Results 5,101-5,120 of 11,187 for speaker:Colm Burke

Public Accounts Committee: 2020 Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 7 - Finance
2020 Report on the Accounts of the Public Services of the Comptroller and Auditor General
Chapter 1 - Exchequer Financial Outturn for 2020
Chapter 16 - Ireland Apple Escrow Fund
Audited Financial Statements of the Exchequer for 2020 (5 May 2022)

Colm Burke: Okay. I move on to one other area. The Exchequer figures for the end of April show a substantial increase in tax. I am aware that is taking into account that there was a reduction because of the Covid lockdowns, etc. I raise long-term planning and one of the problems we had in 2008 and 2009. Other countries do long-term planning where there is a fund built up that the state can dig into...

Public Accounts Committee: 2020 Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 7 - Finance
2020 Report on the Accounts of the Public Services of the Comptroller and Auditor General
Chapter 1 - Exchequer Financial Outturn for 2020
Chapter 16 - Ireland Apple Escrow Fund
Audited Financial Statements of the Exchequer for 2020 (5 May 2022)

Colm Burke: But is the disadvantage then that if there is a sudden downturn and no rainy day fund, we are then at the mercy of the lenders if the State wanted to continue key projects and the lenders are saying they will not give any funding? It is thus at a disadvantage. I am just wondering about that.

Public Accounts Committee: 2020 Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 7 - Finance
2020 Report on the Accounts of the Public Services of the Comptroller and Auditor General
Chapter 1 - Exchequer Financial Outturn for 2020
Chapter 16 - Ireland Apple Escrow Fund
Audited Financial Statements of the Exchequer for 2020 (5 May 2022)

Colm Burke: All right. I thank the Chairman.

Public Accounts Committee: 2020 Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 7 - Finance
2020 Report on the Accounts of the Public Services of the Comptroller and Auditor General
Chapter 1 - Exchequer Financial Outturn for 2020
Chapter 16 - Ireland Apple Escrow Fund
Audited Financial Statements of the Exchequer for 2020 (5 May 2022)

Colm Burke: No, I am fine thanks, Chairman.

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Provision (5 May 2022)

Colm Burke: 163. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the plans that are in place to reduce waiting times for accessible housing for patients with Huntington’s disease considering that it is currently taking many years; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [22436/22]

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Telecommunications Services (4 May 2022)

Colm Burke: 103. To ask the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment if he has given consideration to implementing a programme similar to the shared rural network as was recently rolled-out in the UK; if essential mobile coverage will be provided to those areas in rural Ireland which currently experience little to no coverage; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [22343/22]

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Telecommunications Services (4 May 2022)

Colm Burke: 104. To ask the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment if he has given consideration to the Commission for Communications Regulator 2018 Report Improving connectivity in Ireland which made it clear that high levels of mobile broadband coverage on a geographic basis would not be achieved in Ireland by the market itself and would require policy or regulatory interventions;...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Medicinal Products (4 May 2022)

Colm Burke: 479. To ask the Minister for Health the health technology assessments received by the corporate pharmaceutical unit in each of the years 2018 to 2021 and to date in 2022; the date of the HSE drugs group decision; the date of reimbursement in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21933/22]

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Telecommunications Services (4 May 2022)

Colm Burke: 578. To ask the Minister for Rural and Community Development if her Department will consider entering into a partnership with the mobile network operators in Ireland to ensure mobile phone coverage blackspots in Ireland are eliminated in Ireland by part funding investments in network infrastructure in areas that are not currently financially viable for private investment alone; and if she...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Proposed Appointment of Chief Medical Officer to a Role at a Higher Education Institution: Discussion (4 May 2022)

Colm Burke: I thank our guests for making themselves available this morning. My major concern on this is the commitment of the funding over a ten-year period. I am also concerned as to why there was an urgency in the letter that it had to be signed off on by 30 March. Is there a particular reason it had to be signed off by the end of March this year, before there was any real full authorisation?...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Proposed Appointment of Chief Medical Officer to a Role at a Higher Education Institution: Discussion (4 May 2022)

Colm Burke: But why? The academic year would not have started for another number of months. Why was there such an urgency? Looking at the letter that was sent, it would indicate a serious effort was being made that it would be signed off on before anyone really found out about it.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Proposed Appointment of Chief Medical Officer to a Role at a Higher Education Institution: Discussion (4 May 2022)

Colm Burke: But the letter indicated this would have been the final sign off. For example, if I sent out a contract for the sale of a house, the other person would say he or she is signing the contract subject to getting a loan. Likewise, should there not have been some indication in the letter that this was subject to the Minister signing off on it? There is no indication of this in the letter. This...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Proposed Appointment of Chief Medical Officer to a Role at a Higher Education Institution: Discussion (4 May 2022)

Colm Burke: There is no indication in any part of the correspondence that this is subject to a final sign-off by the Minister. Should it not be the normal case when the Secretary General is exchanging letters and there needs to be a final approval that there would be a line indicating it is subject to the Minister providing approval? At no stage in any of the correspondence was there any indication. I...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Proposed Appointment of Chief Medical Officer to a Role at a Higher Education Institution: Discussion (4 May 2022)

Colm Burke: Once a letter of intent is sent out and once it is accepted by the other side, it is generally an agreement.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Proposed Appointment of Chief Medical Officer to a Role at a Higher Education Institution: Discussion (4 May 2022)

Colm Burke: Legally, it is. If I send out a letter of intent stating terms and what we are prepared to provide, and if I make an offer to a person and that offer is accepted, then we have a contract. This clearly indicated to me there was no reference that this was subject to final sign-off by the Minister.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Proposed Appointment of Chief Medical Officer to a Role at a Higher Education Institution: Discussion (4 May 2022)

Colm Burke: Legally, I am telling Mr. Watt that the Department sent an offer-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Proposed Appointment of Chief Medical Officer to a Role at a Higher Education Institution: Discussion (4 May 2022)

Colm Burke: -----and the offer was accepted. That is a contract. Now Mr. Watt is saying to me it was still subject to ministerial approval, yet there was no reference in that letter to ministerial approval.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Proposed Appointment of Chief Medical Officer to a Role at a Higher Education Institution: Discussion (4 May 2022)

Colm Burke: But it must be signed off by the Minister-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Proposed Appointment of Chief Medical Officer to a Role at a Higher Education Institution: Discussion (4 May 2022)

Colm Burke: -----and there is no reference in any part of the letters to this being subject to a final sign-off by a Minister. Therefore, if an offer is made and the offer is accepted, it is an enforceable contract.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Proposed Appointment of Chief Medical Officer to a Role at a Higher Education Institution: Discussion (4 May 2022)

Colm Burke: Let me put it another way. If I were to ask the Attorney General to give me advice on whether this was an offer and, if Trinity College were to accept this offer, we would have a binding agreement, I would say he would say there was a binding agreement there unless there was a clause in it that this was subject to the final agreement of the Minister.