Results 5,481-5,500 of 40,330 for speaker:Leo Varadkar

An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (21 Sep 2021)

Leo Varadkar: The Government would welcome a debate on Housing for All, giving the Minister an opportunity to present it to the House and to hear views on it. Perhaps time could be found next week or thereafter for us to give it the airing it deserves and to hear Members' views. I imagine that is something that the Business Committee can discuss. Our programme for this week is already busy. We talked...

An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (21 Sep 2021)

Leo Varadkar: I acknowledge that. I know the enormous difficulties that people are facing in getting licences to fell trees. It has been discussed a great deal in the House in recent weeks.

An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (21 Sep 2021)

Leo Varadkar: The Minister of State, Senator Hackett, is on the case. I am sure that we can find time for a debate, but the Government would like to stick to the order before us. I have not yet heard anyone say which of the other debates should be cut or deprioritised.

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (21 Sep 2021)

Leo Varadkar: I thank the Deputy. We would be genuinely happy to consider any proposals the Rural Independent Group has for the forthcoming budget. To be clear, these high energy prices will last, unfortunately. We do not know for how long but it could be six months or longer and that is during the winter period when energy demand is at its highest. In relation to energy efficiency, which the Deputy...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (21 Sep 2021)

Leo Varadkar: I thank the Deputy. The only person who is interested in class warfare in this House is probably him and maybe some of the colleagues around him, and he is interested in it because he hopes to benefit from it politically and electorally, and that is his choice. What we are interested in on this side of the House is saving businesses and saving jobs and that includes Aer Lingus. That is why...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (21 Sep 2021)

Leo Varadkar: I thank the Deputy. He is absolutely right. We have all seen it in the past couple of weeks, with the prices ticking up at the forecourts and going up every other day. We see it in the cost of home heating oil. As I mentioned earlier, it was €450 to fill a tank this time last year and it is closer to €700 now. We see it, of course, in the rising price of electricity. We...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (21 Sep 2021)

Leo Varadkar: As we all know, aviation is one of the sectors worst affected by the pandemic. Many airlines have experienced a severe drop in revenue and are facing degrees of financial challenge. The aviation recovery in Ireland has been much slower than in other states. We are back to about 50% of where we were. As the Deputy outlined, Ryanair, which operates all across Europe, points out that the...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (21 Sep 2021)

Leo Varadkar: I do not have data on stop requests but I will find out the position. I am interested to know myself. I will find out and pass the information on to the Deputy. We are not going to rule out using maximum price orders, but I am conscious of what has happened in the UK. One can impose a maximum price order on the electricity or fuel retailer but the latter still needs to get the fuel...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (21 Sep 2021)

Leo Varadkar: The Deputy is absolutely correct in his initial remarks. The cost of living is rising and everyone can see that. We see it in the forecourts, the supermarkets and when people fill their oil tank for the winter. The cost of 1,000 l of home heating oil was €450 this time last year. It is €750 now; up to the level it was in 2019. We are seeing a return to inflation, a matter I...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (21 Sep 2021)

Leo Varadkar: I am advised that the Government made the decision on changes to Part V based on a detailed report from the Housing Agency, which recommended-----

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (21 Sep 2021)

Leo Varadkar: -----that some transitional provisions should be included but only for lands purchased while the obligation was at 10%. Land purchases before 2015 or after July 2021 will be at 20%. The Deputy supported that Bill at the time. He was for it before he was against it. It is a little bit like linking rents to inflation.

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (21 Sep 2021)

Leo Varadkar: He was for that before he was against it.

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (21 Sep 2021)

Leo Varadkar: What happens is any time-----

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (21 Sep 2021)

Leo Varadkar: The Minister of State, Deputy Madigan, need not be concerned. This is the regular pattern of Sinn Féin. The truth hurts. It really hurts.

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (21 Sep 2021)

Leo Varadkar: Any time anyone speaks the truth to your party, you interrupt, you get aggressive, you get nasty and you get personal-----

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (21 Sep 2021)

Leo Varadkar: -----and that is one of the many reasons people should be very afraid of Sinn Féin in government. If members of Sinn Féin behave like this in opposition, imagine how they would behave in government.

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (21 Sep 2021)

Leo Varadkar: If anyone stood up to them, whether workers, business people, pensioners, homeowners or property owners-----

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (21 Sep 2021)

Leo Varadkar: -----they would be subject to this.

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (21 Sep 2021)

Leo Varadkar: Governments change policies as facts change. Sometimes policies change and in this case, we had a change of Government. It is a new, different Government, involving three parties, namely, my party, Fianna Fáil and the Green Party. Some of the policies of this Government are different to the ones of the past, as they should be. Among the reforms we made to help people who are renting...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Departmental Properties (21 Sep 2021)

Leo Varadkar: Accommodation for my Department and its Offices is provided by the Office of Public Works (OPW) in buildings which are either State owned or leased by the OPW on our behalf. The nature of the work of my Department means we have minimal direct in-person interaction with members of the public in our buildings and accordingly we have no public offices in the Department. The vast bulk of...