Results 6,461-6,480 of 10,459 for speaker:Bertie Ahern

Social Partnership. (8 Feb 2006)

Bertie Ahern: On the issue of the protection of employment standards, the Irish Congress of Trade Unions made it clear since last summer that in the next talks, it wanted it to be the major issue. At meetings with it in September and in writing to it in October, I gave a commitment that we would accept that. In a rapidly changing labour market, the issue brings with it new challenges in the area of...

Social Partnership. (8 Feb 2006)

Bertie Ahern: This is not the most uncompetitive country in the world. In many of the areas——

Social Partnership. (8 Feb 2006)

Bertie Ahern: Sorry. I thought the Deputy was speaking generally. Obviously, the issue of energy will come up as part of competitiveness because every country in the world, particularly in Europe, is looking at their dependency, especially on Russia. Those assessments are going on here. The Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources, Deputy Noel Dempsey, has been involved in assessments from...

Social Partnership. (8 Feb 2006)

Bertie Ahern: The Deputy will appreciate that I do not agree with him. In reply to the Deputy's last question on pay levels, the reason our competitiveness is out of line is because our pay levels, when set against our main competitors, are much higher across practically all professions and strands. The Deputy referred to hard-pressed workers. In most of these sectors they would be thankful because the...

Social Partnership. (8 Feb 2006)

Bertie Ahern: I am simply giving the facts provided by the ESRI, which would never give anything other than the complete truth in this respect. As I stated yesterday, the Government has examined the existing incentives for people to generate wealth and the Minister for Finance has named those whom he believes should be eliminated. As we had that debate yesterday, there is no need to go back over such...

Social Partnership. (8 Feb 2006)

Bertie Ahern: ——where they are not selling.

Social Partnership. (8 Feb 2006)

Bertie Ahern: In several parts of the greater Dublin area, as well as in Cork.

Social Partnership. (8 Feb 2006)

Bertie Ahern: There has been a slow take-up in affordable housing. Thankfully however, the affordable housing initiative, which has taken place under the aegis of social partnership, has facilitated far more co-ordinated activity in these areas. Hence, I do not accept the Deputy's point.

Social Partnership. (8 Feb 2006)

Bertie Ahern: The Deputy has referred to social housing. I referred to affordable housing, which has just been raised.

Social Partnership. (8 Feb 2006)

Bertie Ahern: In the bleak 1980s, one had to provide social housing. However, as the Deputy can recall, there was no great difficulty in so doing, because so many people emigrated.

Social Partnership. (8 Feb 2006)

Bertie Ahern: However, 80,000 families take up houses every year.

Social Partnership. (8 Feb 2006)

Bertie Ahern: A total of 80,000 families a year have taken up houses. We have built more houses in the past five years than were built in the previous 30 years.

Social Partnership. (8 Feb 2006)

Bertie Ahern: Through affordable housing, social housing and the voluntary housing sector, the issues discussed in social partnership have improved the situation.

Social Partnership. (8 Feb 2006)

Bertie Ahern: I have provided comprehensive figures in this respect.

Social Partnership. (8 Feb 2006)

Bertie Ahern: Half of Dublin is moving to County Kildare because the houses are——

Social Partnership. (8 Feb 2006)

Bertie Ahern: They are moving into affordable housing.

Social Partnership. (8 Feb 2006)

Bertie Ahern: The county has extremely good affordable housing.

Social Partnership. (8 Feb 2006)

Bertie Ahern: There is some extremely good affordable housing in Kildare, which is much cheaper than most places, to that county's credit.

Social Partnership. (8 Feb 2006)

Bertie Ahern: The Deputies do not want to accept we are building 80,000 houses and that through Part V of the Planning and Development Act 2000 and the affordable housing initiative, more than 11,000 sites have been generated.

Social Partnership. (8 Feb 2006)

Bertie Ahern: They do not want to say this is having a significant impact and they do not want to give credit to the affordable housing initiative, which is very unreasonable. They want to take issue with the ESRI and they do not want to recognise that this year's budget was the most progressive in the history of the State. However, I agree with Deputy Joe Higgins on one point, which is that the high rate...