Results 35,321-35,340 of 40,330 for speaker:Leo Varadkar

Air Services (20 Apr 2011)

Leo Varadkar: The regional airports and the airlines are private entities. As such, I cannot give the Deputy any guarantees on behalf of regional airports or airlines. However, I can say that the PSO for Donegal has been submitted to the European Commission as also has the PSO for Kerry. The money is available for those services and it is a Government objective that those PSOs should be in place by the...

Air Services (20 Apr 2011)

Leo Varadkar: I appreciate Deputy McConalogue's view on this matter but if the previous Government did not have the money to provide a PSO service to Derry and the economic situation has deteriorated since then, I am sure he can understand why I do not have the money to restore a PSO service to Derry. Ultimately it came down to a choice. There can only be one service for the north west and it was a...

Air Services (20 Apr 2011)

Leo Varadkar: A value for money review was carried out and those different aspects were taken into account in that study. I do not wish to be blunt but I need to be blunt. The country is in receivership. We are way past the stage where we can do things on the basis of cost-benefit analyses. In the past when the country was not in receivership one could decide to spend €2 million and down the line...

Public Transport (20 Apr 2011)

Leo Varadkar: The Queen is elderly - she is in her 80s.

Road Network (20 Apr 2011)

Leo Varadkar: I propose to take Question Nos. 32 and 39 together. The programme for Government includes a commitment to introduce a new procedure for answering oral questions by State bodies. The chief executive of every State funded body will be required to attend the relevant Oireachtas committee on a regular basis to answer oral parliamentary questions which can be submitted by any Member. There will...

Road Network (20 Apr 2011)

Leo Varadkar: Perhaps the right way forward is for me to arrange for the Deputy to meet the NRA to convey his views directly. The provision of service stations is an objective of the NRA but they must be considered on a case-by-case basis. It is appropriate to locate them in some places but not in others and we do not want to have too many spread out on a single road. We often find that while there is...

Road Network (20 Apr 2011)

Leo Varadkar: Under the current policy, the NRA has identified optimum locations for 12 service areas at approximate intervals of 50 km to 60 km and legislation was amended in 2007 to allow it to do that. Generally, service areas are designed to offer a full range of services, including convenience retail services as well as extensive car, coach and HGV parking and Garda enforcement areas. In addition,...

Written Answers — Light Rail Project: Light Rail Project (19 Apr 2011)

Leo Varadkar: I propose to take Questions Nos. 351 and 352 together. As Minister for Transport, I have responsibility for policy and overall funding in relation to public transport. Following the establishment of the National Transport Authority (NTA) in December 2009, the implementation and development of infrastructure projects in the Greater Dublin Area (GDA), such as Metro North, comes under the remit...

Written Answers — Ministerial Staff: Ministerial Staff (19 Apr 2011)

Leo Varadkar: In line with the Department of Finance guidelines on the staffing of Ministerial offices, my constituency office consists of a Personal Secretary, a Personal Assistant, and 2 civil servants. In keeping with the same guidelines, the constituency offices of each of the Ministers of State in my Department consist of a Personal Secretary, a Personal Assistant and 1 civil servant. In the case of...

Written Answers — Road Network: Road Network (19 Apr 2011)

Leo Varadkar: As Minister for Transport, I have responsibility for overall policy and funding in relation to the national roads programme element of Transport 21. The construction, improvement and maintenance of individual national roads, including those mentioned by the Deputy, is a matter for the National Roads Authority under the Roads Acts 1993 to 2007 in conjunction with the local authorities...

Written Answers — Cycle Facilities: Cycle Facilities (19 Apr 2011)

Leo Varadkar: Fingal County Council's unsuccessful application to my Department under the Smarter Travel Areas Competition identified this potential walking and cycling route. My Department has had no further engagement with the County Council with regard to this proposal and future progress with it is a matter for the local authority.

Written Answers — Sports Capital Programme: Sports Capital Programme (19 Apr 2011)

Leo Varadkar: Under the Sports Capital Programme, funding is allocated to sporting and to voluntary and community organisations at local, regional and national level throughout the country. No decision has been made on the timing of the next round of the Programme. While no new call for applications for funding has been made since 2008 a provision of €33m has been provided in this year's estimates to...

Written Answers — Road Network: Road Network (19 Apr 2011)

Leo Varadkar: The improvement and maintenance of regional and local roads is the statutory responsibility of each local authority, in accordance with the provisions of Section 13 of the Roads Act 1993. Works on those roads are funded from local authorities own resources and are supplemented by State road grants. However, the initial selection and prioritisation of projects to be funded is also a matter...

Written Answers — Rural Transport Services: Rural Transport Services (19 Apr 2011)

Leo Varadkar: €10.62m is being provided for the Rural Transport Programme (RTP) in 2011 in recognition of the important role it plays in combatting social exclusion in rural Ireland. Thirty-six rural community transport groups around the country, including Ring-a-Link which operates in Carlow, Kilkenny and Tipperary South Riding, are being funded under the Programme. Pobal administers the RTP on behalf...

Written Answers — Tourism Employment: Tourism Employment (19 Apr 2011)

Leo Varadkar: I propose to take Questions Nos. 359 to 362, inclusive, together. The matters raised are operational matters for Fáilte Ireland. I have referred the Deputy's Question to the agency for direct reply. Please advise my private office if you do not receive a reply within ten working days.

Written Answers — Road Network: Road Network (19 Apr 2011)

Leo Varadkar: As Minister for Transport, I have responsibility for overall policy and funding in relation to the national roads programme element of Transport 21. The construction, improvement and maintenance of individual national roads, is a matter for the National Roads Authority under the Roads Acts 1993 to 2007 in conjunction with the local authorities concerned. Noting this I have referred the...

Written Answers — National Lottery Funding: National Lottery Funding (19 Apr 2011)

Leo Varadkar: The distribution of the proceeds of the National Lottery is a matter for the Minister for Finance. The Sports Capital Programme, which is part funded from the proceeds of the National Lottery, distributed more than €50 million to clubs, sports organisations and local authorities in 2010 for the provision of sports facilities and the purchase of non-personal sports equipment. The...

Written Answers — Olympic Games: Olympic Games (19 Apr 2011)

Leo Varadkar: The funding available to athletes preparing for the 2012 Olympics is an operational matter for the Irish Sports Council. I have referred the Deputy's question to the Council for direct reply. Please advise my private office if you do not receive a reply within ten working days. A high-level coordinating group, chaired by my Department, is identifying opportunities for Ireland that may...

Written Answers — Public Transport: Public Transport (19 Apr 2011)

Leo Varadkar: The matters raised are operational issues for Dublin Bus (in the case of Dublin City services) in conjunction with the National Transport Authority. I have referred the Deputy's question to the company for direct reply. Please advise my private office if you do not receive a reply within ten working days.

Written Answers — Departmental Bodies: Departmental Bodies (19 Apr 2011)

Leo Varadkar: As the shareholder of the CIE Group, I appoint the Board of Dublin Bus. The shareholder relationship is reflected in the Transport (Re-Organisation of Córas Iompair Éireann) Act 1986, as amended, and the requirements of the Code of Practice for the Governance of State Bodies. In my relationship with Dublin Bus I am concerned to ensure that the company continues to strengthen its...