Results 721-740 of 10,459 for speaker:Bertie Ahern

Order of Business (5 Feb 2008)

Bertie Ahern: Yes, he is from Kilkenny.

Order of Business (5 Feb 2008)

Bertie Ahern: The Minister is anxious to press ahead with the long-stay residential Bill. However, there are some legal difficulties that must be clarified and consultations must take place with interested groups. I understand that is happening.

Order of Business (5 Feb 2008)

Bertie Ahern: Yes. The Minister is anxious to deal with it. There is a strong consensus among the interested parties that the proposed legislation will be beneficial to them. They want it enacted quickly. We will try to deal with both sides of the debate as quickly as possible. The sale of alcohol Bill will not be published before the summer. The legislation includes more than 200 heads and I...

Order of Business (5 Feb 2008)

Bertie Ahern: Yes, the Minister has set up an advisory group under the chairmanship of Dr. Gordon Holmes to consider the huge expansion of the sale of alcohol in garages and retail outlets, including supermarkets. I am not sure if that examination has already started but the group is due to begin its work. I acknowledge the sensitivities of the families of the late Detective Garda Jerry McCabe and the...

Order of Business (5 Feb 2008)

Bertie Ahern: There were four ballot papers.

Order of Business (5 Feb 2008)

Bertie Ahern: I remember the days when the results would be stolen the night before. There were the fraternal delegates from Korea.

Order of Business (5 Feb 2008)

Bertie Ahern: Yes, we intend to legislate for agency workers through the employment agency regulation Bill. The purpose of the Bill is to regulate the employment agency sector by the establishment of a statutory code of practice, setting out the standards with which it must comply. A monitoring and advisory committee representative of the social partners, employment agency sector and the Department will...

Order of Business (5 Feb 2008)

Bertie Ahern: I said during Leaders' Questions that I would raise both those Bills with the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform, Deputy Brian Lenihan. I will do so and will ask him to communicate with Deputy Rabbitte.

Order of Business (5 Feb 2008)

Bertie Ahern: In regard to the eligibility for health and personal social services Bill, work has commenced on the drafting of a discussion stage document in preparation for the regulatory impact analysis and the public consultation on these proposals.

Social Partnership. (5 Feb 2008)

Bertie Ahern: I propose to take Questions Nos. 1 to 11, inclusive, together. The National Implementation Body, NIB, which has been in existence since the start of 2001, continues to meet as necessary to oversee delivery of the industrial peace and stability provisions in Towards 2016. The NIB has met on a number of occasions recently to assist in the resolution of industrial disputes. Meetings of the NIB...

Social Partnership. (5 Feb 2008)

Bertie Ahern: It is hoped that we can move on the commencement of the talks shortly. The terms of the pay agreement for the private sector under Towards 2016 are due to expire shortly. I expect that the next plenary meeting which will review the agreement this month will provide the basis for the initiation of formal talks, including those related to the new pay round. The preliminary discussions will...

Social Partnership. (5 Feb 2008)

Bertie Ahern: On the first issue, that of the review body, I accept what Deputy Kenny said and I will not go back over it all again. For almost 40 years, the function of the body has been to advise the Government on the general levels of remuneration at the higher level so the Government, political officeholders, senior people in State bodies and agencies, local authorities, health boards, the Garda...

Written Answers — Departmental Surveys: Departmental Surveys (30 Jan 2008)

Bertie Ahern: My Department's Customer Charter commits us to providing friendly, efficient and courteous service to our customers. In order to monitor our performance against this and other commitments in the Charter, we conduct an annual survey of our main customer groups, as well as using other evaluation mothods such as mystery shopping, customer feedback, interviews and focus groups. We then report...

Written Answers — Judicial Reviews: Judicial Reviews (30 Jan 2008)

Bertie Ahern: I propose to take Questions Nos. 161 and 162 together. There have been no judicial reviews in the years 1997 to 2007 inclusive for my Department and consequently, no costs or damages were paid by the State in relation to such reviews.

Written Answers — Legislative Programme: Legislative Programme (30 Jan 2008)

Bertie Ahern: There were 4 Acts sponsored by my Department from 2003 to 2007. They were the Interpretation Act, 2005, Statute Law Revision (pre-1922) Act, 2005, the National Economic and Social Development Office Act, 2006 and the Statute Law Revision Act, 2007. None of these Acts was legislation wholly or mainly required by Ireland's EU obligations. The nature of my Department is such that it would be...

Written Answers — Committee Meetings: Committee Meetings (30 Jan 2008)

Bertie Ahern: The Cabinet Committee on Children met three times during 2005. Arrangements were reviewed following the establishment of the Office of the Minister for Children in December 2005 and it was agreed that children's issues would be dealt with by the Cabinet Committee on Social Inclusion which was renamed the Cabinet Committee on Social Inclusion and Children. That Committee continues to meet on...

Written Answers — Data Protection: Data Protection (30 Jan 2008)

Bertie Ahern: A small amount of computer equipment has been reported lost or stolen in the period specified (as outlined in the table below). A number of measures are in place in my Department to protect private and sensitive data. Users supplied with Departmental equipment are issued with guidance to ensure devices are secured appropriately. All laptops issued by the Department have encrypted hard...

Written Answers — Official Engagements: Official Engagements (30 Jan 2008)

Bertie Ahern: I travelled to South Africa from 13th to 15th January and to Tanzania from 15th to 18th January, 2008. The purpose of the visits were to further develop Irish-South African bilateral relations and promote business links between our two countries and to visit Irish Aid funded development projects in both South Africa and Tanzania. The official delegation included Mr. Micheál Martin, T.D.,...

Written Answers — Data Protection: Data Protection (30 Jan 2008)

Bertie Ahern: My Department's computer systems are protected against security breaches through the use of industry standard security procedures and products. These products produce reports on attempted and actual security breaches. There have been no reported or attempted attacks on my Department's computer systems. We continually monitor and update our security procedures and products to ensure that a...

Written Answers — Departmental Expenditure: Departmental Expenditure (30 Jan 2008)

Bertie Ahern: The following table outlines the costs of the Communications Unit in respect of my Department for the years 2002 to 2007 inclusive. Year 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 Total â'¬97,218 â'¬125,588 â'¬118,241 â'¬135,183 â'¬162,275 â'¬129,709