Results 48,021-48,040 of 51,015 for speaker:Micheál Martin

Written Answers — Economic Competitiveness: Economic Competitiveness (11 Oct 2006)

Micheál Martin: The price of energy affects the cost structure of all sectors of the economy, both domestic consumers and businesses alike. Global energy markets have seen sustained increases in price levels for the past two years. No consumer, whether industrial, commercial or personal is immune from the impact of higher oil, gas and electricity prices as a result of price changes on international...

Written Answers — Job Creation: Job Creation (11 Oct 2006)

Micheál Martin: State support for enterprise and job creation is channelled through IDA Ireland, Enterprise Ireland and the County Development Boards. While I may give general policy directives to the agencies under the Industrial Development Acts, I am precluded from giving directives regarding individual undertakings or from giving preference to one area over others. IDA Ireland have assured me they are...

Written Answers — Decentralisation Programme: Decentralisation Programme (11 Oct 2006)

Micheál Martin: My Department has been making good progress in the relocation of the required 250 posts to Carlow under the Government's Decentralisation Programme. The number of posts in Business Units decentralising to Carlow, as at 10th October, is 280. Having regard to the agreed staffing transfer protocols governing decentralisation, my Department has approached all General Service staff who...

Written Answers — Decentralisation Programme: Decentralisation Programme (11 Oct 2006)

Micheál Martin: Four of the Agencies under the aegis of my Department are due to decentralise as follows: FÁS is to move 383 posts to Birr, Co. Offaly; Enterprise Ireland is to move 292 posts to Shannon; The Health and Safety Authority is to move 110 posts to Thomastown, Co. Kilkenny, and The National Standards Authority of Ireland is to move 132 posts to Arklow, Co. Wicklow. My Department continues to...

Written Answers — Business Regulation: Business Regulation (11 Oct 2006)

Micheál Martin: The World Bank research entitled, 'Doing Business, Benchmarking Business Regulations' is one of several benchmarking reports by international organisations. The WEF, IMD, and the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor also benchmark our performance in many of these areas. These are useful tools for identifying broad trends nationally and internationally. I note the World Bank ranks Ireland...

Written Answers — Job Losses: Job Losses (11 Oct 2006)

Micheál Martin: Over the past four years, the labour force has grown by 267,400 and employment by 253,100. The latest ESRI quarterly economic commentary has forecast that employment is to grow by a further 71,000 in 2007. It is of interest to note that the worst-case scenario by the ESRI of 90,000 Irish job losses over the next 4 years is a similar figure to the 87,800 jobs our economy has created just in...

Written Answers — Industrial Development: Industrial Development (11 Oct 2006)

Micheál Martin: No proposal has been under consideration to subsume Shannon Development into Enterprise Ireland. The Deputy may be referring to the new mandate which I recently assigned to Shannon Development whereby, following a recommendation from the Enterprise Strategy Group and subsequently approved by the Government, the functions hitherto carried out by the Company under delegated authority from...

Written Answers — Departmental Programmes: Departmental Programmes (11 Oct 2006)

Micheál Martin: The Action Plan to progress implementation of the Enterprise Strategy Group's recommendations is well advanced. To ensure that momentum is maintained in putting their recommendations into operation I appointed the Enterprise Advisory Group, which has an important monitoring role in the implementing process. In total the Action Plan contained 47 recommendations and thus far almost all have...

Written Answers — Departmental Agencies: Departmental Agencies (11 Oct 2006)

Micheál Martin: Preparations in relation to the establishment of the new National Consumer Agency are well underway. The General Scheme of the Consumer Protection (National Consumer Agency) Bill, which will give statutory effect to the new Agency, was published by my Department on 24th August 2006. The scheme of the Bill is currently with Parliamentary Counsel for priority drafting as agreed by the...

Written Answers — Job Creation: Job Creation (11 Oct 2006)

Micheál Martin: The day to day work and investment decisions of Enterprise Ireland are matters for the agency itself, and not ones in which I am directly involved. Enterprise Ireland provides a detailed breakdown of approvals, payments and all significant activities relating to the implementation of the Agency's strategy in its Annual Report. The most recent annual report, which covered the period January...

