Results 8,201-8,220 of 51,305 for speaker:Micheál Martin
- Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (28 Sep 2023)
Micheál Martin: I appreciate the Deputy raising this issue. As he said, the national childcare scheme is a scheme of financial support to help parents with the cost of childcare. A component of the scheme is a sponsorship referral which makes special provision for vulnerable children. Officials in the Department are aware of the issues the Deputy has highlighted regarding the sponsored subsidy rates to...
- Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (28 Sep 2023)
Micheál Martin: I do not have the details of the case so I cannot give a specific answer in respect of the school. There have been challenges in recruiting qualified personnel for posts of that kind. That may be the case for this school or post, but I do not know. The Deputy can give me the details.
- Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (28 Sep 2023)
Micheál Martin: I will talk to the Minister in respect of it.
- Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (28 Sep 2023)
Micheál Martin: Sorry?
- Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (28 Sep 2023)
Micheál Martin: We have been investing very significantly over the last three years in wastewater treatment. Phosphorus pollution is a clear issue in urban waste water and nitrates are in an agricultural context. We are not demonising farmers at all.
- Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (28 Sep 2023)
Micheál Martin: I have spoken to farmers in recent weeks. They are very interested in good methodology and good farming practice as well. They are as concerned as anyone to make sure our waterways are clean. Irish Water is the body responsible for the overall development of wastewater treatment plans.
- Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (28 Sep 2023)
Micheál Martin: The big issue in all this is capacity to get more and more done physically. Resources are there. There is a plan to get the plants built and treatment plants in place.
- Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (28 Sep 2023)
Micheál Martin: I am not aware of the specifics of it, although the Minister of State, Deputy Byrne, rapidly briefed me on it.
- Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (28 Sep 2023)
Micheál Martin: I will talk to the Minister, Deputy Eamon Ryan, on this to see if the various agencies can get together to resolve this. Invariably, these issues are not straightforward to resolve, as might appear at first glance, but I will talk to the Minister.
- Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (28 Sep 2023)
Micheál Martin: The Minister’s priority for DEIS was to engineer biggest expansion of DEIS since it was originally established in the early 2000s and the Minister has achieved that over the last two years, in terms of the number of schools covered by DEIS and all the teaching supports which is quite significant in terms of the reduction in the pupil-teacher ratio in DEIS schools and the other supports...
- Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (28 Sep 2023)
Micheál Martin: First of all, I have not had time yet to go through the full report of the DPC. However, the DPC contacted the Department of Health in March 2021 following the airing of the "RTÉ Investigates" programme to notify the Department that the DPC was commencing an investigation on foot of the allegations regarding data processing raised in the programme. I am informed that the DPC did not...
- Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (28 Sep 2023)
Micheál Martin: I will examine this fully and more comprehensively.
- Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (28 Sep 2023)
Micheál Martin: This was the Department's position.
- Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (28 Sep 2023)
Micheál Martin: The local authorities should get on with it. Come on.
- Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (28 Sep 2023)
Micheál Martin: The Deputy should get on to Dublin City Council and Dublin county council.
- Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (28 Sep 2023)
Micheál Martin: Dublin, apparently, having said all of that, recorded the lowest vacancy rate national of 1% in the latest GeoDirectory Residential Buildings Report in June 2023. Local authorities need to be very proactive in utilising the powers that are already there in respect of dereliction and derelict sites. They need to be more proactive in implementing and enforcing the legislation.
- Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (28 Sep 2023)
Micheál Martin: Central government has provided significant funding and significant grants for people to refurbish and bring back to life derelict houses or buildings, and also vacant ones. There are very substantial grants for individuals, families or young couples in towns around the country under this scheme, which is a good initiative. On the Derelict Sites Act, there is an obligation-----
- Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (28 Sep 2023)
Micheál Martin: The Deputy will say to me some day there is too much centralisation in the country-----
- Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (28 Sep 2023)
Micheál Martin: -----yet when people have responsibility locally everybody comes back to the centre to solve their problems.