Results 1,321-1,340 of 49,836 for speaker:Stephen Donnelly

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Public Expenditure and Reform: Ministers and Secretaries (Amendment) Bill 2012: Committee Stage (26 Jun 2013)

Stephen Donnelly: In a great many cases, ceilings will be the actual targets set in the budget. There are probably not too many people will come back to the Government to say that they were told to spend €10 billion but that they only need €8.5 billion.

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Public Expenditure and Reform: Ministers and Secretaries (Amendment) Bill 2012: Committee Stage (26 Jun 2013)

Stephen Donnelly: Yes. The ceiling becomes the maximum. It becomes what one expect. Let us say it is health.

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Public Expenditure and Reform: Ministers and Secretaries (Amendment) Bill 2012: Committee Stage (26 Jun 2013)

Stephen Donnelly: Let us say it is health and it says €10 billion. If that was the April figure, one would expect in the budget that the proposed sum would be €10 billion. My concern is that the Government is going to set these figures and inform the Dáil that they are the ceilings. In fact, they are the targets. Does the Minister consider that the Dáil loses any of its budgetary...

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Public Expenditure and Reform: Ministers and Secretaries (Amendment) Bill 2012: Committee Stage (26 Jun 2013)

Stephen Donnelly: That is something we have discussed before and it is entirely relevant to the changes being provided for in the section. The Minister's example of disability spending is a very good one. It speaks to an issue I have raised before. Hopefully, the sub-committee and the broader finance committee have a reasonable interest and experience of expenditure. We only look at the expenditure within...

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Public Expenditure and Reform: Ministers and Secretaries (Amendment) Bill 2012: Committee Stage (26 Jun 2013)

Stephen Donnelly: That is great. The provision is coming in as a condition of the troika deal. Do we know if it is being rolled out across Europe as part of the broader budgetary process? Is it becoming standard practice everywhere?

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Public Expenditure and Reform: Ministers and Secretaries (Amendment) Bill 2012: Committee Stage (26 Jun 2013)

Stephen Donnelly: My understanding is that the Bill is intended to amend the 2011 Act by changing the one year to a three-year provision. Is it doing anything else? In layman's terms, it is a simple exercise of finding and replacing every instance of the term "one year" with the term "three years".

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Public Expenditure and Reform: Ministers and Secretaries (Amendment) Bill 2012: Committee Stage (26 Jun 2013)

Stephen Donnelly: Is it the Minister's view that there are no other substantive changes involved in section 1 other than to move from one year to three year terms in the 2011 Act?

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Public Expenditure and Reform: Ministers and Secretaries (Amendment) Bill 2012: Committee Stage (26 Jun 2013)

Stephen Donnelly: On the no-policy-change document, I am sure the other Deputies are putting together their budget proposals. I am beginning to put one together.

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Public Expenditure and Reform: Ministers and Secretaries (Amendment) Bill 2012: Committee Stage (26 Jun 2013)

Stephen Donnelly: The no-budget-change document would be incredibly useful. It tends to come out only 24 hours before the budget. I would find it incredibly useful as the benchmark for what would happen if we did nothing. That would allow me and my team and other Deputies to consider how we will reach targets. Is it possible to get the no-change document early this year? I would certainly use it as the...

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Public Expenditure and Reform: Ministers and Secretaries (Amendment) Bill 2012: Committee Stage (26 Jun 2013)

Stephen Donnelly: The question of endorsing or not endorsing does not work for me. If Professor John McHale endorses the forecast, it is an act that the Dáil, people and media can see. Not endorsing it is not an act; it is the absence of endorsement and, therefore, it is easier to miss. One can either endorse or say nothing, but that is different from having to-----

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Public Expenditure and Reform: Ministers and Secretaries (Amendment) Bill 2012: Committee Stage (26 Jun 2013)

Stephen Donnelly: Yes. I understand that the Fiscal Advisory Council produces its own macroeconomic forecasts. Is that still the case? Does that override the provision about which were talking?

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Public Expenditure and Reform: Ministers and Secretaries (Amendment) Bill 2012: Committee Stage (26 Jun 2013)

Stephen Donnelly: Can we check the position? I may be wrong but recollect discussing with the Fiscal Advisory Council a compliance issue in respect of which I gathered it was the body designated to produce the independent forecast. It has already approached the finance committee with its view on the Department of Finance, for example. It largely thought the work was pretty good. I understood that the...

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Public Expenditure and Reform: Ministers and Secretaries (Amendment) Bill 2012: Committee Stage (26 Jun 2013)

Stephen Donnelly: If when the Department produces its forecast – I presume a variety of factors will be encompassed – the council says it is not correct, there is no measure in the legislation stipulating that it must produce its own forecast. What happens if the Fiscal Advisory Council does not buy into the Department's forecast, on which the budget is based?

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Motor Tax Exemptions (27 Jun 2013)

Stephen Donnelly: 182. To ask the Minister for Environment, Community and Local Government if there are any motor tax exemptions available to very large families, for example over six children, similar to the disabled drivers and disabled passengers exemption, who require larger vehicles; if there are any plans to introduce any exemption; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31290/13]

Written Answers — Department of Health: Health Insurance Cover (27 Jun 2013)

Stephen Donnelly: 261. To ask the Minister for Health if private health insurance companies are being charged for patients using beds in public hospitals, when those patients come through the normal public access channels for example via emergency department, that is, not getting any additional service by having health insurance, and if so, if he will provide the details for situations in which this arises;...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Data Protection (27 Jun 2013)

Stephen Donnelly: 262. To ask the Minister for Health if hospitals may access insurance details for patients without the patient's permission; and if so, under what legislation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31322/13]

Written Answers — Department of Social Protection: Departmental Staff Training (2 Jul 2013)

Stephen Donnelly: 447. To ask the Minister for Social Protection the training frontline officials in her Department receive so as to recognise cases where long-term and short-term unemployed persons require access to mental health services; if there are any plans to upscale such training; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31649/13]

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Energy and Natural Resources: Broadband Services Speeds (2 Jul 2013)

Stephen Donnelly: 487. To ask the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources if his attention has been drawn to the quality of broadband services in the EU report carried out for the European Commission by SamKnows Limited, which revealed that Irish broadband users receive only 84.7% of the advertised download speed and 72.5% of the advertised upload speed; if the situation has changed since the...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Regulatory and Poverty Impact Assessments (2 Jul 2013)

Stephen Donnelly: 633. To ask the Minister for Health if he will provide the regulatory impact analysis for the Health (Amendment) Bill 2013, and, if no such regulatory impact analysis has been conducted, the reason for same; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31484/13]

Houses of the Oireachtas (Inquiries, Privileges and Procedures) Bill 2013: Report Stage (Resumed) and Final Stage (3 Jul 2013)

Stephen Donnelly: I move amendment No. 5:In page 23, between lines 3 and 4, to insert the following: “(5) Notwithstanding any rules referred to in this section, one quarter of the members of a committee shall constitute a sufficient number of committee members to deem a proposal to have been proposed by a committee.”.I will discuss amendments Nos. 5, 6 and 7. The amendments have two intents....