Results 21,481-21,500 of 36,764 for speaker:Enda Kenny

Order of Business (29 Nov 2011)

Enda Kenny: This refers specifically to the issue of the referendum on judges' pay.

Order of Business (29 Nov 2011)

Enda Kenny: This is an issue on which almost 80% of the people gave their approval in a referendum and the legislation refers to this issue. Given the current list of speakers, this will finish by 9.25 p.m. The House will have time to deal with some of the amendments tabled. The financial emergency measures legislation is dealing with the question of judges' pay.

Order of Business (29 Nov 2011)

Enda Kenny: The Local Government (Household Charges) Bill was to have been published. The Attorney General is having another look at one or two questions related to it and certainly it is not on the agenda for this week.

Order of Business (29 Nov 2011)

Enda Kenny: The question Deputy Higgins asked related to the reasons behind this. The reason is that the Attorney General must examine one or two aspects of it.

Order of Business (29 Nov 2011)

Enda Kenny: I am not at liberty to inform the Deputy about what exactly the Attorney General is being asked to focus on but Deputy Higgins can take it and he may put his mind at ease that it will not be on the agenda this week.

Leaders' Questions (29 Nov 2011)

Enda Kenny: I thank the Deputy for his kind words and for his attendance at the funeral yesterday. I appreciate that very much. The issue he has raised is obviously a tax measure that will be referred to when the Minister for Finance delivers his Budget Statement on 6 December. The change that was made was partly responsible for people wanting to buy more fuel-efficient cars, in the interests of a...

Leaders' Questions (29 Nov 2011)

Enda Kenny: The first thing the Deputy should bear in mind is that the budget has not yet taken place.

Leaders' Questions (29 Nov 2011)

Enda Kenny: The only comment to have been made by the Minister for Finance, who is responsible for tax measures in the budget-----

Leaders' Questions (29 Nov 2011)

Enda Kenny: -----related to his intention to bring a proposal before the Cabinet for a 2% increase in VAT as an alternative to increasing income tax, which would have a direct impact on jobs. That is a fundamental concern for the Government. The Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government has pointed out that the income being gained from motor tax has decreased by 3.5%. He has said he...

Leaders' Questions (29 Nov 2011)

Enda Kenny: Ba mhaith liom mo bhuíochas a ghlacadh leis an Teachta as ucht an glaoch a chur sé orm nuair a bhí sé i Londain. Tá a fhios agam go raibh leas-Chéad Aire an Tionól sa Tuaisceart ag an sochraid inné. Tá mé buíoch as ucht é sin. Ní chuireann sé isteach ró-mhór orm bheith anseo. Déarfadh sí féin liom gur cheart go mbéinn anseo. The question of serious amounts of money...

Leaders' Questions (29 Nov 2011)

Enda Kenny: I have gotten to know Deputy Adams a little better since he was elected to the Dáil. I get suspicious, however, when I get health warnings from him.

Leaders' Questions (29 Nov 2011)

Enda Kenny: The pension levy was introduced on the remuneration of all public servants which will realise over €1 billion in savings this year. A tiered reduction in all public service pensions above €12,000 was also introduced which has cut pensions on average by 4% while retirement lump sums of over €200,000 will be taxed. The grace period which allows people to retire on their pre-cuts salary...

Leaders' Questions (29 Nov 2011)

Enda Kenny: I thank Deputy Ross for his kindness. His question is valid. Clearly, there is a difference between fiscal union and fiscal discipline. What the German Chancellor, Angela Merkel, has talked about is fiscal discipline. She believes that if countries sign on for a set of conditions, then they should be seen to be enforceable. At the recent meeting I had with her, she stated the European...

Leaders' Questions (29 Nov 2011)

Enda Kenny: The objective of our political direction is to retrieve economic sovereignty for our people and our country. That has been lost in the sense that we have been subject to a bailout in the troika programme. As I have said previously on many occasions, I have no intention of agreeing to anything on tax harmonisation. We have been clear about our corporate tax rate, as has everybody else in...

Constitutional Amendments (29 Nov 2011)

Enda Kenny: I propose to take Questions Nos. 1 to 3, inclusive, together. The programme for Government contains a commitment to establish a constitutional convention and indicates areas for it to examine. The programme states that the convention will report within 12 months. I have previously indicated that, to give the convention time to fully consider the matters referred to it, the 12-month period...

Constitutional Amendments (29 Nov 2011)

Enda Kenny: I thank the Deputy for his question. I would like to have a meeting with Opposition leaders about the proposed structure for the constitutional convention, give them a few days to consider the terms of reference and so on and then reflect on people's views. We would like to get this as right as possible because it will affect the people long after we are gone from here. We have committed to...

Constitutional Amendments (29 Nov 2011)

Enda Kenny: We want the membership of the convention to be representative of society in general and to include people of all ages and genders, regardless of where they reside. These issues have been discussed from time to time in the past. As the Deputy is aware, there is not due to be another presidential election until 2018 and this will give us the time and space to get matters right. In the first...

Constitutional Amendments (29 Nov 2011)

Enda Kenny: Yes, I accept that. I propose to discuss with Opposition leaders the structure I have in mind. I am sure people will respect the confidentiality requirement relating to the latter. I do not have a preference with regard to whether we should consider the matter either before the Christmas recess or in the new year. It is only right that we should discuss it in some detail in order that we...

Constitutional Amendments (29 Nov 2011)

Enda Kenny: If I were to say to the Deputy that we had decided to send all the members of the constitutional convention to Auckland, Anchorage, Sakhalin Island or Buenos Aires-----

Constitutional Amendments (29 Nov 2011)

Enda Kenny: -----there would certainly be an amount of comment on the part of particular individuals. As he is well aware, it is possible to engage in comprehensive conversations and contact with members of the diaspora abroad. I had experience of this in the context of recent contacts with a number of multinationals. The nature of that contact was as clear, if not clearer, as that in which the Deputy...