Results 24,341-24,360 of 24,635 for speaker:Mary Harney

Price Displaying. (13 May 2004)

Mary Harney: The prices, and maybe the quality, can vary but a pint is a pint of the product.

Price Displaying. (13 May 2004)

Mary Harney: We will probably draft an order stating "crowns from" and so on. I understand that will be the legal way around it. It will be done as quickly as possible.

Price Increases. (13 May 2004)

Mary Harney: I am pleased the Director of Consumer Affairs has highlighted the fact that certain pubs in Dublin increased their prices for a recent international rugby match. While there was no breach of consumer protection legislation as the pubs in question displayed the increased prices they were charging, nonetheless the director's survey has highlighted the need for better consumer vigilance. The...

Price Increases. (13 May 2004)

Mary Harney: The answer is "no" because maximum orders tend to encourage everybody to go to the maximum. During the weekend concerned, hotels and flights were more expensive. Earlier today I spoke to an upset member of my staff who had booked tickets on the airline that went to the wall yesterday. She was trying to find alternatives to get her to her destination. She said that last week's flights on Aer...

Price Increases. (13 May 2004)

Mary Harney: When there is much business and demand, that is what people do and I do not believe any law can get around that. Many pubs in Dublin did not increase their prices. Tourists will go wherever they most enjoy being. We all know that when we are tourists, we often go to more expensive places because they are more convenient. I hope locals are more discerning. If they are regulars, I hope they...

Price Increases. (13 May 2004)

Mary Harney: The director has the power to name and shame, as the Deputy said, and to bring whatever information she collects as a result of investigations into the public domain in whatever ways she believes appropriate. She did so effectively on this occasion and it got extensive publicity. Before Christmas, the director of consumer affairs at the Irish Financial Services Regulatory Authority, Mary...

Price Increases. (13 May 2004)

Mary Harney: As regards Deputy Howlin's question, I said that I would not introduce a maximum prices order because the experience in the past was that everybody goes to the maximum and feels that is the allowable threshold or acceptable rate. I made the point that hotels charge more for busy weekends and airlines charge more for tickets at such times. Generally, businesses tend to scale their activities...

Price Increases. (13 May 2004)

Mary Harney: I do not know how many staff she would need to operate a system of that kind. One would have to constantly inspect a few hundred thousand businesses throughout the country.

Price Increases. (13 May 2004)

Mary Harney: To have a State agency deciding what is good value is not the way to go about it.

Price Increases. (13 May 2004)

Mary Harney: The approach the director has taken in this case is the appropriate way to go. Hardly any country in the world has price control legislation because it is impossible to enforce. It is not a way of reducing prices for consumers or of delivering better value for money.

Industrial Development. (13 May 2004)

Mary Harney: The decision whether to provide funding to a company is a day-to-day matter for the State agencies. Enterprise Ireland and IDA Ireland operate in accordance with the provisions of the Industrial Development Acts and within the policy framework established by my Department. Enterprise Ireland is the agency that has primary responsibility for the development of indigenous sector. A small or...

Industrial Development. (13 May 2004)

Mary Harney: Import substitution clearly has a role to play, but it depends from where the imports come. We cannot support import substitution from taxpayers' money if the competitor is another European company from within the enlarged EU. If the company was Chinese or American, import substitution might have a role to play. This market is very small with a population of less than four million. Companies...

Safety on Farms. (13 May 2004)

Mary Harney: Under the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 1989, the Health and Safety Authority is the State body charged with overall responsibility for the administration, enforcement and promotion of workplace safety and health. The breakdown of the number of deaths from the use of tractors and farm machinery is as follows: 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 (provisional) Machinery-related 4 6 ...

Safety on Farms. (13 May 2004)

Mary Harney: As someone who grew up on a farm, I know farmers take enormous risks with young children. Part of the problem arises because the residence and the workplace are together and children are close by. Inspections and enforcement are crucial roles for the State, but education and awareness are also vital. Often people take chances with children that they do not think about and, as a result, we...

Safety on Farms. (13 May 2004)

Mary Harney: The separation of building controls is worthy of consideration for new dwellings on farms. Many of the accidents occur on existing farms and many farmers are earning low levels of remuneration for their activities and we do not want to involve them in increased expenses. If people are cautious and aware of the dangers, it will go a long way towards minimising the risk. I agree with Deputy...

Consumer Affairs. (13 May 2004)

Mary Harney: The role of the consumer strategy group, which I established this March, is to advise and make recommendations for the development of a national consumer policy strategy which will: provide consumers with the knowledge, information and confidence to be demanding of quality, service and value; ensure consumers are well informed of their rights and have effective and speedy means of redress in...

Consumer Affairs. (13 May 2004)

Mary Harney: As the Deputy is aware, the rate of inflation has now fallen to 1.3%, which is welcome. That has happened because consumers have become more active, albeit slowly. They are now more likely to make complaints than they would have been a short time ago. That is also the reason the director receives more queries and complaints. The advertising campaign she organised in the latter half of last...

Consumer Affairs. (13 May 2004)

Mary Harney: The difference in costs is often associated with the difference in standards of living and wage costs and, in countries which are less developed, products are generally substantially cheaper. I was in China in March where one can buy an extraordinary range of products for substantially less than one would pay in any country in Europe, that I am aware.

Consumer Affairs. (13 May 2004)

Mary Harney: In the United States there are no restrictions in terms of planning or on the size of retail units. Many people would suggest that the failure to restrict the size of units there has led to other social problems. Everything is not always as simple as it appears. What we are trying to do is to encourage competition throughout the economy, whether in transport, aviation or telephony. Whatever...

Consumer Affairs. (13 May 2004)

Mary Harney: As quickly as I can get the legislation together. Substantial fines were imposed on some companies recently.