Results 401-420 of 16,693 for in 'Dáil debates' speaker:Leo Varadkar

An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (12 Dec 2023)

Leo Varadkar: The debate will be adjourned if it is not concluded.

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (12 Dec 2023)

Leo Varadkar: Tusla has an extraordinarily difficult job. The people who work in Tusla are very committed and do work which I think very few of us in this House would be willing to do. They look after children who have been abandoned and abused by their parents, have come to this country unaccompanied and have endured horrific neglect and abuse. It is totally wrong-headed to in any way try to blame the...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (12 Dec 2023)

Leo Varadkar: Decisions regarding custody are made by the courts. Our courts act independently of Tusla and of the Government. The court hears both sides of the argument, hears the case and looks at the evidence, and-----

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (12 Dec 2023)

Leo Varadkar: -----then it makes a decision. It is not the case that judges always make the right decisions.

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (12 Dec 2023)

Leo Varadkar: Nobody always makes the right decisions but they do it on the basis of the evidence and arguments they hear.

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (12 Dec 2023)

Leo Varadkar: Ireland deeply regrets the failure of the UN Security Council to agree a resolution calling for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire, the protection of civilians and compliance with international law, the immediate and unconditional release of hostages and urgent humanitarian access. This resolution was co-sponsored by no fewer than 99 UN member states, yet it was not adopted as a result of...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (12 Dec 2023)

Leo Varadkar: TDs and Senators are free to make up their own minds on these matters. I will not be attending. I have a long-standing and prior commitment to attend the Christmas carol service in the seminary in Maynooth this evening and that is the event I will be attending. It is up to other people to decide what they want to do this evening. I restate my belief that the current crisis in Gaza is...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (12 Dec 2023)

Leo Varadkar: As the House will know, the Minister, Deputy Ryan, is currently in Dubai.

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (12 Dec 2023)

Leo Varadkar: He is representing Ireland and is also one of the lead negotiators on behalf of the European Union-----

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (12 Dec 2023)

Leo Varadkar: -----on this critical issue of climate action and climate finance. I do not know which countries are competing for COP 29, to be very frank. We would certainly prefer that it be in a country that has a good record on climate action rather than one that might be resisting climate action. I am not sure which countries are offering to host at this stage. The EU's position and the one that...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (12 Dec 2023)

Leo Varadkar: As I said in the House previously, climate change is the biggest threat facing humanity at present. We have to be the generation of politicians that turns the tide on climate change and biodiversity loss. We can do that in many ways, first, by reducing our emissions. Our greenhouse gas emissions are falling, although not fast enough. However, greenhouse gas emissions per capita have...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (12 Dec 2023)

Leo Varadkar: We are confident that we will be able to provide that State accommodation for the 90 initial days to give people who come here from Ukraine a chance to establish themselves and a chance to find their own accommodation and their own employment - whatever they can manage to do. Some of that accommodation already exists across the system. As I mentioned already, people from Ukraine who have...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (12 Dec 2023)

Leo Varadkar: I thank the Deputy. At the outset, I want to say I am proud that we have welcomed 100,000 Ukrainians to Ireland. That has been done at a time when their country is being attacked and invaded. All 27 countries of the European Union, including Ireland, opened their doors to people from Ukraine. Some of us opened our houses to people from Ukraine. Roughly 100,000 people have fled Ukraine...

Pre-European Council Meeting: Statements (6 Dec 2023)

Leo Varadkar: I will participate in the December meeting of the European Council in Brussels next Thursday and Friday. The agenda will cover EU enlargement, Ukraine, the Middle East and the mid-term review of the multi-annual financial framework. There will also be discussions on security and defence, migration and certain items relating to external relations. European Council President Charles Michel...

Ceisteanna - Questions: National Economic and Social Council (6 Dec 2023)

Leo Varadkar: I will be as brief as I can. Deputy McDonald asked about the implantation group. I think it is not established yet but I will double-check and come back to the Deputy. When it comes to climate, we produce a climate action plan every year and quarterly progress reports. Deputy Smith mentioned the all-island economy, and is often the case in the House, drew my particular attention to the...

Ceisteanna - Questions: Departmental Offices (6 Dec 2023)

Leo Varadkar: I thank Deputies. Deputy Barry said that Israel has consistently ignored UN resolutions. It has been doing that for many decades.

Ceisteanna - Questions: Departmental Offices (6 Dec 2023)

Leo Varadkar: He is correct in that regard. I did not say that the US could do nothing. I am pretty sure that is not what I said. I note that Israel is not economically dependent on the US in the way it was in the past, and certainly not in the way it was before the 1980s. It is a considerable military power in its own right but of course receives significant US help in that regard. I said yesterday...

Ceisteanna - Questions: Departmental Offices (6 Dec 2023)

Leo Varadkar: -----surely that says something.

Ceisteanna - Questions: National Economic and Social Council (6 Dec 2023)

Leo Varadkar: I propose to take Questions Nos. 15 to 22, inclusive, together. The National Economic and Social Council, NESC, advises me on strategic policy issues relating to sustainable economic, social, and environmental development in Ireland. NESC was established in 1973 and celebrated its 50th anniversary this year. I spoke at a conference last week to mark this occasion, which demonstrated...

Ceisteanna - Questions: Cabinet Committees (6 Dec 2023)

Leo Varadkar: I thank the Deputies for their questions. Deputy Dillon raised the issue of pyrite in County Mayo and whether modern methods of construction and rapid-build housing might form part of the solution. We can and will examine proposals made by Mayo County Council in that regard. Our experience with rapid-build solutions, however, is that they are never as rapid as people may believe they are....