Results 7,861-7,880 of 10,459 for speaker:Bertie Ahern

Order of Business. (5 Oct 2005)

Bertie Ahern: I was talking about that today. There are international agreements for seafarers and what the Deputy suggests is not easy to do. As I stated this morning, it is probably not practical. We are looking at some of the other issues such as the protection of employment. With regard to seafarers, the advice I have been getting from both inside and outside the system is that it is not practical.

Order of Business. (5 Oct 2005)

Bertie Ahern: The heads of the Bill have been approved and it is in the final stages of drafting. It is hoped to have the Bill early in the new year.

Order of Business. (5 Oct 2005)

Bertie Ahern: The social welfare and pensions Bill will be before the House as usual.

Leaders' Questions. (5 Oct 2005)

Bertie Ahern: The Sandymount plant scheme mentioned by the Deputy was a great work by the engineering section of Dublin City Council, working in partnership with the private sector to bring about a totally modern scheme. I am aware there have been some difficulties in trying to deal with all the problems. While I am not a member of the city council, my understanding is that the council's engineers have...

Leaders' Questions. (5 Oct 2005)

Bertie Ahern: It is under investigation.

Leaders' Questions. (5 Oct 2005)

Bertie Ahern: The issue of the treatment plant in Sandymount pertains to the air filter. The difficulties are being examined.

Leaders' Questions. (5 Oct 2005)

Bertie Ahern: The city council has been endeavouring to deal with the air filtering system and some other technical problems which its engineers pointed out last year, after conducting some surveys.

Leaders' Questions. (5 Oct 2005)

Bertie Ahern: As for the second question, the legislation is necessary — in dealing with the EU, all these matters are necessary. However, the Deputy is aware that we have spent approximately €1.5 billion on 75 new waste water treatment schemes around the country, which has brought a major improvement to the quality of water in rivers and lakes. New waste water schemes are being provided with secondary...

Leaders' Questions. (5 Oct 2005)

Bertie Ahern: It has been stated by the European Commission that some of the work done on this has led to extremely high quality water. The Water Services Bill 2003, which is before the Houses, will consolidate and modernise the code of water services. We could not have done that if we had not invested the money we did in these waste water schemes.

Leaders' Questions. (5 Oct 2005)

Bertie Ahern: If they work better, then they should be discussed at council level.

Leaders' Questions. (5 Oct 2005)

Bertie Ahern: If the residents of Donabate have concerns, I have no doubt that they will put those concerns to their public representatives. Those concerns will be dealt with by the planners and engineers of the appropriate councils who are well used to listening to people's concerns. Hopefully they will come to a satisfactory resolution. The Deputy must acknowledge the dramatic improvements in water...

Leaders' Questions. (5 Oct 2005)

Bertie Ahern: We have stopped that and must make sure we do not go back to that situation.

Social Partnership Agreement. (5 Oct 2005)

Bertie Ahern: I propose to take Questions Nos. 1 to 15, inclusive, together. The last plenary meeting of the social partners, which I attended together with the Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children and the Minister for Finance, took place in Dublin Castle on 14 July and included an assessment of the overall progress that has been made in the implementation of Sustaining Progress, including in...

Social Partnership Agreement. (5 Oct 2005)

Bertie Ahern: The Irish Ferries dispute shows precisely the value of social partnership. I expressed the view in the House that the behaviour of the company in refusing to engage with the Labour Court and other industrial relations machinery, and its being intent on an apparent breach of obligations under Sustaining Progress, was unacceptable. The national implementation body correctly recommended to the...

Social Partnership Agreement. (5 Oct 2005)

Bertie Ahern: Deputy Rabbitte is right. That is a major grievance. I have met, as I am sure he has, many of the individuals concerned. That was comprehensively dealt with in the Labour Court findings. Every one of us who has met any postal workers during the course of the year would have heard that issue raised but it has been dealt with. I agree that many An Post workers are not highly paid. The company...

Social Partnership Agreement. (5 Oct 2005)

Bertie Ahern: That was just one aspect of what I said, that incomes policy was a large part of the agreement. We must keep our incomes at rates we can afford. I opposed the idea of trying to chase the secondary costs that would come from some aspects of energy, although perhaps they will not be as bad as I thought at the time. Social partnership should not just become a race on incomes, which is what...

Social Partnership Agreement. (5 Oct 2005)

Bertie Ahern: Yesterday on Leaders' Questions I spelled out the policy on seafarers. This country, being an island, has always tried to have as many qualified and trained seafarers as possible and to maintain employment for them. I believe the National Maritime College, which, unfortunately, I have not visited, is considered internationally to be of the highest quality. Some €50 million of taxpayers'...

Social Partnership Agreement. (5 Oct 2005)

Bertie Ahern: I suppose it does not rule out EuroMed, for example, trying to reach some understanding on how one can achieve what the Deputy proposes. It is not an easy issue to address. I have been given information in the past week on what is happening in respect of all the operators, not just Irish Ferries. The information concerns not only those operating on the Irish Sea but also to those operating on...

Social Partnership Agreement. (5 Oct 2005)

Bertie Ahern: I hope they take serious note of that. A decision has not yet been made on the recommendations but the Minister will consider them and come to a conclusion on them. An interdepartmental report took into account the NESF and NESC reports and also some of the other reports. A host of reports have been presented on child care and the interdepartmental group is considering them collectively.

Social Partnership Agreement. (5 Oct 2005)

Bertie Ahern: I pointed out the difficulties in terms of the seafarers issue and what is said by both sides. The Government did not agree to immediate access to the Irish labour market by citizens of new member states in order to displace Irish workers.