Results 13,661-13,680 of 40,330 for speaker:Leo Varadkar

Misuse of Drugs (Amendment) Bill 2015: Second Stage (10 Mar 2015)

Leo Varadkar: I thank the Deputies, first, for their support for this important legislation and, second, for staying on and staying quite late in large numbers to demonstrate their interest in this broad topic. I should have mentioned in my earlier contribution that it is my intention to submit an early signature motion to the President and ask him to sign this legislation as soon as possible, assuming it...

Misuse of Drugs (Amendment) Bill 2015: Committee and Remaining Stages (10 Mar 2015)

Leo Varadkar: I do not propose to support this amendment. In reality it is unnecessary as a result of the court decision today. Any substance we may wish to add to the list of controlled substances can only be done by the Houses of the Oireachtas so should the Government deem it necessary to control another five, six or ten substances next week, or in three weeks time, it will be necessary to do so by...

Misuse of Drugs (Amendment) Bill 2015: Committee and Remaining Stages (10 Mar 2015)

Leo Varadkar: I am sorry that I may have misunderstood the intention of the amendment initially. Frankly, it is an attempt to make my life easier by allowing the Minister for Health to prohibit substances by declaration. The problem is that today's judgment does not allow that. Today's judgment is clear. It states: "Therefore, for all the reasons stated in this judgment, the conclusion that s.2(2)...

Misuse of Drugs (Amendment) Bill 2015: Committee and Remaining Stages (10 Mar 2015)

Leo Varadkar: The advice is essentially that for a statutory instrument to be put before the Oireachtas there would have to be policies and principles laid down in law in the first instance to allow that to be done. The only mechanism that we could use to allow the Oireachtas ban new substances is primary legislation. Any declaration or statutory instrument that I would lay before the House would have to...

Misuse of Drugs (Amendment) Bill 2015: Committee and Remaining Stages (10 Mar 2015)

Leo Varadkar: That is the advice I have.

Written Answers — Department of Health: Magdalen Laundries (10 Mar 2015)

Leo Varadkar: I propose to take Questions Nos. 356 to 362, inclusive, together. When the Redress for Women Who Were Resident in Certain Institutions Bill has completed its passage in the Oireachtas, the final provisions will be determined. The HSE is currently considering the practical arrangements to be put in place for access to health services for participants living in the State and abroad when the...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Ministerial Responsibilities (10 Mar 2015)

Leo Varadkar: The National Drugs Strategy 2009-2016 is a cross cutting area of public policy and service delivery which requires a coordinated response to tackling the drugs problem. As Minister for Health, I have overall responsibility for the National Drugs Strategy at Government level. The Oversight Forum on Drugs, which I chair, is responsible for the high-level monitoring of the implementation of...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Hospital Services (10 Mar 2015)

Leo Varadkar: As this is a service matter, I have asked the HSE to respond to you directly. If you have not received a reply from the HSE within 15 working days please contact my Private Office and my officials will follow the matter up.

Written Answers — Department of Health: Treatment Abroad Scheme (10 Mar 2015)

Leo Varadkar: This is a decision that the family itself must make based on the advice of the relevant medical consultant in this case and taking into account the information on both the Cross-Border Directive and Treatment Abroad Scheme options which has been provided by the HSE following the previous question put by the Deputy. The relevant HSE offices will provide further detail if required. It would...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Hospital Facilities (10 Mar 2015)

Leo Varadkar: I propose to take Questions Nos. 382 and 383 together. As these are service matters, I have asked the HSE to respond to you directly. If you have not received a reply from the HSE within 15 working days please contact my Private Office and my officials will follow the matter up with them.

Written Answers — Department of Health: National Lottery Funding Disbursement (10 Mar 2015)

Leo Varadkar: My Department administers a National Lottery Discretionary Fund from which once-off grants are paid to community and voluntary organisations providing a range of health related services. An organisation wishing to apply for National Lottery Funding must complete and submit a formal application. The application form and detailed procedures for applying are available on my Department's...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Hospital Services (10 Mar 2015)

Leo Varadkar: As this is a service matter, I have asked the HSE to respond to you directly. If you have not received a reply from the HSE within 15 working days please contact my Private Office and my officials will follow the matter up with them.

Written Answers — Department of Health: Hospital Services (10 Mar 2015)

Leo Varadkar: I am pleased to say that additional funding is being made available in the HSE Service Plan for 2015 for the overall development of orthopaedic infrastructure nationally. This will support spinal surgery provision at Tallaght Hospital, emergency spinal surgery provision at the Mater Misericodiae University Hospital, and consultant orthopaedic surgeons at Galway and Cork. There is also...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Ministerial Responsibilities (10 Mar 2015)

Leo Varadkar: The National Drugs Strategy 2009-2016 is a cross cutting area of public policy and service delivery which requires a coordinated response to tackling the drugs problem. As Minister for Health, I have overall responsibility for the National Drugs Strategy at Government level. The Oversight Forum on Drugs, which I chair, is responsible for the high-level monitoring of the Strategy, and solid...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Health Services Staff (10 Mar 2015)

Leo Varadkar: I propose to take Questions Nos. 393 to 396, inclusive, together. I welcome the decision of the HSE to reinstate the clinical indemnity of the self-employed community midwife. The HSE is legally obliged to actively promote the wellbeing and welfare of the public. Decisions in this regard are made on a bona fide basis based on information available to the HSE at the time. I...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Maternity Services (10 Mar 2015)

Leo Varadkar: As the deputy may be aware, my department is developing a National Maternity Strategy in conjunction with the HSE. The proposed strategy will set out policy direction for maternity services. As a first step, a review of national and international literature on the organisation and delivery of maternity services was commissioned by the department. That review examined inter aliamodels of...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Hospital Appointment Delays (10 Mar 2015)

Leo Varadkar: In relation to the queries raised by you, as these are service matters, I have asked the HSE to respond to you directly. If you have not received a reply from the HSE within 15 working days please contact my Private Office and my officials will follow the matter up.

Written Answers — Department of Health: Hospital Investigations (10 Mar 2015)

Leo Varadkar: Beaumont hospital is conducting an investigation into the very serious matter raised by the Deputy; they are liaising directly with the family involved and will inform them on the outcome of this investigation. The Deputy will be aware, of course, that it would be inappropriate for me to comment on ongoing investigations, other than to acknowledge with regret the distress and upset the...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Departmental Communications (10 Mar 2015)

Leo Varadkar: I want to clarify that my speech to the Institute of Directors was not prepared by civil servants. I was invited to this event in my capacity as Minister for Health and this contributed to the fact that the speech was subsequently circulated by email in the normal way by the Department's Press and Communications Office. Both the Secretary General and I have given careful consideration to...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Primary Care Centres (10 Mar 2015)

Leo Varadkar: On 23 January 2015, my colleague, Minister Lynch and I published the priorities for the Department of Health for the period 2015-2017. Among the priority areas identified for the health sector is the commitment to “modernise health facilities”. This area encompasses a range of key actions, including the development of primary care centres. One of the measures being...