May 2012)

Pat Rabbitte: I presume the report to which Deputy Martin Ferris referred will result in the House discussing many of the issues Deputy Luke 'Ming' Flanagan raises. His question relates to the suggestion that "an offer of a half share of ownership be made to the Norwegian state in return for managing the natural resources in our territorial waters". If he looks at the Marine Institute map of Ireland, he...

Offshore Exploration (2 May 2012)

Pat Rabbitte: It is noteworthy that in the recent round of licensing which was, relatively speaking, more successful than previous rounds undertaken in the past decade, the Norwegian state oil company did not even submit a bid. It is not an issue of Norway having skills that are not otherwise applied here. The mistaken premise of the original article was that Norway and Ireland were comparable in terms...

Offshore Exploration (2 May 2012)

Pat Rabbitte: If one is drilling two wells per annum, the prospect of making finds can be compared to finding a needle in a haystack. It is not a question of handing over to another country something that has, I hope, valuable potential for the State but of trying to strike the right balance to persuade exploration companies to come here. We do not have the investment required to establish a State oil...

Sale of State Assets (2 May 2012)

Pat Rabbitte: As part of the State assets disposal programme, the Government has decided with the troika on the sale of Bord Gáis Éireann's energy business. Bord Gáis Energy is a dynamic and successful part of the Bord Gáis Éireann's business which has delivered real benefits for consumers as it has invested and grown in power generation and energy supply. The sale of Bord Gáis Éireann's energy...

Sale of State Assets (2 May 2012)

Pat Rabbitte: There is no question of Irish Water being privatised. The decision brought to the Cabinet by the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government required the Government to make a choice between Bord na Móna and Bord Gáis. At that stage of the process the Minister had narrowed it down to these two bodies. The only decision the Government took was to select Bord Gáis and...

State Contracts (2 May 2012)

Pat Rabbitte: The awarding of contracts by State companies under the aegis of my Department is an operational matter for the individual companies in the first instance. I have no function in this regard. The code of practice for the governance of State bodies sets out clear procurement requirements. It is the responsibility of boards to satisfy themselves that these requirements are adhered to. EU...