Results 25,641-25,660 of 32,924 for speaker:Paschal Donohoe

Written Answers — Department of Public Expenditure and Reform: Infrastructure and Capital Investment Programme (6 Jul 2016)

Paschal Donohoe: I propose to take Questions Nos. 60 and 186 together. As the Deputy is aware, a strategic review of infrastructural requirements was undertaken by my Department as part of last year's capital review. This resulted in the publication in September 2015 of 'Building on Recovery: Infrastructure and Capital Investment 2016-2021', which outlined a €42bn framework for infrastructural...

Written Answers — Department of Public Expenditure and Reform: Public Procurement Contracts (6 Jul 2016)

Paschal Donohoe: Public procurement is governed by EU and National rules. The EU Treaty principles of equal treatment and non-discrimination, transparency, mutual recognition, proportionality, free movement of goods and services and the right of establishment must be observed on all tenders. EU rules require tenderers to be compliant with relevant labour law in order to participate in a public procurement...

Written Answers — Department of Public Expenditure and Reform: Equal Opportunities Employment (6 Jul 2016)

Paschal Donohoe: The civil and public service is an equal opportunities employer and all recruitment campaigns are conducted in strict compliance with the Codes of Practice set out by the Commission for Public Service Appointments. As the deputy will be aware, the Civil Service is strongly committed to equality of opportunity in all its employment practices. As an employer, the Civil Service must fulfil its...

Written Answers — Department of Public Expenditure and Reform: Teachers' Remuneration (6 Jul 2016)

Paschal Donohoe: Under section 12 of the FEMPI 2013 Act, I am obliged to review and report to the Houses of the Oireachtas on the operation, effectiveness and impact of the Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest (FEMPI) Acts 2009-2013 and consider whether or not any of the provisions of the relevant Acts continue to be necessary having regard to the purposes of those Acts, the revenues of the...

Written Answers — Department of Public Expenditure and Reform: Public Sector Pensions (6 Jul 2016)

Paschal Donohoe: My role as Minister in the field of pensions relates to issues affecting the civil and public service. The civil service operates Contributory Pension Schemes which provide benefits to spouses and/or children of deceased scheme members. In summary, when a member dies after retirement, a spouse's pension of up to one-half of the former member's pension is payable. Dependent children are...

Written Answers — Department of Public Expenditure and Reform: Ministerial Responsibilities (6 Jul 2016)

Paschal Donohoe: In accordance with the Transfer of Functions Guidelines, my Department has responsibility for co-ordination of transfers of Departmental administration and Ministerial functions. Following the reorganisation of Government Departments announced by the Taoiseach on the 6th of May, functions were to be transferred between the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government and the...

Written Answers — Department of Public Expenditure and Reform: Departmental Staff Redeployment (6 Jul 2016)

Paschal Donohoe: Arising from the Taoiseach's decision to restructure Departments of State to better align them with the priority objectives of the new Government, a number of functions that are currently vested in the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government transferred to the Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht. This will facilitate the establishment of the new Department of...

Written Answers — Department of Public Expenditure and Reform: Teachers' Remuneration (6 Jul 2016)

Paschal Donohoe: Under the Lansdowne Road Agreement (LRA) the process of restoring public service pay is commencing. An important feature of this process is the flat rate increases which are being implemented and which are proportionately more valuable to lower paid public servants. Furthermore and specifically in respect of Teachers, the restoration of the Supervision and Substitution payment is also...

Written Answers — Department of Public Expenditure and Reform: Interdepartmental Working Groups (6 Jul 2016)

Paschal Donohoe: Last January the previous Government approved the establishment of an Interdepartmental Working Group to consider policy designed to support fuller working lives. The Group is chaired by an Assistant Secretary from my Department and includes senior representatives from the Departments of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, Social Protection, Justice, Health and Education. The terms of...

Written Answers — Department of Public Expenditure and Reform: Public Expenditure Policy (6 Jul 2016)

Paschal Donohoe: I propose to take Questions Nos. 179 and 180 together. The key focus of fiscal policy over the last number of years has been to reduce the General Government Deficit in line with the targets set under the Excessive Deficit Procedure. The management of public expenditure has played an important role in ensuring that these key fiscal targets have been achieved. The EU Commission has...

