Results 2,201-2,220 of 4,188 for speaker:Sorca Clarke

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Ministers and Secretaries Act 1924: Department of Public Expenditure and Reform (12 Oct 2022)

Sorca Clarke: I thank the Chair. It is a pleasure. I am not a member of this committee; I am substituting for somebody else. It is my first time here. Could I return to something Mr. Moloney said to my colleague, Deputy Mairéad Farrell. It related to the disciplinary options open to a Minister and written warnings. I fully accept that I may have picked up Mr. Moloney incorrectly. If I did,...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Ministers and Secretaries Act 1924: Department of Public Expenditure and Reform (12 Oct 2022)

Sorca Clarke: It was starting to appear a bit like a spider's web to me, whereby you could be branching off into all kinds of separate angles at a rate of knots. Mr. Moloney referred to civil servants above principal officer grade not being subject to the disciplinary code. Did I hear that correctly?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Ministers and Secretaries Act 1924: Department of Public Expenditure and Reform (12 Oct 2022)

Sorca Clarke: Is it the Government?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Ministers and Secretaries Act 1924: Department of Public Expenditure and Reform (12 Oct 2022)

Sorca Clarke: What is the process involved regarding Secretaries General? I am struggling to understand. There seem to be so many processes or potential processes.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Ministers and Secretaries Act 1924: Department of Public Expenditure and Reform (12 Oct 2022)

Sorca Clarke: Am I correct in saying there is not really much of a structured approach and that situations could be dealt with on a case-by-case basis?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Ministers and Secretaries Act 1924: Department of Public Expenditure and Reform (12 Oct 2022)

Sorca Clarke: Even from a workers' rights perspective, I find that a little mind-boggling. That is probably the correct term to use. Mr. Moloney referred to the Rafter report and the Mulcahy report. The accountability of Secretaries General was reviewed in 2002 by a working group. The report pointed out the potential of bringing Secretaries General within the remit of the existing disciplinary...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Ministers and Secretaries Act 1924: Department of Public Expenditure and Reform (12 Oct 2022)

Sorca Clarke: Mr. Moloney referred to the ongoing review into this issue. Let me refer to other jurisdictions, as referred to by Deputy Jim O'Callaghan. In the United States, for example, Ministers can dismiss senior officials within the limits set down by a certain law that is in place. In Canada, the Prime Minister appoints those in the two most senior levels of officials and has the power to remove...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Ministers and Secretaries Act 1924: Department of Public Expenditure and Reform (12 Oct 2022)

Sorca Clarke: It is rather peculiar. The Joint Committee on Foreign Affairs and Defence is considering amending and consolidating Acts that date back to the mid-1940s. I refer to really historical Acts. In Mr. Moloney's experience, does he believe there is a better way to do this? Does he believe the current system is working? If we have had so many reports, reviews and amendments of various Acts, is...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Ministers and Secretaries Act 1924: Department of Public Expenditure and Reform (12 Oct 2022)

Sorca Clarke: I thank Mr. Moloney and his team.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Gender Equality: Recommendations of the Report of the Citizens’ Assembly on Gender Equality: Discussion (Resumed) (12 Oct 2022)

Sorca Clarke: That is what I mean; around a timeframe. However, this annoyance pales into insignificance compared to the annoyance and frustration felt by women outside and inside this building. We have been speaking about Article 41.2 for longer than I have been alive. It was the biggest single policy issue at the time the Constitution was being drafted so this is not a new issue. I agree with the...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Gender Equality: Recommendations of the Report of the Citizens’ Assembly on Gender Equality: Discussion (Resumed) (12 Oct 2022)

Sorca Clarke: Options.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Gender Equality: Recommendations of the Report of the Citizens’ Assembly on Gender Equality: Discussion (Resumed) (12 Oct 2022)

Sorca Clarke: At the beginning of December.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Gender Equality: Recommendations of the Report of the Citizens’ Assembly on Gender Equality: Discussion (Resumed) (12 Oct 2022)

Sorca Clarke: Yes.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Gender Equality: Recommendations of the Report of the Citizens’ Assembly on Gender Equality: Discussion (Resumed) (12 Oct 2022)

Sorca Clarke: Not just in relation to the referendum but also in relation to the citizens' assembly report. The programme for Government commits to delivering on each and every one of its recommendations. My question relates to how we provide transparency and accountability in respect of each of the 41 recommendations. Will the Taoiseach consider something like a cross-departmental document similar to...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Gender Equality: Recommendations of the Report of the Citizens’ Assembly on Gender Equality: Discussion (Resumed) (12 Oct 2022)

Sorca Clarke: Would the Taoiseach consider something similar for the citizens' assembly report?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Gender Equality: Recommendations of the Report of the Citizens’ Assembly on Gender Equality: Discussion (Resumed) (12 Oct 2022)

Sorca Clarke: I think there is a little bit of cross-communication-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Gender Equality: Recommendations of the Report of the Citizens’ Assembly on Gender Equality: Discussion (Resumed) (12 Oct 2022)

Sorca Clarke: I agree with the Taoiseach. He has just made a very important point.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Gender Equality: Recommendations of the Report of the Citizens’ Assembly on Gender Equality: Discussion (Resumed) (12 Oct 2022)

Sorca Clarke: I think that is a very important point to make. I agree with the statement the Taoiseach made on people often being ahead of the system and the politics. The reason I ask my question is that if there is not a clear response to those who participated in the Citizens' Assembly, particularly the one conducted during the Covid pandemic, which was a very difficult time, it may undermine the very...