Written Answers — Community Employment Schemes: Community Employment Schemes (11 Oct 2006)

Micheál Martin: Community Employment (CE) is an active labour market programme designed to provide eligible long term unemployed people and other disadvantaged persons with an opportunity to engage in useful work within their communities on a temporary basis. CE helps unemployed people to re-enter the active workforce by breaking their experience of unemployment through a return to a work routine and by...

Written Answers — Job Creation: Job Creation (11 Oct 2006)

Micheál Martin: Responsibility for the development of property solutions for enterprise promotion in the Mid West Region lies with Shannon Development. IDA Ireland is the national agency with statutory responsibility for the attraction of foreign direct investment (FDI) to Ireland and its regions (including Co. Limerick), while Shannon Development is responsible for indigenous industry in the Mid-West region...

Written Answers — Departmental Agencies: Departmental Agencies (11 Oct 2006)

Micheál Martin: I met the Director for Corporate Enforcement on 17 May 2006 to discuss his request for additional staff resources. I indicated to him that I was generally disposed to his case. I outlined the very tight parameters that exist under the Public Service staffing programme. I have raised the matter with the Minister for Finance and my officials are currently engaging more fully on the matter with...

Written Answers — Northern Ireland Issues: Northern Ireland Issues (11 Oct 2006)

Micheál Martin: I had a very productive meeting with my Northern Ireland counterpart, the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Investment, Maria Eagle M.P., on 1 June at InterTrade Ireland's offices in Newry. The Chairman and Chief Executive of InterTrade Ireland briefed Minister Eagle and I on the Body's programmes and activities and its overall strategy to enhance the development of the all-island economy....

Written Answers — Small Business Forum: Small Business Forum (11 Oct 2006)

Micheál Martin: When I published the report of the Small Business Forum earlier this year, I indicated that I was accepting, in general, the report's recommendations in so far as they related to my own areas of responsibility and that I would be pursuing the implementation of the other recommendations with my colleagues in Government who had responsibility for the relevant areas. In so far as the...

Written Answers — Economic Competitiveness: Economic Competitiveness (11 Oct 2006)

Micheál Martin: I propose to take Questions Nos. 168, 169 and 175 together. The reasons for companies to relocate activities from Ireland are many and varied, and include relocation to be closer to customers or other competitive considerations. I believe that firms must be free to allocate resources and production to where the returns are highest. It is not in our interest to obstruct what is in the best...

Written Answers — Industrial Development: Industrial Development (11 Oct 2006)

Micheál Martin: Each of the enterprise development agencies, IDA Ireland, Enterprise Ireland and the County Enterprise Boards has a role to play in the promotion of investment and job creation in the country. For a number of years now IDA Ireland has been very successful in marketing Ireland to overseas investors and we continue to win a disproportionately high share of mobile global investments. The level...

Written Answers — Energy Policy: Energy Policy (11 Oct 2006)

Micheál Martin: My colleague the Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources, Mr. Noel Dempsey T.D., has policy responsibility for energy related matters, including the alternative fuel industry. The Government is firmly committed to the development of bio-energy generally in Ireland and a number of initiatives are already in place to promote the biofuels sector. To this end, a Ministerial...

Written Answers — Economic Competitiveness: Economic Competitiveness (11 Oct 2006)

Micheál Martin: Ireland can no longer compete long-term in commoditised markets against low cost economies. This is demonstrated by the decline in the number of firms and persons employed in the Textiles, Leather and Electrical machinery sectors over the past five years. Competitiveness in commoditised, low value added sectors such as these is largely based on low-wage and non-wage costs. The rising cost...

Written Answers — Job Losses: Job Losses (11 Oct 2006)

Micheál Martin: The table sets out the position in relation to job gains and job losses, in relation to full-time manufacturing jobs, in agency assisted firms in Co. Kildare over the period 2001-2005. Over the past 5 years, IDA Ireland's focused strategy for Kildare has been to promote the county as part of an integrated East Region with access to a population base of 1.5 million people. IDA Ireland's...