Results 12,401-12,420 of 29,533 for speaker:Brendan Howlin

Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest (Amendment) Bill 2011: From the Seanad (15 Dec 2011)

Brendan Howlin: Yes, 69%. The levels are 42%, 62% and 69%.

Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest (Amendment) Bill 2011: From the Seanad (15 Dec 2011)

Brendan Howlin: I thank Deputies for their support for the measure. The 100% levy rate for every euro over €100,000 in a public service pension, as proposed by Deputy McDonald, is tantamount to confiscation. There may be a rationale to that as we are in a desperate state and it should be debated as to whether it is an appropriate step. The advice from the Office of the Attorney General is extremely...

Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest (Amendment) Bill 2011: From the Seanad (15 Dec 2011)

Brendan Howlin: It is proportionate to all the other measures. Deputy McDonald must understand the point I am making.

Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest (Amendment) Bill 2011: From the Seanad (15 Dec 2011)

Brendan Howlin: God forbid.

Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest (Amendment) Bill 2011: From the Seanad (15 Dec 2011)

Brendan Howlin: The Deputy is right. It is surprising.

Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest (Amendment) Bill 2011: From the Seanad (15 Dec 2011)

Brendan Howlin: As the Ceann Comhairle rightly said, the Deputy is straying back to the debate we had on the substance of the Bill. However, I grapple every day with people who have contractual rights that I am trying to undo and they are making it perfectly clear to me that they will go to the High Court. The advice I am getting is that I cannot undo them. We are only nine or ten months in office and we...

Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest (Amendment) Bill 2011: From the Seanad (15 Dec 2011)

Brendan Howlin: The Deputy has already asked. I suggest she asks any lawyer for advice and she will get something similar. She used the word "proportionate". The action relating to the public service in terms of the volume of levy has to be proportionate to that across society in general. We cannot have a confiscatory amount for one narrow group and that is the advice. The Deputy's characterisation of...

Written Answers — Pension Provisions: Pension Provisions (15 Dec 2011)

Brendan Howlin: Civil servants recruited before April 2004 generally have a minimum pension age of 60 years. This is a key long-standing feature of their pension scheme and I have no plans to stop pensions in payment to retired civil servants under the age of 65 years until those persons reach that age. Civil servants recruited from April 2004 onwards generally have a minimum pension age of 65 years with no...

Written Answers — State Property: State Property (15 Dec 2011)

Brendan Howlin: Under the arrangements entered into with the European Commission, the IMF and the ECB on external financial support for Ireland, the Government has agreed to prepare a draft programme of asset disposals and associated regulatory reforms, by the end of December 2011, for discussion with the Troika in advance of taking final decisions on the programme to be pursued. The draft programme will...

Written Answers — Departmental Properties: Departmental Properties (15 Dec 2011)

Brendan Howlin: The question of putting in place a policy in relation to rents receivable by Government Departments and associated bodies on the lines adopted by NAMA is under consideration in my Department in consultation with potentially affected Departments.

Written Answers — Departmental Expenditure: Departmental Expenditure (15 Dec 2011)

Brendan Howlin: I refer the Deputy to the Comprehensive Expenditure Report 2012 – 2014 (Part IV Estimate of Supply Services, page 155), published recently by my Department and which contains the details requested.

Written Answers — Consultancy Contracts: Consultancy Contracts (15 Dec 2011)

Brendan Howlin: As clarified with the Deputy's office, my Department had no expenditure on public relations consultants in 2011.

Written Answers — Ministerial Appointments: Ministerial Appointments (15 Dec 2011)

Brendan Howlin: In response to the Deputy's question the following table contains details of committees, advisory groups etc. set up since March 2011 and which come under the aegis of my Department. Committees and Advisory Groups Title Function Interdepartmental committee to progress examination of sick leave arrangements The purpose of this committee is to contribute to the development of policy around...

Written Answers — Members Allowances: Members Allowances (15 Dec 2011)

Brendan Howlin: The Party Leader's Allowance is provided for in the Oireachtas (Ministerial and Parliamentary Offices) Act, 1938, as amended by the Oireachtas (Ministerial and Parliamentary Offices) (Amendment) Act, 2001. The allowance is paid to the parliamentary leader of a qualifying party in relation to expenses arising from the parliamentary activities, including research, of the party. Payments are...

Written Answers — Public Service Staff: Public Service Staff (15 Dec 2011)

Brendan Howlin: The information the Deputy is seeking is freely available on my Department's website in the Public Service Staff Numbers Databank. The information is presented on a whole time equivalent basis and shows the number of staff employed in each sector at the end of each year for the period 1994 to 2010. For 2011 the data is published on a quarterly basis. The Databank is regularly updated and...

Written Answers — Public Sector Pay: Public Sector Pay (15 Dec 2011)

Brendan Howlin: Contemporary data on earnings for public servants is not available to my Department. The most up to date earnings data available to the Revenue Commissioners, as stated in my Reply to Parliamentary Question 37624/11 on 29 November 2011, is not comparable for a number of reasons to the statistics produced by my Department on public service numbers and earnings. They also predate the measures...

Written Answers — Public Sector Pay: Public Sector Pay (15 Dec 2011)

Brendan Howlin: In June of this year, the Government agreed with my proposal to the introduction of:-

Written Answers — Public Sector Pay: Public Sector Pay (15 Dec 2011)

Brendan Howlin: · a general pay ceiling of €200,000 for future appointments to higher positions across the public service; and

Written Answers — Public Sector Pay: Public Sector Pay (15 Dec 2011)

Brendan Howlin: · a general pay ceiling of €250,000 for future appointments to CEO posts within Commercial State Companies.

Written Answers — Public Sector Pay: Public Sector Pay (15 Dec 2011)

Brendan Howlin: I proposed this pay ceiling in light of the decision taken by the Government on its first day in office to reduce the salary of the Taoiseach to €200,000 and to apply a pro rata reduction to other members of the Government. In relation to current incumbents, the Government gave detailed consideration to the potential legal and contractual issues arising from the imposition of an immediate...