Results 821-840 of 10,459 for speaker:Bertie Ahern

Order of Business (19 Dec 2007)

Bertie Ahern: The Bills are due next year. I do not have a date for the referendum.

Order of Business (19 Dec 2007)

Bertie Ahern: No.

Order of Business (19 Dec 2007)

Bertie Ahern: That is correct.

Order of Business (19 Dec 2007)

Bertie Ahern: The only Bill in this area is the Criminal Justice (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill, which will be published in January.

Order of Business (19 Dec 2007)

Bertie Ahern: I have asked for a letter to be sent to the Deputy. I will check on that today for the Deputy.

European Council: Statements (19 Dec 2007)

Bertie Ahern: Before I speak on the European Council, with your permission, a Cheann Comhairle, I wish you, the Leas-Cheann Comhairle and your staff a happy Christmas. Long-standing Members of the House are aware that the House only functions due to the dedication, commitment and hard work of the many people who work behind the scenes. This is our only opportunity in the year to thank them for that. On...

European Council: Statements (19 Dec 2007)

Bertie Ahern: Before turning to the European Council, I wish to inform the House that I attended the formal ceremony to sign the reform treaty in Lisbon on 13 December. I was accompanied by the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Deputy Dermot Ahern, and the Minister of State with responsibility for European affairs, Deputy Roche. The Minister and I signed the treaty on behalf of Ireland. The signing of the...

EU Summits. (19 Dec 2007)

Bertie Ahern: I propose to take Questions Nos. 1 to 7, inclusive, together. I attended the second EU-Africa Summit in Lisbon on 8 December, accompanied by the Minister of State with responsibility for overseas development, Deputy Michael Kitt. The overall aim of the summit was to strengthen the partnership with Africa and to mark a new phase in EU-Africa relations. I think it broadly achieved that aim....

EU Summits. (19 Dec 2007)

Bertie Ahern: Deputy Kenny probably knows it was decided at the European Council that rather than letting Mr. Mugabe take over the summit, we would make one trenchant statement, delivered by the Chancellor of Germany, Ms Angela Merkel. She did that well, and thereafter we kept to the business of Africa, rather than allowing the summit to degenerate into everyone from Europe having a cut, and the Africans...

EU Summits. (19 Dec 2007)

Bertie Ahern: I have discussed this issue a number of times with John O'Shea of GOAL and other agencies. I have discussed it with Mr. O'Shea more than anyone else and I have great regard for his efforts and commitment. Anyone who meets him will appreciate that. He has a particular issue with Uganda. We note that and the people involved in it. On the whole Irish Aid programme, the senior official who...

EU Summits. (19 Dec 2007)

Bertie Ahern: Deputy Timmins and I would be of the same view on the first matter he raised. We face difficult decisions in the absence of a new resolution. It raised complex legal and political issues for the individual and collective consideration not only of us but a large number of member states. I hope to be able to maintain a presence in KFOR to contribute members of the Garda Síochána to any...

EU Summits. (19 Dec 2007)

Bertie Ahern: José Manuel Barroso is very much of my view on the taxation issue. As Prime Minister and Minister and now Commissioner he has always been very supportive of my views on this issue. There is no ceasing of work on this. What is going on is that in the Commission, here and in other member states work is continuing in advance of any legislative proposal being brought forward. The work being...

EU Summits. (19 Dec 2007)

Bertie Ahern: I used the Deputy's logic.

EU Summits. (19 Dec 2007)

Bertie Ahern: I will be very clear on the first question. The Deputy keeps saying the ongoing work on the CCCTB system has been shelved. It has not been shelved and technical work is ongoing. Will this turn into a legislative proposal to bring in tax harmonisation? I do not believe it will and I do not believe President Barroso wants to do that. If it was tried, the Deputy knows the issue could not be...

EU Summits. (19 Dec 2007)

Bertie Ahern: We operated on the basis that we would not introduce new exemptions while we retained the exemptions we had secured. That is the position we took.

EU Summits. (19 Dec 2007)

Bertie Ahern: I will deal with the Deputy's final question first. As he stated, the judgment in the Laval case was issued only yesterday and we will need time to study and consider the ramifications, if any, for Ireland. Unlike Sweden, Ireland has a statutory minimum wage and it is illegal to pay anyone below the minimum wage, which currently stands at €8.65. Ireland, because of its industrial...

EU Summits. (19 Dec 2007)

Bertie Ahern: I understood there was a meeting yesterday.

EU Summits. (19 Dec 2007)

Bertie Ahern: Perhaps I can correct Deputy Costello. We never put forward the name of Pat Cox as chair of the group. We put forward the name of Pat Cox as a member of the committee. We were asked in September for somebody with competent and qualified European experience. We did not think there was anybody who was better qualified in that regard, having just been the past president of European...

EU Summits. (19 Dec 2007)

Bertie Ahern: We remain hopeful. He is eminently qualified and of current times to be in this position. That is not to take from any of the others but, to be frank, I am not a big supporter of going back 20 years when one wants to move 20 years forward. To me that sounds strange that if one wants to plan Europe for 2030 one goes back to someone who was around in 1980. Sometimes people make strange...

Order of Business (19 Dec 2007)

Bertie Ahern: It is proposed to take No. 6, motion re appointment of the chairperson of the Standards in Public Office Commission; No. 7, motion re appointment of an ordinary member of the Standards in Public Office Commission; No. 9, statement on European Council, Brussels. It is proposed, notwithstanding anything in Standing Orders, that: there shall be no suspension of sitting under Standing Order...