Results 20,841-20,860 of 32,583 for speaker:Richard Bruton

Joint Oireachtas Committee on European Union Affairs: Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership: Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation (27 May 2014)

Richard Bruton: No, this study is more about giving a framework so that we know the areas of greatest potential gain for Ireland and, accordingly, we can ensure our negotiators concentrate on these. This will not be a static study but one to give us ammunition so as to be active in the negotiation process. For example, Ireland has large pharmaceutical and medical devices manufacturing sectors. One would...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on European Union Affairs: Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership: Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation (27 May 2014)

Richard Bruton: The area of greatest potential benefit in the long term is if we move towards having more mutual recognition. Tariffs are in and around 3% of costs, give or take. Some non-trade barriers are in around 20% of costs. While one cannot put a percentage on regulatory and red tape costs, if one gets mutual recognition for the setting of standards, over time the costs will come down. When jam...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on European Union Affairs: Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership: Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation (27 May 2014)

Richard Bruton: Quite a number of questions have been asked. In respect of the car industry, it is probably an area in which Europe is looking to opportunities in the United States market rather than losing out. It is an area in which it is stated that we have an offensive interest and in which there are opportunities. However, guarantees have been built into the Japanese or Korean agreements, for...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on European Union Affairs: Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership: Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation (27 May 2014)

Richard Bruton: To allow a product to be approved to a standard, one needs a body to vet that this standard is being achieved. However, I will revert to the Deputy on whether there are cases in which Ireland has different standards from the European Union. In general, however, if an organisation comes to Ireland to produce a medical device, it will seek to get approval in Ireland but will want that...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on European Union Affairs: Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership: Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation (27 May 2014)

Richard Bruton: On a point of clarification, it is not excluded, rather it has not been included in the first exchange of offers.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on European Union Affairs: Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership: Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation (27 May 2014)

Richard Bruton: I thank the Chairman and members for the invitation to say a few words on TTIP and hopefully to take questions from members to the best of my ability. During Ireland's Presidency last June, an agreement was achieved at the European Council to start negotiations on a trade and investment agreement with the United States. It was an historic agreement and clearly for Ireland, with its deep...

Written Answers — Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Trade Agreements (27 May 2014)

Richard Bruton: Since the EU Council’s Decision in last June, to start negotiations with the US on a Transatlantic Trade and Investment Agreement, five negotiating rounds have taken place, the most recent one last week in the US. This Round covered extensive technical discussion on a broad range of issues including regulatory issues, sanitary and phytosanitary measures, government procurement,...

Written Answers — Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Joint Labour Committees Agreements (27 May 2014)

Richard Bruton: On January 28th 2014, I signed Orders to give effect to recommendations of the Labour Court Review of the then 10 Joint Labour Committees (JLCs). The Review had its genesis in Section 41A of Industrial Relations Act 1946 (inserted by Section 11 of the Industrial Relations (Amendment) Act 2012), which provides that reviews of each JLC be carried out by the Labour Court, as soon as practicable...

Written Answers — Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Work Permit Applications (27 May 2014)

Richard Bruton: The person named by the Deputy has never held an employment permit. An employment permit application in respect of this person was refused by my Department on 9thApril 2014 as certain occupations are not deemed eligible for employment permits where it is considered that there is already a sufficient supply of labour in the labour market for the filling of such vacancies, or where the...

Written Answers — Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Work Permit Criteria (27 May 2014)

Richard Bruton: In accordance with S. 16 (3) and S. 16(4) of the Employment Permits Act 2006, the decision to revoke the permit in question shall not take effect until the expiry of a 28 day period following the notification of the decision to revoke. This is in order to allow either the employer or the permit holder to seek a review of the decision, as provided for under S. 17 of the same Act. The...

Written Answers — Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Legislative Programme (27 May 2014)

Richard Bruton: I presume the Deputy is referring to the Workplace Relations Bill. As the Deputy may be aware, the ongoing programme which I have initiated to reform the State’s employment rights and industrial relations structures is at an advanced stage. This reform programme will result in the establishment of a new two-tier Workplace Relations structure comprising two statutorily independent...

Written Answers — Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Small and Medium Enterprises Supports (27 May 2014)

Richard Bruton: I am informed by IDA Ireland that in the three year period 2010 to 2012 inclusive, IDA Ireland has paid a total of €221,920,153 in grant aid to its client companies in the cities and counties of Dublin, Limerick, Cork and Galway and in counties Laois and Offaly. Detail of the amounts paid in respect of each county in respect of each of the years 200, 2011 and 2012 are set out in the...

Written Answers — Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Small and Medium Enterprises Supports (27 May 2014)

Richard Bruton: I have been informed by Enterprise Ireland that since the launch of the first Community Enterprise Centre scheme in 1989, €64 million has been approved by Enterprise Ireland for the development of Community Enterprise Centres across the country. Many centres were developed in areas of low employment and population, with the support of Enterprise Ireland, Local Development Groups and...

Written Answers — Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Examinership Arrangements (27 May 2014)

Richard Bruton: Amendments to the Circuit Court Rules are required to allow small private companies to apply directly to the Circuit Court to have an examiner appointed. These Circuit Court Rules are currently being finalised and will be the subject of an Order by the Minister for Justice shortly, with an operational date to apply some four weeks from the date of signing. Upon the signing by the Minister...

Written Answers — Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Employment Rights (27 May 2014)

Richard Bruton: Under Section 13(3) of the Carer’s Leave Act 2001, during an absence on carer’s leave, an employee can benefit from public holiday entitlements for the first 13 weeks of the leave. This entitlement is not conditional on the employee having worked during those 13 weeks. After the 13-week period referred to in Section 13(3) of the Carer’s Leave Act, the general rules...

Written Answers — Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Employment Rights (27 May 2014)

Richard Bruton: As the Deputy will appreciate, I cannot provide legal advice in relation to the employment rights applying to any employee’s specific circumstances. Independent legal advice should be sought in relation to any concerns an employee may have about their situation. The employee concerned will then be in a position to assess the range of remedies that may be available either under the...

Written Answers — Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Labour Court Recommendations (27 May 2014)

Richard Bruton: I regret that it is not possible to answer the Deputy’s question in the absence of details of the specific Labour Court recommendation referred to or the workshop involved in the dispute. As the Deputy has indicated to my Department that he will provide further details I will further consider the issues raised on receipt.

Written Answers — Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Microenterprise Loan Fund Applications (27 May 2014)

Richard Bruton: Anyone interested in starting their own business should in the first instance contact their Local Enterprise Office (LEO). The LEOs support the indigenous micro-enterprise sector in the start-up and expansion phases and stimulate enterprise potential at local level. They are the first port of call in terms of advice, direction, training and grant support for anyone who wishes to start or...

Written Answers — Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Work Permit Applications (27 May 2014)

Richard Bruton: An application in respect of the person named by the Deputy was refused by my Department on 11th April 2014 for the following reasons. It appeared from the information received supporting the application that the position on offer was one of the occupations currently ineligible for a new employment permit. In addition it appeared that insufficient efforts were made to recruit an Irish or...

Written Answers — Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Company Closures (27 May 2014)

Richard Bruton: I propose to take Questions Nos. 342 and 343 together. The contents of the former Lufthansa Technik plant at Rathcoole, County Dublin are the property of the owners and neither my Department nor the IDA had any stake or involvement in this recent sale of that equipment. Accordingly, as this disposal and consequent dispersal of material was solely a matter for the company, it was a private...