Results 641-660 of 11,114 for speaker:Damien English

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Hospital Services (14 Jun 2022)

Damien English: I thank the Senator for raising this matter concerning the minor injuries unit at Monaghan Hospital. I welcome the opportunity to update the House on this important service. As the Senator has said, the unit assists thousands of people every year, which is great to see. Monaghan Hospital operates as a single hospital with Cavan General Hospital. Together they share an integrated...

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Hospital Services (14 Jun 2022)

Damien English: I thank Senator Gallagher for raising this issue. I confirm that the Minister will assist and engage with those who want to increase the hours, the hospital group and the HSE. The success of the minor injuries units can be seen in Monaghan and many other places. I am happy to make sure that we maximise the use of that service. The Senator makes a good point in that there are similar...

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Departmental Programmes (14 Jun 2022)

Damien English: I thank Senator Boyhan for raising this important issue. Like him, I am a big supporter of the work of LEADER groups. They have achieved quite a lot over recent years and I look forward to their future success. I am happy to recognise and confirm that I support their work, as do many people in these Houses because they have achieved quite a lot in working directly with our communities,...

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Departmental Programmes (14 Jun 2022)

Damien English: I thank the Senator for raising the issue. I am sorry that the Minister could not be here to take the debate herself. She is committed. I will certainly bring back to her the Senator's message that we need to strengthen the commitment and the language involved. I will again point to the budget that is set aside and approved by the Government as well as to the targets to have the...

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Special Educational Needs (14 Jun 2022)

Damien English: I am glad the Senator has raised this most important issue of special needs education provision for Beara Community School. The Senator made a passionate case in highlighting the geographical location of the school and in stressing why it is so important that we fast-track a solution as soon as we can. There is no easy option for children to travel to attend units elsewhere. That has been...

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Special Educational Needs (14 Jun 2022)

Damien English: Again, on behalf of the Department of Education, I thank Senator Lombard for raising this very important issue of Beara Community School and the surrounding community. The Department will work with the school and the Senator in order to try to find a timely solution. Naturally, it is important that the planning is granted and the hopefully we be able to fast-track all the other stages. It...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Small and Medium Enterprises (14 Jun 2022)

Damien English: As defined in the Programme for Government, this Government values the role of SMEs and micro-enterprises in our economy as creators of employment all over Ireland. The SME and Entrepreneurship Growth Plan provides a set of recommendations directly from the business community to the Government of long term strategic importance for SMEs and entrepreneurs. Balancing our enterprise policy...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Employment Rights (14 Jun 2022)

Damien English: In March 2021 I set up the High-level Working Group under the auspices of the Labour Employer Economic Forum (LEEF) to review collective bargaining and the industrial relations landscape in Ireland. The work of this group is ongoing.

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Employment Rights (14 Jun 2022)

Damien English: It is difficult to estimate the likely cost of establishing any working group on workers' rights enhancements without additional information on the envisaged remit and membership of such a group. However, it should be noted that there are already a number of statutory and informal working groups in the employment rights policy space. Established in 2015, the Low Pay Commission makes...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Departmental Data (14 Jun 2022)

Damien English: The Retail Forum, which I chair, provides a platform for structured engagement with the retail sector. The Retail Forum is supporting the implementation of the Town Centre First (TCF) policy and the Night-time Economy, and has established a dedicated Retail Forum Working Group on these matters. This Working Group are considering practical actions to support town development in...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Work Permits (14 Jun 2022)

Damien English: Under the Employment Permit Acts, in order to work in the State all non-EEA nationals require a valid Employment Permit or relevant immigration permission from the Minister for Justice which allows them to reside and work in the State without the requirement for an Employment Permit. The Irish State’s general policy is to promote the sourcing of labour and skills needs from within the...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Industrial Relations (14 Jun 2022)

Damien English: The consultation process on the Retired Workers Access to industrial relations mechanisms for pension related issues which was conducted by my Department concluded a number of weeks ago. My Department officials have commenced the examination of submissions received.

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Industrial Relations (14 Jun 2022)

Damien English: I wish to assure the Deputy that the views of all who forwarded Submissions on the Consultation Process in relation to the Industrial Relations (Provisions in Respect of Pension Entitlements of Retired Workers) Bill 2021 will be considered. The purpose of the consultation process was to seek views on the proposals arising from the Private Members Bill and to establish whether there is the...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Work Permits (14 Jun 2022)

Damien English: I propose to take Questions Nos. 171 and 172 together. My Department experienced a significant increase in applications for employment permits in the past year, impacting on processing times. From the start of January to the end of December 2021, some 27,666 applications were received, representing a 69% increase over the same period in 2020 (16,293) and a 47% increase on 2019 (18,811),...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Work Permits (14 Jun 2022)

Damien English: I propose to take Questions Nos. 174 and 175 together. The employment permits system is managed through the operation of the critical skills and ineligible occupations lists which determine employments that are either in high demand or are ineligible for consideration for an employment permit and these lists are subject to twice-yearly evidenced based review. In October 2021 following the...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Work Permits (14 Jun 2022)

Damien English: The employment permits system is managed through the operation of the critical skills and ineligible occupations lists which determine employments that are either in high demand or are ineligible for consideration for an employment permit and these lists are subject to twice-yearly evidenced based review. In October 2021 following the completion of the review of the occupational lists I...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Work Permits (14 Jun 2022)

Damien English: The State's employment permit system is designed to support enterprise and supplement Ireland's skills and labour supply over the short to medium term by allowing enterprises to recruit appropriately skilled non-EEA nationals, where such skills or expertise cannot be sourced from within the EEA at that time. In framing policy regarding employment permits, thought is given to...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Departmental Schemes (14 Jun 2022)

Damien English: While specific supports for the hospitality industry are a matter for my colleague, the Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media, I wish to assure the deputy that the Government is very conscious of what the rise in global energy costs means for Irish businesses, including those in the hospitality sector. We have already implemented several measures to help ease the...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Legislative Measures (14 Jun 2022)

Damien English: My Department is currently reviewing the submissions received as part of the consultation process on the proposals contained in this Private Members Bill, which will inform the Government's consideration of those proposals in due course.

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Legislative Measures (14 Jun 2022)

Damien English: The consultation process on the Retired Workers Access to industrial relations mechanisms for pension related issues which was conducted by my Department concluded a number of weeks ago. My Department officials have commenced the examination of submissions received.As soon as this examination has been completed, consideration will be given in relation to the publication of the submissions at...