Results 5,501-5,520 of 10,459 for speaker:Bertie Ahern

Leaders' Questions. (9 May 2006)

Bertie Ahern: On the first point the Deputy made, the legislative provisions for the granting of bail are very stringent. The 16th amendment to the Constitution provides for the refusal of bail to a person charged with a serious offence where it is reasonably considered necessary to prevent the commission of a serious offence by that person. We amended the law to deal with that. The Bail Act 1997 gave...

Leaders' Questions. (9 May 2006)

Bertie Ahern: I again make the point I made earlier on bail. Before we changed the law, the courts had no power to keep somebody in prison pending a trial. Regardless of how likely they were to re-offend and even if they were certain to re-offend, the courts could not do that. The purpose of the Act was to give them that right. I do not see the point of setting it down — I think it is clear. While I do...

Leaders' Questions. (9 May 2006)

Bertie Ahern: I have always stated that policing is an enormously important issue in bringing normality to Northern Ireland. It is one of the few major outstanding issues and I have never deviated from that view. The Prime Minister and I emphasised the importance of this in January and in March. We have also emphasised that we would ask all parties, particularly Sinn Féin, to be clear on the devolution of...

Leaders' Questions. (9 May 2006)

Bertie Ahern: I hope Deputy Rabbitte believes me when I say I did not read the interview. I will read it, but I do not need to read it to know that the Minister for Foreign Affairs has always been strong on criminality in all its forms and has never gone easy with anyone, on any side in Northern Ireland, or in his own Border region, who has been engaged in criminal activity. He has been one of the most...

Leaders' Questions. (9 May 2006)

Bertie Ahern: The Deputy raised a number of points. He has asked me to account for somebody else's views which I will not do. People are entitled to their views, be they medical practitioners or teachers and I am not going to examine people's views. The national statistics for suicide show a figure of approximately 400 a year. Recent research shows that the most vulnerable category is single adult males. I...

Leaders' Questions. (9 May 2006)

Bertie Ahern: The Deputy raised some points, which I have already answered in terms of how we are dealing with this issue in a caring way through the education system. He has asked me to confirm again the position on the national strategy for action on suicide prevention. That strategy was launched in September of last year. It builds on the existing policy and on the recommendations of the report of the...

Leaders' Questions. (9 May 2006)

Bertie Ahern: We have moved forward with the Reach Out strategy which was launched last year. We have invested resources in this area. I will not answer Deputy Ó Caoláin's point in terms of trying to identify which groups are most likely to commit suicide. The Deputy made great play of arguing with what Deputy McDaid, a medical doctor who has raised this issue many times in his medical career, not to...

Leaders' Questions. (9 May 2006)

Bertie Ahern: Whatever reasons or categories of people are involved, we must try to deal with them. The 1998 report of the national task force on suicide set out the position on this issue. The Government launched Reach Out — A National Strategy for Action on Suicide Prevention ten months ago. We have allocated resources to the national task force on suicide and to the education system in terms of the...

Order of Business. (9 May 2006)

Bertie Ahern: It is proposed to take No. 11, motion re ministerial rota for parliamentary questions; No. 12, motion re referral to select committee of proposed approval by Dáil Éireann of the terms of the treaty concerning the accession of the Republic of Bulgaria and Romania to the European Union; No. 19, the International Criminal Court Bill 2003 — Order for Report, Report and Final Stages; and No....

Written Answers — Environmental Assessments: Environmental Assessments (3 May 2006)

Bertie Ahern: Neither my Department nor any of the Bodies under its aegis have been identified as requiring strategy environmental assessments under the European Communities (Environmental Assessment of Certain Plans and Programmes) Regulations 2004.

Written Answers — Departmental Expenditure: Departmental Expenditure (3 May 2006)

Bertie Ahern: To assist the business needs of the various Divisions, especially policy Divisions, national daily newspapers are made available to a range of Departmental staff as set out in the table. Grade No. of Staff No. of daily papers 1 2 3 Assistant Secretary and Higher 6 3 3 — Director, Principal, Assistant Principal 36 31 5 — Higher Executive...

Departmental Bodies. (3 May 2006)

Bertie Ahern: We are doing that. The Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources has launched an initiative to increase the use of renewable energy technology in electricity production to reach an initial target of 400 megawatts of new renewable energy-powered electricity generation plants. That programme will more than double the contribution of renewable sources of electricity production...

Departmental Bodies. (3 May 2006)

Bertie Ahern: Transport 21 is a €34 billion programme dealing with public transport. The Dublin Transport Authority is a new agency to manage all transportation in the greater Dublin area in the years ahead. For decades this country could not afford any capital programme. As the country develops we have to develop that programme. Transport 21 is the biggest public transport programme that has ever been...

Departmental Bodies. (3 May 2006)

Bertie Ahern: Substantial costs relate to the metro, extension of the Luas lines on which 20 million passengers travelled last year in its first year of operation, doubling the number of DART carriages, and enormous expenditure on the rail lines, work on which has finished. These are all huge public transport projects.

Departmental Bodies. (3 May 2006)

Bertie Ahern: I agree with the Deputy. It is always those with large mortgages, probably in the first three to five years, who bear the pressures. Given the level of increases we need to do all we can to moderate them. We have an increasing population with a strong disposable income and low money costs. When Jean-Claude Trichet said interest rates could be increased from 0.25% to 0.5% that applies pressure...

Departmental Bodies. (3 May 2006)

Bertie Ahern: I do not think anybody will bring back a property tax if that is what the Deputy is asking. Deputy Rabbitte raised the issue of public private partnerships. I reported to the House, in answer to him some months ago, that the process of identifying projects in the right categories on the capital programme and getting sufficient people who were prepared to go through the PPP process has been...

Departmental Bodies. (3 May 2006)

Bertie Ahern: Deputy Kenny will agree that at the current rate of work each year 15 major projects are being completed, approximately 15 start and approximately 15 are under way. At any one time there are between 45 and 50 major projects under way. Twenty years ago the number of projects under way was three and the timescales were much longer as the country did not have the resources, which was not the...

Order of Business. (3 May 2006)

Bertie Ahern: It is proposed to take No. 11, motion re Sea Pollution (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2003 [Seanad]; No. 16, Employment Permits Bill 2005 — Report Stage, resumed; and No. 17, National Sports Campus Development Authority Bill 2006 — Second Stage, resumed. It is proposed, notwithstanding anything in Standing Orders, that No. 11 shall be decided without debate. Private Members' business...

Order of Business. (3 May 2006)

Bertie Ahern: On the fines Bill, the heads of the Bill have been approved and I am informed we should have the Bill during this session.

Order of Business. (3 May 2006)

Bertie Ahern: Not unless the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government wants to bring forward a proposal on the Electoral Act. There are already powers in that Act. I do not know about the Dalton report which deals with Bord na gCon. I will check on it for the Deputy.