Results 821-840 of 11,114 for speaker:Damien English

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Low Pay Commission (7 Apr 2022)

Damien English: The Tánaiste has made it clear that over the past 18 months we in the Department have been very committed to improving the terms and conditions of all workers in this country, and have backed that up with legislation and changes. I understand that in most cases Sinn Féin supports that, and rightly so. We are leading with action. Likewise, the report of the Low Pay Commission on a...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Construction Industry (7 Apr 2022)

Damien English: Absolutely. The Deputy has raised matters I did not have a chance to cover, but they are exactly what the construction technology centre will deal with. The overall aim of the centre is to identify the optimal consortium of research-performing organisations in the Irish ecosystem that will deliver productivity and sustainability for the Irish construction and built-environment sector...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Construction Industry (7 Apr 2022)

Damien English: The Deputy covered most of the five key industry challenges set out: productivity, affordability and cost; quality and safety; collaboration within the sector; labour shortages, skills and training; and sustainability. The Deputy referred to the town centre first initiative. I totally agree with him in this regard. There was a lot of effort on the part of several Departments to achieve a...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Construction Industry (7 Apr 2022)

Damien English: I thank the Deputy for the question. I agree with him about the urgency in this area. It is something we have been working on for a number of years. I am glad it is coming to the stage that it will be up and running very soon. The question concerns the important issue of the adoption and use of new technologies in the construction sector in the context of delivering the Government's...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Departmental Reviews (7 Apr 2022)

Damien English: Maybe I have to say it for the third time. It is quarter 2 that is the target.

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Departmental Reviews (7 Apr 2022)

Damien English: I think the Deputy is being a bit unfair here. She keeps referring back to a statement from 2018. We have already committed, and it is an action in the climate action plan, to review that policy and to update it. That work has begun. It will involve all of the conversations the Deputy has just touched on and all of the reasons to recognise where we are in respect of the climate change and...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Small and Medium Enterprises (7 Apr 2022)

Damien English: An SME growth task force of entrepreneurs, business leaders and other stakeholders was established in September 2020 by the Tánaiste to fulfil the commitment made in the programme for Government to draw up an ambitious long-term strategic blueprint for SMEs and entrepreneurs beyond Covid-19. Between September and December 2020, the SME task force, which was assisted by four dedicated...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Small and Medium Enterprises (7 Apr 2022)

Damien English: I will work backwards on the two questions. On the MERITS hub, I totally agree with the Deputy. It is a fabulous investment and I have been on that site twice at this stage. I am glad it featured in the 2019 regional enterprise plan that was launched next door to it in Kildare by the Minister, Deputy Humphreys. The new updated regional enterprise plan for the mid-east region is again...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Small and Medium Enterprises (7 Apr 2022)

Damien English: That is one I forgot to mention. There has been a review of the export credit insurance scheme under way in the Department for the last year and a half and that report is complete. While I have not had a chance to go through it yet, I believe it is either on my desk or on the way to my desk. It comes under the “access to finance” element of the SME task force. It is...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Departmental Reviews (7 Apr 2022)

Damien English: I thank Deputy Connolly for raising this issue. As I am aware that she raised it in the autumn as well, it is timely to provide the Deputy with an update. The Climate Action Plan 2021 requires my Department to review the Government statement on the role of data centres in enterprise policy, ensuring alignment with revised renewable electricity targets and sectoral emissions ceilings. The...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Departmental Reviews (7 Apr 2022)

Damien English: I am sorry the Deputy thinks that the Government is putting it on the never-never. To be clear, the Tánaiste responded to the Deputy in the autumn and told her that the report would be published and an updated statement provided by quarter 1 of 2022. It has slipped into quarter 2. We accept that there has been a delay with it. However, in our view, that means that the work is being...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Enterprise Support Services (7 Apr 2022)

Damien English: The Local Enterprise Offices in Cavan, Monaghan and Meath have been integral in the LEO mission to promote entrepreneurship, foster business start-ups and develop existing micro and small businesses to drive job creation and to provide accessible high quality supports for business ideas. The Local Enterprise Offices act as a ‘First Stop Shop’ for providing advice and guidance,...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Renewable Energy Generation (7 Apr 2022)

Damien English: My Department is actively engaging with the renewable energy sector, both directly and through our agencies. Enterprise Ireland continues to identify and work with the key Irish companies with the capability to support the offshore wind industry’s growth through the Offshore Wind Industry Cluster. The Enterprise Ireland Offshore Wind Showcase Event will be held this summer,...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Enterprise Support Services (7 Apr 2022)

Damien English: I propose to take Questions Nos. 27 and 44 together. To date, my Department has provided funding of €250 million administered by Enterprise Ireland to support the establishment of some 270 Enterprise Centres throughout Ireland, of which approximately 40 of these Centres were funded under the auspices of the Regional Enterprise Plans. This investment has enabled the establishment...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: International Agreements (7 Apr 2022)

Damien English: As an International Labour Organisation (ILO) Member State, Ireland is committed to ratifying Convention C190. Ratification is being considered in the context of our standard approach to the ratification of international instruments. Ireland does not ratify international conventions until it has been determined that national law is in line with the provisions of the international instrument....

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Enterprise Support Services (7 Apr 2022)

Damien English: The Government has worked to support businesses through these challenging times with a wide range of measures for firms of all sizes, which includes the wage subsidy scheme, business continuity and trading online grants, Restart Grants, COVID-19 Working Capital Scheme, the COVID-19 Credit Guarantee Scheme, the Future Growth Loan Scheme, commercial rates waivers and warehousing of tax...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Regional Development (7 Apr 2022)

Damien English: The Local Government Reform Act 2014 saw the dissolution of 80 town councils and the Government has no plans to reintroduce town councils. Instead, the focus of the Programme for Government – Our shared Future- is to strengthen the operation of the 95 municipal districts established in 2014 and which cover the entirety of the State’s population as opposed to the 14% of the...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Work Permits (7 Apr 2022)

Damien English: Awaiting reply from Department.

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Covid-19 Pandemic (7 Apr 2022)

Damien English: As Minister with responsibility for workplace Health and Safety legislation, I have requested the Health and Safety Authority to analyse a range of options to achieve the objective of the proposed Workplace Ventilation (Covid-19) Bill 2021. This analysis is underway including a review of approaches taken in other European Union Member States. I have been informed that a number of...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Work Permits (7 Apr 2022)

Damien English: My Department experienced a significant increase in applications for employment permits in the past year, impacting on processing times. From the start of January to the end of December 2021, some 27,666 applications were received, representing a 69% increase over the same period in 2020 (16,293) and a 47% increase on 2019 (18,811), which itself represented an 11 year high in applications. ...