Results 241-260 of 45,480 for speaker:Simon Harris

Written Answers — Department of Defence: Departmental Staff (29 Apr 2025)

Simon Harris: The Department of Defence employs both civil servants and civilian employees. Civilian employees are employed to support the operational capability of the Defence Forces and work in various military installations. My Department has undertaken, where practicable, to promote and support the employment of people with disabilities. The Department continues to operate in a non-discriminatory...

Written Answers — Department of Defence: Defence Forces (29 Apr 2025)

Simon Harris: The Defence Forces Infrastructure Development Plan (IDP) sets out a programme of project delivery for the years 2023 to 2027. The Programme reflects the complex environment in which the Defence Forces operate and the corresponding need for appropriate infrastructure to provide for accommodation and training of personnel, as well as maintenance and storage of equipment for land, sea and...

Written Answers — Department of Defence: Information and Communications Technology (29 Apr 2025)

Simon Harris: My Department's core IT infrastructure is provided by the Office of the Government Chief Information Officer (OGCIO) under the 'Build to Share Managed Desktop' Shared Service. I have been advised by OGCIO that all of the IT systems they provide have been made capable of utilising the síneadh fada, as required.

Written Answers — Department of Defence: EU Directives (29 Apr 2025)

Simon Harris: There are no EU directives that fall under the remit of the Department of Defence awaiting transposition.

Written Answers — Department of Defence: Departmental Properties (29 Apr 2025)

Simon Harris: I presume the Deputy is referring to buildings rented in the given time period. The information requested is in the below table: List of properties rented Length of Tenancy Total rent from 2015 to date 2025 Sligo - Use for RDF 19 years €13,000.02 Cavan - Use for RDF 13 years €211,560.00 ...

Written Answers — Department of Defence: Departmental Contracts (29 Apr 2025)

Simon Harris: My Department has an external company contracted to provide cleaning services for its Department's buildings. The name of the company contracted is Apleona. The most recent contract signed by my department was in July 2021, which is contracted to run until July 2025. The value of the contract to date is €992,244.32. This has included normal day to day cleaning, Covid19 cleaning,...

Written Answers — Department of Defence: Departmental Contracts (29 Apr 2025)

Simon Harris: My Department has an external company contracted to provide security services for two of its Department's buildings. The name of the company contracted is SecureAll. The most recent contract signed by my department was in April 2020, which was contracted to run until May 2024. My department officials are currently working to renew this contract through the OGP Framework, where the...

Written Answers — Department of Defence: Air Corps (29 Apr 2025)

Simon Harris: I am advised that the matter referenced by the Deputy may fall within ongoing litigation and in the circumstances I am not in a position to provide the requested details nor comment further.

Written Answers — Department of Defence: Naval Service (29 Apr 2025)

Simon Harris: The military authorities have provided the requested information. The number of males and females that applied for the most recent Naval Service cadet recruitment campaign are provided in the table below. A further breakdown by gender of the different Cadet competitions within the Naval Service, is also provided. The application process for a cadetship in the Naval Service opened on 14th...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Departmental Policies (10 Apr 2025)

Simon Harris: I appreciate that the Deputy’s question has been somewhat passed out by events and am happy to update him on the current position. I welcome the announcement by President Trump yesterday of the suspension of the higher tariffs announced on 2 April for a period of 90 days. This means that the EU and the UK, including Northern Ireland, will now face the same baseline tariff rate of...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Departmental Policies (10 Apr 2025)

Simon Harris: The US has paused, for 90 days, the 20 per cent tariff on exports from the EU to the US which had initially came into effect yesterday, 9 April. This move is very positive and can serve to deescalate what risked turning into a damaging trade dispute. The US tariffs on steel and aluminium remain in place. At the Foreign Affairs Council on Trade last Monday the European Commission stated...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Departmental Policies (10 Apr 2025)

Simon Harris: I am aware of arrests made by authorities in the province of Balochistan, in south-west Pakistan, in recent weeks and of the ongoing unrest in this region which has witnessed violent insurgencies and political and ethnic conflict in recent years. Ireland, through our Embassy in Islamabad, is monitoring developments in the region closely and has engaged regularly with both the EU...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: International Relations (10 Apr 2025)

Simon Harris: I can confirm that officials in my Department and the Embassy of Ireland, Germany, are aware of these reports. I can further confirm that officials in the Irish Embassy in Berlin are engaging with the relevant German authorities on the matter. I wish to assure the Deputies that officials in my Department and the Embassy of Ireland, Germany, stand ready to provide consular assistance,...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Artificial Intelligence (10 Apr 2025)

Simon Harris: I propose to take Questions Nos. 75, 78 and 82 together. I propose to take Questions Nos 18488/25, 18412/25 and 18360/25 together. The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade is committed to continuously enhancing our effectiveness and efficiency. This is critical as we respond and adapt to a rapidly changing international environment while continuing to serve the interests of Irish...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Artificial Intelligence (10 Apr 2025)

Simon Harris: I propose to take Questions Nos. 76 and 77 together. The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade has no bodies under its aegis and has no projects underway with CeADAR. The Department is supportive of the Centre’s work and mandate, in particular its focus on helping organisations to adopt and leverage the value of AI and machine learning. The Department recently invited CeADAR to...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Artificial Intelligence (10 Apr 2025)

Simon Harris: Officials of my Department are familiarising themselves with AI and its possibilities through a variety of means, including contacts across the civil service, academia and the private sector. Much of the Learning and Development offering for staff in the Department is centralised through OneLearning, the Civil Service Learning and Development Centre. There is no current offering on...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Departmental Correspondence (10 Apr 2025)

Simon Harris: My Department attaches the highest priority to excellent customer service. Our interactions with the public are guided by the commitments outlined in our Customer Service Charter, which is available at the following link: www.gov.ie/en/organisation-information/65cf5-customer-servic e-policy/. In addition to the central customer service team, the Department operates a dedicated Passport...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Departmental Correspondence (10 Apr 2025)

Simon Harris: My Department attaches the highest priority to excellent customer service. Our interactions with the public are guided by the commitments outlined in our Customer Service Charter, which is available at the following link: www.gov.ie/en/organisation-information/65cf5-customer-servic e-policy/. In addition to the central customer service team, the Department operates a dedicated Passport...

Written Answers — Department of Defence: Departmental Consultations (10 Apr 2025)

Simon Harris: I have not had any discussions with international counterparts on the topic of an 'EU Defence Union'. Decisions with regard to security and defence remain a national competence within the EU. It is the prerogative of Member States to make arrangements which serve their own national defence needs, in lreland's case our traditional policy of military neutrality is characterised by our...

Written Answers — Department of Defence: Departmental Staff (10 Apr 2025)

Simon Harris: The number of cancelled Naval Service patrols in the past 24 months owing to staffing or capacity constraints is 46. There have been no patrol days cancelled since the change in operational posture in August 2023.