Results 7,181-7,200 of 10,459 for speaker:Bertie Ahern
- Leaders' Questions. (22 Nov 2005)
Bertie Ahern: I am not going to ask him. I am not going to go around asking 104,000 people in the health service why they moved from one area to another.
- Leaders' Questions. (22 Nov 2005)
Bertie Ahern: I presume he left Waterford because there were better facilities in Cork and the other man moved to Dublin because he thought there were better facilities there.
- Northern Ireland Issues. (22 Nov 2005)
Bertie Ahern: On the first question, I have always made clear, in the context of restored confidence and trust in the peace process, that I would make proposals for Oireachtas participation by all Northern MPs and I made it clear that would include all sides. They complement other proposals, including that for a North-South parliamentary forum. For too long, we have not paid enough attention to Northern...
- Northern Ireland Issues. (22 Nov 2005)
Bertie Ahern: In dealing with matters related to Northern Ireland I have repeatedly told the House that in particular circumstances the issue of the so-called on-the-runs would have to be addressed. It is now four and a half years since we completed the deliberations on that issue in Weston Park, where we first decided it should be resolved. That issue had been an over-hang all the way from May 1998, so...
- Northern Ireland Issues. (22 Nov 2005)
Bertie Ahern: Yes, I think that is the number we are talking about. If it arises, we are talking about very low numbers. Some of these may have left about 30 years ago and have resettled in various parts of the world. How many of these will reappear? The scheme does not cover the killers of Detective Garda Jerry McCabe. There are a few of those but they are not covered by the scheme, they are excluded, the...
- Departmental Staff. (22 Nov 2005)
Bertie Ahern: I propose to take Questions Nos. 1 to 3, inclusive, together. Members of staff within my Department are supported as far as it is practicable to meet their child care needs. Staff members are offered a wide variety of family friendly arrangements taking in to account the organisational needs of the Department.
- Departmental Staff. (22 Nov 2005)
Bertie Ahern: Legislation governs maternity leave and it is continually under review. Over the past six social partnership programmes there have been improvements and changes. In my Department a number of initiatives are in place to support the needs of a diverse workforce, including work sharing options, flexitime, career breaks, paternity leave, term leave, special leave for domestic circumstances,...
- Departmental Staff. (22 Nov 2005)
Bertie Ahern: Some of the issues raised by the Deputy already exist in legislation. The child care measures in my Department include term leave, for example, which quite a substantial number of people take. It allows them to take either eight, ten or 13 weeks' unpaid leave from June until the end of August to match their working arrangements with their children's summer holidays. A range of options are...
- Departmental Staff. (22 Nov 2005)
Bertie Ahern: The facility will only be available to staff in the Houses. There are some crèches in the public service, in Revenue and some other Departments, that are open to staff and there is a number of private crèches that people can use. A total of 35 staff across all grades in my Department, up to and including principal officer, avail of work sharing. That is quite a high number out of a total of...
- Departmental Staff. (22 Nov 2005)
Bertie Ahern: Is the Deputy asking about a policy for child care?
- Departmental Staff. (22 Nov 2005)
Bertie Ahern: There is no crèche in my Department and there are no arrangements for people to bring children. I have given details of how we try to accommodate staff but there is no facility for staff to arrive at work with their children and ask the secretary to look after them.
- Northern Ireland Issues. (22 Nov 2005)
Bertie Ahern: I propose to take Questions Nos. 4 to 30, inclusive, together. I met Prime Minister Blair in London on 11 October. The meeting offered an early opportunity to review political developments particularly in the aftermath of the decommissioning of their weapons by the IRA at the end of September. Both Governments remain determined to maintain positive momentum in the process and to bring about...
- Northern Ireland Issues. (22 Nov 2005)
Bertie Ahern: I am aware of the reports and the information, although I have not seen the full aspects of it yet. The Minister for Foreign Affairs, Deputy Dermot Ahern, previous Ministers and I continually raise with the British through the Secretariat and the Secretary of State matters of collusion and names being passed to individuals, and we will continue to do that. The practice of informing people...
- Order of Business. (16 Nov 2005)
Bertie Ahern: I do not know if a debate is promised. It would not be a bad report for the House to debate. The recommendations have gone to several Ministries, although they are mainly procedural issues rather than legislative. We could do worse than debate it.
- Order of Business. (16 Nov 2005)
Bertie Ahern: It must be implemented across numerous Departments. It has already been implemented in Departments such as Health and Children and Education and Science. With regard to a debate to follow up on it, if the House had time this would not be a bad report to debate.
- Order of Business. (16 Nov 2005)
Bertie Ahern: It is hoped to have the Bill published by Christmas and taken in the spring session.
- Order of Business. (16 Nov 2005)
Bertie Ahern: Transport 21 and the national development plan will continue to be rolled out.
- Order of Business. (16 Nov 2005)
Bertie Ahern: We built a separate highway for Deputy Timmins to get home. It is an excellent roadway.
- Order of Business. (16 Nov 2005)
Bertie Ahern: On the judicial council Bill to provide effective remedies for complaints about judicial misbehaviour, including lay participation in investigations into complaints, draft heads are being prepared in the Department to take into account work done by the constitutional review group, the Oireachtas Joint Committee on the Constitution and the Chief Justice's committee on judicial ethics. On the...
- Order of Business. (16 Nov 2005)
Bertie Ahern: Yes.