Results 181-200 of 11,819 for at speaker:Richard Bruton

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Liquefied Natural Gas and Oil Prospecting: Discussion (30 May 2023)

Richard Bruton: Is there a framework we could look at from other countries for how they balance those risks of embedding and getting committed in the long term to fossil fuel infrastructure versus the short-term security it gives?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Liquefied Natural Gas and Oil Prospecting: Discussion (30 May 2023)

Richard Bruton: I thank the witnesses for the presentation. At the heart of this are the risks Professor McMullin points out we are facing. It is true, as he says, that globally we do not need more fossil fuel infrastructure or storage, but the lesson of Russia and Ukraine is that the existing availability of such infrastructure can be massively disrupted. On a path to net zero, what are the best options...

Biodiversity Action: Statements (25 May 2023)

Richard Bruton: Mankind has always sought to bend nature to its will, but what has changed, of course, is the global industrial scale on which we are now wreaking unintended damage, which is enormous. The way in which we meet our needs for nutrition, travel, shelter and comfort is doing huge damage. It is estimated that we are on course to use more materials in one year than nature can replenish in three,...

Accommodation Needs for New Arrivals: Statements (23 May 2023)

Richard Bruton: I am delighted to have the opportunity to speak. I will start by thanking the Minister, Deputy O'Gorman, and his colleagues for the work they are doing on our behalf. If one looks at any European country and the challenges they face, it is the political issue of our time. The Minister, Deputy O'Gorman, has handled it extremely sensitively in a very difficult environment. The figures speak...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Energy Poverty: Discussion (23 May 2023)

Richard Bruton: I thank the witnesses for the presentations. I am interested in the number of people in arrears and how that could be best addressed in policy terms. How successful is the exceptional needs payment in dealing with these cases? Are other interventions needed? The proposal to extend the fuel allowance to those in receipt of the working family payment seems like quite a sensible idea. They...

Consultative Forum on International Security Policy: Statements (18 May 2023)

Richard Bruton: I welcome the Tánaiste's initiative to have a consultative forum on international security. His selection of Louise Richardson as chairperson for that is a good one. Her biography demonstrates she is a committed reformer, decisive in action and not easily browbeaten by those who would seek to divert her. She will be a good chair. It is time we had a serious conversation on all...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Renewable Energy and Port Capacity: Discussion (16 May 2023)

Richard Bruton: I thank the witnesses for the really interesting presentations. I want to understand the ordering and what the State needs to do. So far, the auctions are only for three on the east coast and one on the west coast. The witness stated that even those are not yet bankable projects. There is a long way to go before we have a stream of bankable projects coming through this and subsequent...

Control of Exports Bill 2023: Second Stage (11 May 2023)

Richard Bruton: I am glad to have the opportunity to speak on the Bill. There is no doubt the world has become a much more dangerous place. It is very important that Ireland and the EU as a whole take a consistent approach to the sale of goods that might come into the wrong hands and have an adverse impact on the human rights of people across the globe. The Bill is welcome. It is a good structure that is...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Climate Change Policy (11 May 2023)

Richard Bruton: Ireland has not been good at either constructing buildings or enterprises that put sustainability at their core. We have 50% higher emissions and a low uptake of renewables outside of electricity, poor material and waste management systems and the lowest rate of circularity, bar Romania, in Europe. Does the Minister agree he has a central role in addressing this?

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Departmental Strategies (11 May 2023)

Richard Bruton: ...efficient and speeding through the work. A key long-term investment for Ireland is to build a much stronger culture of entrepreneurship and stronger hubs around it. Will the Minister consider updating the strategy put in place some years ago? Time has passed considerably since then and it needs to be looked at again.

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Departmental Strategies (11 May 2023)

Richard Bruton: During the deep recession when we lost 300,000 jobs we would have lost 400,000 jobs were it not for the fact that people set up businesses that in the most difficult times created 100,000 jobs. Almost 10,000 businesses a year are formed. The obsession with high potential start-ups is misplaced. There will be only 100 of them per year and this will be pushed up to 120. We need to look at...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: National Development Plan (11 May 2023)

Richard Bruton: In short, the Department is saying, "God's in his heaven - All's right with the world!". I invite the Minister of State to challenge the thinking that lay behind that answer. The reality is we are seeing transformative change in the world we live in. There is a new expectation, for example, regarding offshore wind, or our capacity to build compact developments that do not just see...

European Year of Skills: Statements (10 May 2023)

Richard Bruton: When I was Minister for Education and Skills, when education and skills were harnessed together, I set a target to make Ireland the best education and skills provider in Europe by 2026. I do not know whether that is still monitored. An important approach to governance is to have such bold ambitions. Ireland has a lot to be proud of in this context. We achieved the fastest expansion of...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Engagement with the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment (10 May 2023)

Richard Bruton: I welcome the Minister and thank him for his time and presentation. I will talk about what I regard as one of the biggest challenges we face, that is, around achieving sustainable growth. We will not have long-term prosperity without it. Ireland's record is pretty dismal. Our emissions are 50% higher than the EU average. Our circularity rate, which measures the extent to which we harvest...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Engagement with the Commission for Regulation of Utilities (9 May 2023)

Richard Bruton: I thank the witnesses for the presentation. I thought I heard a report today about serious arrears levels among consumers. The CRU's statement seems to suggest arrears are lower than they were. Maybe we could have a comment on that. On the take-up of the smart meters, at the moment it is 7% which seems very low for such a large investment. What is the target for that? What percentage...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Engagement with the Commission for Regulation of Utilities (9 May 2023)

Richard Bruton: Will the CRU report back to us at an early date on that analysis?

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Tobacco Control Measures (4 May 2023)

Richard Bruton: 149. To ask the Minister for Finance if he is aware that the Finance Act 1995 prevents retailers from setting a margin on the sale of tobacco, as they can on every other product, instead, they are obliged to sell product at the price set by the tobacco companies; and whether he has considered allowing a higher price be set even if he is unwilling to allow any discounting from the RRP. [20977/23]

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: IBEC and Science Foundation Ireland: Discussion (3 May 2023)

Richard Bruton: I thank out guests for their interesting presentations. I see there is a proposal to merge SFI with another body. It raises this issue of what the proper balance between applied and relevant research versus blue sky is. Under SFI’s approach, it has targets around relevant industrial partners and spin-outs. Is there a risk that we will see research move away from the more pressing...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Sectoral Employment Order (Construction Sector) 2023: Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment (26 Apr 2023)

Richard Bruton: ...supply problems in the construction sector and the solutions to those lie with skills, permits, technology, and of course wages. These increases are encouraging. It is also encouraging to see that in the past 12 months the numbers at work in construction are up by more than 22,000, and by 40,000 from the low point so we are definitely making headway in this sector. What is the Minister...

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (19 Apr 2023)

Richard Bruton: Given that wholesale energy prices are down quite sharply, can we be assured that energy users are being treated fairly? I have three specific questions in that regard. I welcome the 75% windfall tax but can we expect additional measures for energy users on foot of that? Does the Commission for Regulation of Utilities, CRU, police the hedging policies of different energy companies to...