Results 7,361-7,380 of 74,100 for speaker:Bernard Durkan

Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Report of the Commission on Taxation and Welfare: Discussion (9 Nov 2022)

Bernard Durkan: I thank the Chair. I had to deal with a vote in her absence. We are paired for the next one. I have listened carefully. The more I listened, the more alarmed I became. One thing that I have learned about politics and taxation over the years is that when politicians get together to decide where taxation should be applied at great levels, they invariably select the area that does not...

Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Report of the Commission on Taxation and Welfare: Discussion (9 Nov 2022)

Bernard Durkan: I am anxiously awaiting their response.

Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Report of the Commission on Taxation and Welfare: Discussion (9 Nov 2022)

Bernard Durkan: I strongly object to that kite-flying nonsense. Dr. Collins knows full well that that is rubbish. He should not be coming before the committee and addressing it in that fashion in the context of policy.

Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Report of the Commission on Taxation and Welfare: Discussion (9 Nov 2022)

Bernard Durkan: I strongly object to that kind of speech.

Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Report of the Commission on Taxation and Welfare: Discussion (9 Nov 2022)

Bernard Durkan: I am not going to deny speaking time. I am just saying that I object.

Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Report of the Commission on Taxation and Welfare: Discussion (9 Nov 2022)

Bernard Durkan: I will carefully monitor the choices that the witnesses come up with.

Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Report of the Commission on Taxation and Welfare: Discussion (9 Nov 2022)

Bernard Durkan: I was not naming it in any derogatory fashion.

Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Report of the Commission on Taxation and Welfare: Discussion (9 Nov 2022)

Bernard Durkan: I was praising the business.

Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Report of the Commission on Taxation and Welfare: Discussion (9 Nov 2022)

Bernard Durkan: Why was the wealth tax we had some years ago abolished?

Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Report of the Commission on Taxation and Welfare: Discussion (9 Nov 2022)

Bernard Durkan: There was a tax that also applied to people's wealth, hence the name. It was about wealth. If we want to target people who have wealth, we should put out the word and say that. Let us see what happens then. It is a dangerous route to go.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: General Scheme of the Health (Termination of Pregnancy Services (Safe Access Zones)) Bill 2022: An Garda Síochána (9 Nov 2022)

Bernard Durkan: I welcome the witnesses. I should point out that I am not an aficionado of zones. The original intention was that the particular facility and services would be available to women in accordance with the constitutional amendment and the Act, as published, before the amendment. To me, the identification of the location of various services would make it very easy for people who want to protest...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: General Scheme of the Health (Termination of Pregnancy Services (Safe Access Zones)) Bill 2022: An Garda Síochána (9 Nov 2022)

Bernard Durkan: Inevitably, it may well happen that in cases where patients are prevented from gaining access to the service, they could find themselves in a life-threatening situation, as a result of a delay in the delivery of the service. In such a situation, I will follow on from Deputy Shortall's questions about policing in a big area, 100 m around a facility already 100 m wide. I accept in the first...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: General Scheme of the Health (Termination of Pregnancy Services (Safe Access Zones)) Bill 2022: An Garda Síochána (9 Nov 2022)

Bernard Durkan: I thank Ms McMahon for the reply. As I said at the outset, I am not an aficionado of this particular type of identification. If the legislation is to work in the way it was intended, then the services should be available through the various channels already identified, as appropriate. We must be able to deal with situations where, in certain circumstances, women may find themselves unable...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: General Scheme of the Health (Termination of Pregnancy Services (Safe Access Zones)) Bill 2022: An Garda Síochána (9 Nov 2022)

Bernard Durkan: On the definition of "moving away" in the context of the public order Act and its applicability in this kind of situation, how far away will the offender have to move to avoid a breach of regulations insofar as a hospital or GP surgery is concerned? Where will he or she have to move to?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: General Scheme of the Health (Termination of Pregnancy Services (Safe Access Zones)) Bill 2022: An Garda Síochána (9 Nov 2022)

Bernard Durkan: Supposing the person moves down the road to a GP surgery away from a hospital, for example, or vice versa, would that count as moving away?

Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Report of the Commission on Taxation and Welfare: Discussion (9 Nov 2022)

Bernard Durkan: We have the voting block tonight as well.

Committee on Budgetary Oversight: Report of the Commission on Taxation and Welfare: Discussion (9 Nov 2022)

Bernard Durkan: That is not true. It is already a heavy taxpayer in the sense that it pays rates to the local authority, one of the highest rates in the county. That has been the position for many years. Would that company have come to this country if it thought we were going to get it in this way? In the first instance-----

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: National Broadband Plan (8 Nov 2022)

Bernard Durkan: 33. To ask the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment the extent to which broadband provision throughout the country is progressing as intended; if efforts continue to bridge communication gaps that have become obvious; if he can see a means whereby the provision of broadband throughout all the regions can be maximised in early date; and if he will make a statement on the...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Climate Change Policy (8 Nov 2022)

Bernard Durkan: 50. To ask the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment the extent to which he continues to ensure a balance between meeting emission reduction targets and ensuring the future of the agri-food sector, with particular reference to the need to ensure the future of the agricultural production sector while meeting carbon reduction targets to the greatest possible extent; if he...