Results 14,161-14,180 of 19,445 for speaker:Brian Cowen

Official Engagements. (10 Nov 2009)

Brian Cowen: Specific questions on energy matters are best put to the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources, who can outline the current situation in more accurate detail than I. In regard to the meeting last July with the Secretary General, the latter was quite praiseworthy of the progress Ireland has made in recent years in terms both of increasing the volume of our overseas...

Official Engagements. (10 Nov 2009)

Brian Cowen: With respect to the Deputy, the questions relate to visits I may undertake in the coming period. His first supplementary question was about the progress that has been made in the continuing interaction between the Department of Communications, Energy and Natural Resources and its counterpart in Britain regarding developments at Sellafield, for example, and I indicated that for the purposes...

Official Engagements. (10 Nov 2009)

Brian Cowen: The President of the Commission, to whom I have spoken on this matter, confirms that he is not in a position to consider the composition of the next Commission until the High Representative is appointed. Under the new arrangements established by the Lisbon Treaty, the High Representative will be a vice-president of the Commission. Until that matter becomes clear, which must be dealt with at...

Official Engagements. (10 Nov 2009)

Brian Cowen: The Ireland-America Economic Advisory Board was established in late 1992. Its purpose is to engage corporate leaders in the United States in an effort to promote Ireland as an investment location, to avail of their help in the Northern Ireland situation and to respond to Irish-American leaders' willingness to be identified with Irish issues. Meetings with the board provide an invaluable...

Official Engagements. (10 Nov 2009)

Brian Cowen: With regard to investment, even in the past five years there has been a significant change in the profile of investment. Five years ago, 10% of IDA-approved projects from the United States were in the area of research and development whereas 40% of the investments last year were in that category. This demonstrates the strong capital-intensive commitment being made by multinationals in...

Official Engagements. (10 Nov 2009)

Brian Cowen: I am aware the committee of which Deputy McManus is a member has produced a report and the heads of a Bill on this question. It is a matter for the Minister and the Government to decide what contribution that can make to legislation envisaged in this area. The goodwill of the European Union is not in question on this matter. We have set out our targets and in the conclusions of the...

Official Engagements. (10 Nov 2009)

Brian Cowen: We have a lead role. The European Union will be led and chaired by the Danish Prime Minister and the Danish Government which have been tasked with this job. The Swedish Presidency and the Commission have been in Delhi and the United States in the past seven days meeting the Obama Administration, the Indian Administration and the Chinese in an effort to ensure that people come to Copenhagen,...

Official Engagements. (10 Nov 2009)

Brian Cowen: The ODA budget continues to be part of the budgetary discussions and we are trying to ensure that the most vulnerable are protected. Successive administrations have made much progress on this issue in the past decade.

Leaders' Questions (10 Nov 2009)

Brian Cowen: What the Minister for Social and Family Affairs pointed out last night in an effort to be helpful in a discussion that took place on an RTE programme was to the effect that, obviously, no decisions are yet taken but every area of public expenditure, including social welfare, must be looked at in the context of what contribution it can make towards making the €4 billion savings that must be...

Leaders' Questions (10 Nov 2009)

Brian Cowen: I have made the point to Deputy Kenny that total expenditure must be looked at in all aspects. Decisions will be taken by the Government in due course in terms of whether there must be a reduction in the area of child benefit expenditure, which amounts to €2.5 billion, in a way that is as fair as possible given the varying degrees of household income to which it applies. That is something...

Leaders' Questions (10 Nov 2009)

Brian Cowen: We will look with interest to see how that will work.

Leaders' Questions (10 Nov 2009)

Brian Cowen: I listened to the Deputy in silence, he should do me the same courtesy.

Leaders' Questions (10 Nov 2009)

Brian Cowen: The point is that it was indicated as far back as the April supplementary budget, as well as in the McCarthy report, that child benefit is an area of expenditure that must be examined. We must see how, on the basis of the limited resources available to us, expenditure can best be allocated across the social welfare budget. There is a great discrepancy of income to which child benefit applies.

Leaders' Questions (10 Nov 2009)

Brian Cowen: In regard to specific issues that arise regarding the banking situation, they will be dealt with on the basis that whatever debts are due and owing will have to be paid. Mr. Appleby and others are looking at the corporate enforcement side of this. The fact is that anything that is transferred does not exclude the liability people owe to financial institutions in respect of any debts they...

Leaders' Questions (10 Nov 2009)

Brian Cowen: With regard to the point the Minister for Finance made, it is not correct to suggest there is a particular deal with these people; that is not the case.

Leaders' Questions (10 Nov 2009)

Brian Cowen: How the capital gains tax code operates in respect of gains and losses is a matter of general character. It is a general provision in the Finance Acts. It is predicated on gains being made. In the current declining asset market, the big complaint in the discussion on the NAMA legislation was the level of discount-----

Leaders' Questions (10 Nov 2009)

Brian Cowen: When Deputy Gilmore is given an answer, he does not want to hear it. The argument he put forward for the past number of weeks on the NAMA legislation related to the discount in the value of assets transferred from financial institutions to the agency.

Leaders' Questions (10 Nov 2009)

Brian Cowen: Deputy Gilmore's argument now is that gains will be made in respect of those assets but the opposite will be the case.

Order of Business (10 Nov 2009)

Brian Cowen: It is proposed to take No. 10, motion re referral to joint committee of proposed approval by Dáil Éireann for a Council framework decision on accreditation of forensic service providers carrying out laboratory activities and a Council framework decision on preventing and combating trafficking in human beings, and protecting victims, repealing framework decision 2002/629/JHA; No. 11, motion...

Order of Business (10 Nov 2009)

Brian Cowen: The Road Traffic Bill can be taken in due course and made subject to a commencement order in the normal way in respect of any technical issues that have to be dealt with thereafter. With regard to the Deputy's second question, it is a matter for the European Parliament to decide the competence of the nominees put forward by member states.