Written Answers — Department of Public Expenditure and Reform: UK Referendum on EU Membership (6 Jul 2016)

Paschal Donohoe: My Department has been taking part in the work of the Interdepartmental Group on EU/UK relations which was convened by the Department of the Taoiseach in advance of the UK Referendum on EU membership, as well as the EU Senior Officials' Group that is chaired by the Department of the Taoiseach. It contributed to the risk assessment conducted by the Department of the Taoiseach in advance of...

Written Answers — Department of Public Expenditure and Reform: Public Sector Pay (6 Jul 2016)

Paschal Donohoe: I propose to take Questions Nos. 182 to 184, inclusive, together. I am satisfied that the Croke Park Agreement and Haddington Road Agreement combined delivered on their objectives by facilitating significant cost savings in the public service paybill while supporting an extensive public service reform agenda in an industrial relations climate of industrial peace. This was a view shard by...

Written Answers — Department of Public Expenditure and Reform: Public Procurement Regulations (6 Jul 2016)

Paschal Donohoe: Procurement reform is a key element of the Government's overall reform programme and is aimed at delivering increased value for money, more accurate and timely data and improvement in the capacity and capability of procurement across the public service. The fragmented procurement arrangements across the public service facilitated amongst other things suppliers charging different public...

Written Answers — Department of Public Expenditure and Reform: Public Sector Staff Recruitment (6 Jul 2016)

Paschal Donohoe: The Deputy will recall that at the time of the Expenditure Statement in October 2014 an end to the Moratorium on recruitment and promotion in the public service was announced, to be replaced with new delegated management arrangements to be phased in during 2015 and 2016. These arrangements, which now apply to most Government departments give public service managers the means to respond to...

Written Answers — Department of Public Expenditure and Reform: Appointments to State Boards (6 Jul 2016)

Paschal Donohoe: As the Deputy is aware the Government introduced new arrangements to the appointment of State Board members in 2011. Under the new arrangements departments now invite expressions of interest from the public on their websites for vacancies on the boards of bodies under their aegis. It is open to all members of the public regardless of gender, political affiliations or geographical location...

Written Answers — Department of Public Expenditure and Reform: Public Sector Staff Recruitment (6 Jul 2016)

Paschal Donohoe: As the Deputy will be aware, the civil and public service is an equal opportunities employer and all recruitment campaigns are conducted in strict compliance with the Codes of Practice set out by the Commission for Public Service Appointments. Codes include the Code of Practice governing the External and Internal Appointments of Persons with Disabilities to Positions in the Irish Civil...

Written Answers — Department of Public Expenditure and Reform: Lansdowne Road Agreement (6 Jul 2016)

Paschal Donohoe: Pay issues for public servants are currently determined within the constraints set by the Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest (FEMPI) Acts 2009-2015 while the industrial relations environment is managed under the terms of the Public Service Agreement 2013-2018 (Lansdowne Road Agreement). My colleague with direct responsibility for matters relating to the terms and...

Written Answers — Department of Public Expenditure and Reform: Capital Expenditure Programme (6 Jul 2016)

Paschal Donohoe: Planning for the potential implications of the result of the referendum on the UK's membership of the European Union is challenging as the economic impact of the UK's eventual exit from the EU will very much depend on the outcome of the negotiations between the UK and the EU. The Government has adopted a Contingency Framework, coordinated by the Department of the Taoiseach, to map out the...

Written Answers — Department of Public Expenditure and Reform: Public Expenditure Policy (6 Jul 2016)

Paschal Donohoe: Planning for the potential implications of the result of the referendum on the UK's membership of the European Union is particularly challenging. Until Article 50 is invoked by the UK, the precise timescale for the UK's withdrawal from the EU is not known. The economic impact of the UK's exit from the EU will also very much depend on the nature of the new arrangements to be agreed between...

Written Answers — Department of Public Expenditure and Reform: Public Sector Pay (6 Jul 2016)

Paschal Donohoe: The Programme for Government states that Government will establish a Public Service Pay Commission to examine pay levels across the public service. As I have previously advised, the precise structure of such a commission and the technical aspects as to how it would operate have yet to be decided upon and would require broad consultation. The Commission's work will help Government, staff...