Results 35,281-35,300 of 40,550 for speaker:Joan Burton

Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest Bill 2009: Committee Stage (25 Feb 2009)

Joan Burton: I am not an easy person to threaten. If the Minister wants to threaten me to repeat what I said outside the House, I will do so any time he likes.

Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest Bill 2009: Committee Stage (25 Feb 2009)

Joan Burton: I am not afraid. I took on the Minister's colleague, the late Liam Lawlor, for many years in Dublin West. I know all about Fianna Fáil and its threats. I am not intimidated by the Minister or the Minister of State, Deputy Peter Power.

Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest Bill 2009: Committee Stage (25 Feb 2009)

Joan Burton: I have more experience of being threatened by Fianna Fáil than the Minister of State thinks. The Minister has some knowledge of the way the system operated in Dublin West; therefore, the Minister of State should not threaten me.

Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest Bill 2009: Committee Stage (25 Feb 2009)

Joan Burton: I thank the Acting Chairman for his protection. Public servants realise the country is in a hole and what caused the massive deterioration in the public finances. Despite the Minister's earlier promises to address the anomalies in the Bill, his amendments are purely technical in nature. The first anomaly is that low-paid public servants will have to pay the levy. The second serious anomaly...

Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest Bill 2009: Committee Stage (25 Feb 2009)

Joan Burton: Yes. When the budget was debated, we highlighted to the Minister for Finance that his proposal was crazy. The Minister rushed to increase the VAT rate by 0.5% and did not take any advice from those Members who informed him that it was not the wisest action to take. Among the Members to whom I refer was Deputy Morgan, who told the Minister at the time that shoppers — I do not know whether...

Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest Bill 2009: Committee Stage (25 Feb 2009)

Joan Burton: The Minister would not take advice from us on the matter at that time. We are now advising him that a sunset clause relating to the pension levy should be included in the Bill. I would be fairly confident in predicting that he will not be Minister for Finance in two years' time. He might, therefore, be glad to be in a position — probably from the Opposition benches — to revisit the...

Written Answers — Export Credit Insurance: Export Credit Insurance (24 Feb 2009)

Joan Burton: Question 69: To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the proposals under development in her Department to establish a State-backed export credit insurance scheme; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [6367/09]

Written Answers — Job Losses: Job Losses (24 Feb 2009)

Joan Burton: Question 112: To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if she will make a statement on her meeting with a person in December 2008 in regard to employment at a company (details supplied) in County Limerick. [7255/09]

Banking System: Motion. (24 Feb 2009)

Joan Burton: I wish to share time with Deputies Rabbitte and Morgan. The speech we just heard from the Minister for Finance was, to use an American term, a vanilla ice-cream speech. It was a vanilla ice-cream speech on banking in which everything is for the best in the best of all possible worlds. To add to the sense we have from this Government of panic, dread and confusion, we also have a very valiant...

Banking System: Motion. (24 Feb 2009)

Joan Burton: I do not know if those names were correct. They were published in The Sunday Times and would be familiar to most people who have been involved in battling against some bad rezonings on the green belt in my constituency. If those names are correct they would be better known to members of Fianna Fáil. The Government has put up a straw man argument on why we are not entitled to know those...

Banking System: Motion. (24 Feb 2009)

Joan Burton: This deal on the toxic ten or golden circle of people apparently familiar with the Fianna Fáil tent at the Galway races was a serious misrepresentation regarding other shareholders, the market and the general public who are carrying the can for this toxic golden circle. Protestations of banker-client confidentiality do not arise in this context and the Minister for Finance, as sole...

Banking System: Motion. (24 Feb 2009)

Joan Burton: We have due diligence walking all around the House now. It is at every hand but it was not there on 29 September or on 1 October last.

Banking System: Motion. (24 Feb 2009)

Joan Burton: I wrote to the Regulator subsequently and he wrote back stating that for the reasons of confidentiality, which he set out, he was unable to comment on any possible interest of Seán Quinn and his family in Anglo Irish Bank.

Banking System: Motion. (24 Feb 2009)

Joan Burton: He went on to state that there is, however, a statutory process through which an individual or corporate entity acquiring 10% or more of the shares of a bank must notify the authority of their intention to undertake the transaction and seek what was termed "our" private approval. He wrote that in addition, the target institution is also obliged to notify the Regulator. He added that on foot...

Banking System: Motion. (24 Feb 2009)

Joan Burton: When the Government brought in the guarantee——

Banking System: Motion. (24 Feb 2009)

Joan Burton: That is the Regulator's letter of December last to me.

Banking System: Motion. (24 Feb 2009)

Joan Burton: That is the regulator's letter to me.

Banking System: Motion. (24 Feb 2009)

Joan Burton: If I can get that letter as an Opposition spokesperson, I challenge the Minister of State, Deputy Kelleher, to set on the record of this House what the Government has done to make the position of every man, woman and child in this country for the next 20 years much worse than it would otherwise have been except for the chicanery that has been coming from a high level in his party.

Written Answers — Hospital Staff: Hospital Staff (19 Feb 2009)

Joan Burton: Question 35: To ask the Minister for Health and Children if she is satisfied there is a regime in place to monitor the implementation of the terms of the consultants' contract; if the terms of the contract are being implemented; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [6532/09]

Written Answers — Hospital Staff: Hospital Staff (19 Feb 2009)

Joan Burton: Question 43: To ask the Minister for Health and Children the extra funding that will be required in 2009 in order to implement the agreement reached on new consultants' contracts; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [6533/09]