Results 33,381-33,400 of 50,830 for speaker:Micheál Martin
- Leaders' Questions (21 Jan 2014)
Micheál Martin: I do not understand what that has to do with it.
- Leaders' Questions (21 Jan 2014)
Micheál Martin: The Taoiseach voted for the bank guarantee.
- Leaders' Questions (21 Jan 2014)
Micheál Martin: The Government spent €180 million on a new water utility.
- Leaders' Questions (21 Jan 2014)
Micheál Martin: Last week I spoke about the secrecy surrounding the establishment costs of Irish Water and the failure, in particular, to provide any detailed responses to a series of parliamentary questions on that subject over the previous 12 months. I went on last Thursday to ask the Tánaiste if he could give me a reason the Government agreed to approve bonuses to the staff of Irish Water - the...
- Leaders' Questions (21 Jan 2014)
Micheál Martin: Lump sums.
- Leaders' Questions (21 Jan 2014)
Micheál Martin: Lump sums.
- Leaders' Questions (21 Jan 2014)
Micheál Martin: Yes, Deputy Humphreys got it last week but Deputy Cowen only got it last night.
- Leaders' Questions (21 Jan 2014)
Micheál Martin: With a minute remaining, I find the Taoiseach's response to be incredible in terms of the bonus. Basically, what he is saying is that the bonus culture is back, and it is alive and well in Irish Water, and the Taoiseach and the Government approved it, despite what the Minister, Deputy Joan Burton, the Minister of State, Deputy Brian Hayes, and the Minister, Deputy Howlin, said. I asked the...
- Leaders' Questions (21 Jan 2014)
Micheál Martin: -----that they would not happen and we would never see them again but now it is happening in the context of Irish Water, which is established to charge for water. It will not take over the work of the local authorities. We know part of the deal is that the local authorities will continue to deliver and maintain water services through their service level agreements for the next 12 years. I...
- Leaders' Questions (16 Jan 2014)
Micheál Martin: The ongoing revelations concerning the establishment of Irish Water are making many people angry out in the community. People have been extremely surprised by the drip-feed of revelations over recent days. It is fair to say that, since the Government set up Irish Water, it has until recent days been run like a secret service, with very little information being given to anybody, particularly...
- Leaders' Questions (16 Jan 2014)
Micheál Martin: Second, will the Tánaiste indicate how the Government is going to intervene to protect families with young children from excessive charges of €400 plus, given the role of the regulator and also given his own stated position that he was against water charges? He said: "I’m against water charging. ... [They are] essential services [that] should be delivered as a public...
- Leaders' Questions (16 Jan 2014)
Micheál Martin: The Tánaiste deliberately avoided answering the question about the bonuses.
- Leaders' Questions (16 Jan 2014)
Micheál Martin: I asked him why the Government approved the bonuses. The Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources, Deputy Rabbitte, approved it and the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, Deputy Howlin, approved it, as did the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government, Deputy Hogan, although he is now passing the buck to the Minister, Deputy Howlin, as per his...
- Leaders' Questions (16 Jan 2014)
Micheál Martin: Was she kept in the dark? That is the problem. Nobody knows what to believe. It is incredible. It is insulting to people to say that all of this information is available. The only reason Irish Water is before committees this week is because Seán O'Rourke asked that question.
- Leaders' Questions (16 Jan 2014)
Micheál Martin: Dáil Éireann was kept in the dark for 12 months. Freedom of information explicitly excluded Irish Water. It was not included.
- Leaders' Questions (16 Jan 2014)
Micheál Martin: Prior to Christmas, Dáil debate was shut down.
- Leaders' Questions (16 Jan 2014)
Micheál Martin: I think I know the reason for that. The reason was to keep this thing under the radar until after the local elections in May. That is why people are sceptical and angry. The first charge would happen in the last quarter of 2014.
- Leaders' Questions (16 Jan 2014)
Micheál Martin: The regulator will be a powerful force in terms of levying those charges. I do not accept-----
- Leaders' Questions (16 Jan 2014)
Micheál Martin: We need far greater clarity and certainty for families with younger children in particular. Will the Tánaiste answer the question on the bonuses in the first instance? There are many more questions we can ask but, given the time limits we have, we will have to wait. None the less, we would like to have straight answers. Why were bonuses approved and what will the power of the...
- Leaders' Questions (16 Jan 2014)
Micheál Martin: That is not what the Minister of State, Deputy Brian Hayes, said.