Results 461-480 of 20,682 for speaker:Mary Hanafin

National Archives (19 May 2010)

Mary Hanafin: I am greatly inclined towards appointing a new council because I believe much guidance is needed regarding the deposition of archives, as well as their conservation and management. At present, I envisage such a development in the context of working towards a management merger. This simply pertains to management in order that back-office services and technology in particular can be shared....

National Archives (19 May 2010)

Mary Hanafin: One could have a debate on that issue for a long time. I believe the freedom of information legislation probably has changed thinking in that regard because that Act allows one to have immediate access to decisions, policies and the backgrounds thereto. It then means that under the 30-year rule, one is holding for the fullness of time. While this is the first time I have considered this...

National Archives (19 May 2010)

Mary Hanafin: I understand there will be a similar type of issue in respect of the Irish Manuscripts Commission and the National Library.

National Archives (19 May 2010)

Mary Hanafin: This is not necessarily even being considered from a cost-benefit perspective. In my last position as Minister for Social and Family Affairs, MABS and the Citizens Information Board came together under a single body and management and yet both are maintaining highly distinct identities, which also is what I envisage happening in this regard. I hope to re-establish the council and to be able...

Tourism Industry (19 May 2010)

Mary Hanafin: I have received a number of representations from the car rental industry seeking support for the provision of additional car hire capacity in 2010. The matter was also raised with me at meetings with the Irish Hotels Federation and the Irish Tourist Industry Confederation on 1 April and 13 April, respectively. The concerns expressed to me relate mainly to the availability of automatic...

Tourism Industry (19 May 2010)

Mary Hanafin: I am considering a number of different issues. In the first instance, groups within the tourism industry have been telling me that a subsidy is required while other groups demur. On the other hand, I am not completely sure that the business model which has been used for a number of years by car companies remains appropriate. We must ensure we have availability this year. Unfortunately, the...

Tourism Industry (19 May 2010)

Mary Hanafin: Having checked, it does not even need a change in legislation; it could be done by regulation. In the event that is an acceptable solution to the problem, we might be able to do it.

Tourism Promotion (19 May 2010)

Mary Hanafin: A high-level coordinating group chaired by the Department is looking at the opportunities that may arise for Ireland across the sports, tourism and cultural sectors from the London 2012 Olympic Games. The group comprises representatives from Fáilte Ireland, Tourism Ireland, the Arts Council, Culture Ireland, the Irish Sports Council, the Olympic Council of Ireland, Paralympic Council of...

Tourism Promotion (19 May 2010)

Mary Hanafin: It is not true to say the Olympic Games are the only thing happening in 2012. In Ireland, there will be the tall ships race in Dublin, the Volvo ocean race in Galway, the world youth sailing championships in Dún Laoghaire, the centenary of the Titanic, the Eucharistic Congress and the general election.

Tourism Promotion (19 May 2010)

Mary Hanafin: I was present at the UCD bid to secure the use of its facilities by sportsmen who will be at the Olympics. The same has been done in the University of Limerick and the National Aquatic Centre hopes to get some of the synchronised swimming teams. Potential exists in this area but we do not have specific numbers yet. Dr. Ronnie Delaney and Pat Hickey of the OCI have been very supportive of...

Tourism Promotion (19 May 2010)

Mary Hanafin: I was talking about the general election in terms of major events that will happen in 2012. The reality is that the big countries will not come to train in Ireland, they will go directly to the larger cities in England. We hope to get some of the smaller countries and their ambassadors were all present in UCD, while UL and the National Aquatic Centre have been marketed to attract them. The...

Tourism Promotion (19 May 2010)

Mary Hanafin: I was not for one moment suggesting that the visa was a long-term issue. I stated that having the visa will ensure long-term growth of the tourism industry as I see great potential there. I accept what Deputies stated on language skills. One of the exciting initiatives of recent years has been the development of the Confucius Centre in UCD, where students can take Mandarin along with other...

Arts Funding (19 May 2010)

Mary Hanafin: Departmental funding for major capital cultural projects is primarily from the cultural development subhead that has an allocation of €16 million in 2010. This level of funding will allow for continued progress for the arts and culture capital enhancement support scheme, ACCESS, that commenced in 2001. Under the ACCESS scheme, grants totalling more than €85 million have been awarded for...

Arts Funding (19 May 2010)

Mary Hanafin: Earlier, I indicated that another 22 projects were due to draw down grant aid, so they are ongoing all the time. Quite a number of new projects are also included in what I indicated. This concerns funding under the capital programme so any staffing would have to be paid for under grants through the Arts Council and that would come up for consideration as part of its Estimate every year.

Tourism Industry (19 May 2010)

Mary Hanafin: I propose to take Questions Nos. 36 and 37 together. This year was always going to be a challenging one for tourism, made even more difficult in recent weeks by the travel disruption due to volcanic ash. Based on Central Statistics Office surveys, the number of overseas visits to Ireland fell by 11.6% between 2008 and 2009. However, these figures must be seen in the context of a decline in...

Tourism Industry (19 May 2010)

Mary Hanafin: I believe it is valuable to have the charter. It addresses more than just cancellation fees. In other countries people who found themselves stranded, especially in the lead-up to a weekend, found that the prices for a hotel room for a weekend were far in excess of what they had been paying, whereas here they will not be charged over and above what they had been paying. Another factor that...

Tourism Industry (19 May 2010)

Mary Hanafin: When this was offered to people the response was very positive. Deputy Mitchell says that is basic customer care. While I agree it is, it has not always been the case in the past that people did not capitalise on unforeseen events such as volcanic ash. However, this charter is based on how the hospitality industry reacted and responded to people in the past month. We argued as to whether...

Tourism Industry (19 May 2010)

Mary Hanafin: We shall have to see how that pans out over the year because of the decreasing numbers and the impact on the airport in recent months but it is not possible to do anything about it in the mid-year because it is a budgetary matter. We continue our marketing campaign, targeting and working in a co-operative and new way with the ferries. People who never used ferries in the past have...

Tourism Industry (19 May 2010)

Mary Hanafin: Tourism and booking by tourists have changed in recent years. In the past people tended to book their annual holiday months in advance but increasingly they are booking much closer to departure dates and we have had to adapt our marketing strategies to look after them. The fact that the marketing budget for this year, which was increased, is now spent on a more seasonal basis means we are...

Tourism Industry (19 May 2010)

Mary Hanafin: Any answers I might give in regard to Fáilte Ireland and Tourism Ireland obviously reflect all my interaction and work with Fáilte Ireland because it is directly funded by the Department.