Results 12,761-12,780 of 19,445 for speaker:Brian Cowen

Departmental Expenditure. (12 May 2009)

Brian Cowen: I propose to take Questions Nos. 1 and 2 together. As a result of the supplementary budget on 7 April, my Department's 2009 estimate has been reduced by €3.583 million over the Estimate published last October. The reductions have been identified across several of the Department's administrative and programme subheads. My Department's revised estimate for 2009 is €32.686 million which is...

Departmental Expenditure. (12 May 2009)

Brian Cowen: With regard to the supplementary questions arising from the question on the Estimates, it is important to point out that there has been a reduction of 22%. It is not true to say there has been an increase in PR or consultancy spending. That is not correct. In fact, consultancy provision in the Department's Vote in 2008, under subhead A7, was €275,000, and this has been reduced to...

Departmental Expenditure. (12 May 2009)

Brian Cowen: Those are not matters covered by the general question on Estimates here.

Departmental Expenditure. (12 May 2009)

Brian Cowen: The only point I would make is that I have answered a question on the tribunal and issues arising in recent weeks so I refer the Deputy to that detailed response to the questions asked then. As regards the report of the Moriarty tribunal, it is a matter for the chairman of the tribunal to decide how he wishes to proceed. He has used a different method from other tribunals in trying to avoid...

Departmental Expenditure. (12 May 2009)

Brian Cowen: I answered the question about vacancies last week. I referred the Deputy to the budget statement of the Minister for Finance, who outlined that it was not the intention at that time to tax those gratuities and he would refer back to the matter in December. On the question of the Estimates, they came in as scheduled last year and will come in this year. It is a matter of controlling...

Departmental Expenditure. (12 May 2009)

Brian Cowen: I would like to make it clear to the Deputy that one has two options when in government. One tries to bring about a situation where one's public finance position is sustainable or one decides that it is unsustainable, does not make any decisions and continues to borrow money at a rate that is not affordable over the period of time. That is the position. One has a budget. Limited...

Departmental Expenditure. (12 May 2009)

Brian Cowen: As I was explaining to the Deputy, at the beginning of every budgetary process a bilateral meeting takes place between individual Ministers and the Minister for Finance. The Minister for Finance will have obtained from Government broad agreement on the parameters of the budgetary strategy, based on the macro-economic forecasts and whatever other issues he can bring to the table as to what...

Departmental Expenditure. (12 May 2009)

Brian Cowen: -----and the numbers of people who are now being provided for in mainstream education show that there has been a revolution in the provision of education - and quite rightly so - for those with disabilities and problems. This is not to suggest that every problem has been solved but I do not accept the contention that this Government has not shown a very strong commitment in this area. It...

Departmental Expenditure. (12 May 2009)

Brian Cowen: We certainly do not do that.

Departmental Expenditure. (12 May 2009)

Brian Cowen: Questions about specific areas of specific Departments should be addressed to specific Ministers. At the end of April this year the number of whole-time equivalent staff serving in my Department was 2,009. We will endeavour to redeploy staff according to key business needs and activity levels; to restructure work loads as appropriate; and achieve greater productivity through exploiting new...

Ministerial Responsibilities. (12 May 2009)

Brian Cowen: I propose to take Questions Nos. 3 to 5, inclusive, together. On 22 April 2009 the Government appointed Deputy Pat Carey as Government Chief Whip and Minister of State at my Department and at the Department of Defence, and Deputy Dick Roche as Minister of State at my Department and at the Department of Foreign Affairs with special responsibility for European affairs. As Chief Whip, Deputy Pat...

Ministerial Responsibilities. (12 May 2009)

Brian Cowen: I hope the very low opinion Deputy Burton has of Ministers of State does not reflect her own experience when she was one. I would hate to think-----

Ministerial Responsibilities. (12 May 2009)

Brian Cowen: I would hate to think she had such a bad experience and that she was relegated merely to speaking at germane debates and felt excluded from the general workings of Government. It would be a great pity if that were the case. I hope it is not a reflection on her personal experience. In the general workload of Government, the work of Ministers of State is substantive, namely, to be supportive...

Ministerial Responsibilities. (12 May 2009)

Brian Cowen: The whole idea of Question Time is to get accurate information. There is no better man to give accurate information on integration policy than the former Minister of State who has held that responsibility for a couple of years. Out of the 15 Ministers of State appointed, six have a primary responsibility in respect of a substantial area of the work of key Departments, and will have...

Ministerial Responsibilities. (12 May 2009)

Brian Cowen: I do not agree with Deputy Ó Caoláin. There is no question of downgrading the importance of dealing with the drugs issue. The Minister of State at the Department of Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs, Deputy Curran, continues to have that responsibility and has shown a strong commitment to the area and knowledge of it. He is trying to ensure that money gets to those who require...

Leaders' Questions (12 May 2009)

Brian Cowen: I will comment responsibly in reply to some of what the Deputy has had to say. I make it clear to him, as we have always done, that it is the public interest and no other factor which motivates the Government in this matter. Any suggestion to the contrary is just fanciful on the Deputy's part. The Opposition contends continually during the course of the election campaign that this is about...

Leaders' Questions (12 May 2009)

Brian Cowen: As I have said to Deputy Kenny already, the purpose of transferring the banks' impaired assets to NAMA is to allow the banks to strengthen their balance sheets and reduce the uncertainty regarding the level of bad debt held by them. This should in due course allow banks to provide credit to the economy on a commercial basis, which is necessary as there is currently no functioning market for...

Leaders' Questions (12 May 2009)

Brian Cowen: It is important that we ensure we put in place the correct methodology for valuing the assets to be transferred. It is a key priority for Government to ensure we have a robust and consistent approach to valuation. The European Commission has provided guidance to member states on the treatment of impaired assets, including a detailed set of requirements for the valuation of such assets and,...

Leaders' Questions (12 May 2009)

Brian Cowen: I am simply explaining that the model being used by the Government is in line with guidelines that have been outlined - the toolkit, as it was described by the German Chancellor, Angela Merkel - in respect of the initiatives Governments need to take to ensure a greater degree of market certainty, to identify the level of impaired assets and to park those assets so the banks can have access to...

Leaders' Questions (12 May 2009)

Brian Cowen: The motion put forward by the Labour Party offers no solution to the banks' bad debt problem. It focuses entirely on the ownership and governance of banks; there is no proposal on how to clean up banks' balance sheets. Banks with damaged balance sheets, whether they are private, partly State-owned or fully nationalised, will not lend to the real economy. Moreover, bank nationalisation does...