Results 2,941-2,960 of 10,459 for speaker:Bertie Ahern

Order of Business (21 Feb 2007)

Bertie Ahern: We would prefer if they were taken together, whenever that is. If there was an argument about the two questions and if two referendums were held in the one year, it might be questionable whether young people could be expected to become actively engaged. I invite the Deputy to make his views known in a referendum debate in order that there will be interest in the issue and a good turnout....

Order of Business (21 Feb 2007)

Bertie Ahern: I am not ruling it out now either.

Order of Business (21 Feb 2007)

Bertie Ahern: I want to get it right rather than rush it. However, while I do not know about growing opinion in the newspapers, I know of growing opinion among people who were quite agitated last night and this morning. They have waited for us to deal with some of the issues that were comprehensively dealt with in the Constitution review report, following the Mrs. Justice McGuinness report of 1993. It...

Order of Business (21 Feb 2007)

Bertie Ahern: Please, Deputy. It came out of the all-party committee yet ten years on we want more time and some are even suggesting we should have another committee. Some of the groups are very agitated as a result. I am trying to be helpful. The parties have had the substance of our proposals for several weeks and have had the proposals since Monday. I understand they must have some time but I would...

Order of Business (21 Feb 2007)

Bertie Ahern: It was pointed out that to do that, we would need the protection of the Constitution. That is why there has been a long delay on this issue. There has been a long-term mission to outline documents to see whether we can establish a designated statutory body with overall responsibility for collecting and sharing information with other agencies about the risk or occurrence of child sexual...

Order of Business (21 Feb 2007)

Bertie Ahern: The Bill is in the Seanad.

Order of Business (21 Feb 2007)

Bertie Ahern: I answered on this yesterday. It is due in early summer.

Leaders' Questions (21 Feb 2007)

Bertie Ahern: The position is that the Government decided to buy out NTR from a contract dating from 1987. As for the arguments on who negotiated the contract, the records make it clear who did so. However, that is neither here nor there. From August 2008, a new company will take over the barrier-free tolling. Negotiations in this regard are ongoing and it will be appointed shortly. This will coincide...

Leaders' Questions (21 Feb 2007)

Bertie Ahern: It has been done a number of times. I was even present on one occasion at which a trial was conducted. The engineers involved are the same people who have undertaken the biggest infrastructural job in Europe recently and their view is that doing so would accomplish very little. While a car going straight through might benefit, on the interchanges and on a number of the other points, they...

Leaders' Questions (21 Feb 2007)

Bertie Ahern: It is the reason that infrastructural development is an ongoing process throughout the world. The Naas Road and the tunnel are finished and €1 billion is being spent on the M50. The Government will buy out NTR and will remove the barrier toll. It will be a single price in that people will go through it and receive one account for one crossing. It will not be multipoint and this will be...

Leaders' Questions (21 Feb 2007)

Bertie Ahern: On the first point, and I will reply to Deputy Sargent if he gives me the papers. We need not debate it here. Some 97% or 98% of the houses had a problem and the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government told the local authority not to involve itself. I since looked at the papers and Deputy Sargent is incorrect. However, I will answer him for the record.

Leaders' Questions (21 Feb 2007)

Bertie Ahern: Ireland strongly supports the leadership provided by the European Union on this issue.

Leaders' Questions (21 Feb 2007)

Bertie Ahern: Deputy Sargent is right that it is an important issue. Regarding a new international agreement to continue progress made under the Kyoto Protocol to reduce global greenhouse gas emissions in the medium to long term to 2020 and beyond, environment ministers met yesterday to agree a position whereby the European Union would propose that developed nations agree to reduce greenhouse gas...

Leaders' Questions (21 Feb 2007)

Bertie Ahern: From 1990——

Leaders' Questions (21 Feb 2007)

Bertie Ahern: In reply to Deputy Sargent, Ireland has successfully decoupled its greenhouse gas emissions. From 1990 to 2005, emissions grew by 25% whereas our economy grew by 150%. This is reflected in the emissions intensity of the Irish economy. In 2004, emissions per unit of GDP were 48% of their 1990 level. The equivalent figure for the European Union is 78%. The actions we must take include...

Leaders' Questions (21 Feb 2007)

Bertie Ahern: ——creating new opportunities for farmers in bio-fuel production and creating new bio-fuel industry in the country——

Leaders' Questions (21 Feb 2007)

Bertie Ahern: ——the details of which I spelled out at the weekend, and introducing minimum requirements for the use of bio-fuels in State-owned and public transport vehicles, starting with Dublin Bus and Bus Éireann which the Minister announced recently. Both companies are being instructed to move all their existing fleets to a 5% bio-diesel blend and plan to achieve a 30% bio-diesel blend in all new...

Leaders' Questions (21 Feb 2007)

Bertie Ahern: I do not understand why Deputies Boyle and Ryan call on people to take these issues seriously. When people do so and announce it rather than talk about it they ignore it.

Leaders' Questions (21 Feb 2007)

Bertie Ahern: We require the public sector to lead the way on energy efficiency. We are improving the energy efficiency of new Irish homes by up to 40% and more and the use of solar energy and other microrenewable technologies in homes and businesses. None of those issues should upset the Green Party. They should receive its support.

Leaders' Questions (21 Feb 2007)

Bertie Ahern: That is what I said in every way——