Results 10,481-10,500 of 11,754 for speaker:Mary Butler

Health (Miscellaneous Provisions) (No. 2) Bill 2024: Report and Final Stages (3 Jul 2024)

Mary Butler: I thank the Deputies for supporting this Bill and my officials for their support over the past weeks and months in drafting this legislation.

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Heritage Sites (3 Jul 2024)

Mary Butler: There is no better advocate for the Curragh than my good friend and colleague, Senator O’Loughlin, whom I thank for raising this matter. We hear so much about the Curragh on a daily, weekly and monthly basis. It is fantastic to hear the Senator advocate so well for Kildare’s jewel in the crown, as she put it. The Curragh’s unique area of approximately 5,000 acres of...

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Heritage Sites (3 Jul 2024)

Mary Butler: I thank the Senator. I will bring her comments back to the Minister, specifically her belief that there is no urgency and her request for a timeline in relation to the review of these sites that is foreseen. It is important that all the facets of the State come together. I am confident that the Department of Defence, together with Kildare County Council, will continue to work towards...

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: School Admissions (3 Jul 2024)

Mary Butler: Gabhaim buíochas leis an Seanadóir as ucht an cheist a ardú mar go dtugann sé deis dom an cás mar atá sé faoi láthair a shoiléiriú i dtaca le soláthar iarbhunoideachais i gCoill na Silíní. I would like to thank the Senator for raising the matter as it provides me with the opportunity, on behalf of the Minister, Deputy Foley, to...

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: School Admissions (3 Jul 2024)

Mary Butler: I would also like to welcome the Tipperary spina bifida association from my neighbouring county. It is lovely to have the representatives here and I hope they have a great day here in Leinster House with my colleague, Deputy Cahill. I will bring what the Senator has said back to the Minister. The Department has said that the pace of delivery of additional residential development in the...

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Broadcasting Sector (3 Jul 2024)

Mary Butler: I thank Senator Carrigy for raising this important matter and I am replying today on behalf of the Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media, Deputy Catherine Martin to provide an update. I do not think anyone would disagree with what the Senator has said about local radio, local news and local journalism. They are so important to people the length and breadth of the...

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Broadcasting Sector (3 Jul 2024)

Mary Butler: I thank the Senator for raising this issue, which is very topical at the moment. I was watching part of the committee meeting last night while I was in my office. I acknowledge the fundamental challenges facing the sector and reiterate the Government's commitment to supporting the provision of public sector content by the wider media sector at local, regional and national levels. In...

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Night-time Economy (3 Jul 2024)

Mary Butler: I thank Senator Ruane for raising this important matter and giving me the opportunity to provide clarity on some of the issues involved on behalf of the Minister for Justice, who is attending a Private Members' debate in the Dáil. I would like to respond to Senator Ruane's very important comments on trying to get young people off their phones and out into the fresh air, whether on the...

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Night-time Economy (3 Jul 2024)

Mary Butler: All of Senator Ruane's comments will be brought to the attention of the Minister and her officials. One of the facets of the new Bill is the standardisation of opening hours for pubs and off-licences . The introduction of annual late permits and annual nightclub permits will be very important in large cities but perhaps not so important in a smaller rural town or village. All of these...

An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (9 Jul 2024)

Mary Butler: I thank the Deputy for his question. As a TD representing the lovely city and county of Waterford and as a Minister of State in the Department of Health, I am pleased to inform the House of the position. First, however, I apologise to the Taoiseach that I did not have the information for him. This was due to the fact that it was only breaking news and that I was on a flight this morning...

Seanad: Health (Miscellaneous Provisions) (No. 2) Bill 2024: Second and Subsequent Stages (10 Jul 2024)

Mary Butler: This legislation has three main aims. First, through amendments to the Health Act 2007, it will strengthen the regulatory framework for nursing homes and residential care facilities for people with disabilities and children, thereby driving improvements for those living in such facilities. These people are some of our most vulnerable citizens. It is vital that we have a robust system of...

Seanad: Health (Miscellaneous Provisions) (No. 2) Bill 2024: Second and Subsequent Stages (10 Jul 2024)

Mary Butler: I thank Senator Conway for his contribution. To clarify with regard to the fair deal, this amendment applies when, for example, a bachelor farmer who needs the support of a nursing home wants to appoint a successor so the farm will stay within the family. The person appointed as a successor does not have to be the person who the farm is eventually left to in the will.

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Cardiology Services (11 Jul 2024)

Mary Butler: I thank Senator Cummins for giving me the opportunity to update the House on this matter, a really important issue on which the Senator and I have worked tirelessly for many years. The Minister for Health and I are fully committed to supporting our cardiac services nationally and cardiovascular health in general, which is a valuable part of our health service. I acknowledge the...

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Cardiology Services (11 Jul 2024)

Mary Butler: I thank the Senator and also acknowledge our colleague, Deputy Ó Cathasaigh. People step up to the plate and become a part of the Government. When that happens, their job is to deliver. Working constructively together, I believe that we are delivering. We are not where we want to be yet, but we are moving quickly in that direction. Considerable progress has been made. We had a...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (11 Jul 2024)

Mary Butler: Hear, hear.

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (11 Jul 2024)

Mary Butler: You have been found out, Deputy.

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (11 Jul 2024)

Mary Butler: I am so proud to be from Waterford.

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (11 Jul 2024)

Mary Butler: As the Deputy said, HIQA had to remove the registration for this nursing home. The HIQA report is there for everyone to see. The HSE, which is the provider of last resort, moved on to the site. While it was undertaking routine water-quality sampling, the situation changed significantly because positive legionella results at very high levels were returned across the site. This causes...

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (11 Jul 2024)

Mary Butler: Excuse me. Legionnaires' disease is very serious. In consultation with public health, a water-quality committee meeting was convened and a plan was immediately put in place to urgently address the situation. This included the implementation of immediate control measures. These measures can only be addressed, and the immediate risk can only be removed, when all the residents vacate the...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Health Services Staff (9 Jul 2024)

Mary Butler: In 2023 the existing competitive tender system for the contracting of home support was replaced with an Authorisation Scheme. It provides for fixed pricing and a common framework for the delivery of Home Support Services. Prior to the Authorisation Scheme there was a significant administrative burden on the HSE and service providers to manage legacy rates; and an unfairness in the system...