Results 9,061-9,080 of 51,305 for speaker:Micheál Martin

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (18 May 2023)

Micheál Martin: -----so I will come back to the Deputy with a timeline on that.

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (18 May 2023)

Micheál Martin: I will come back to the Deputy.

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (18 May 2023)

Micheál Martin: I thank the Deputy for raising the issue. I agree with the broader strategy of incentivising recycling and separation of waste. The country has made extraordinary progress in those areas over the past 25 years and that needs to be acknowledged. Sometimes we tend to have a negative self-perception of the country; actually, it has made extraordinary progress on a number of fronts in the past...

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (18 May 2023)

Micheál Martin: The HSE says it will. I will speak to the Minister for Health again because this issue has been raised across the House again today. We have to give time to deal with the backlog from Covid but we also have to look at methodology and models of provision and have a more fundamental look at this because waiting times are too long.

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (18 May 2023)

Micheál Martin: I share the Deputy’s revulsion at the shocking attack on the young boy in Navan. We have collectively done that today. On the retained firefighters, we ask all parties to continue to engage constructively on resolving the outstanding industrial relations issues within the established facilitation forum. That is the best way to resolve this. There is no silver bullet solution...

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (18 May 2023)

Micheál Martin: I referenced the Deputy’s interest in this in my earlier contribution and his long-standing advocacy in this area. I spoke with the Minister for Health on the ERNs and the necessity to provide resources to build up supports for the clinicians involved, as well as to recruit people to the service to enable a critical mass of people within the HSE to be focused on our participation in...

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (18 May 2023)

Micheál Martin: I thank the Deputy for raising a very important issue. I agree with him on the importance of the Garda Reserve. I agree that members of the reserve force can be of significant help to the community. I recall being in government when the Garda Reserve was introduced. Like all institutions, initially there was some resistance to the idea. Increasingly now, both within An Garda...

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (18 May 2023)

Micheál Martin: The Deputy is correct. I am sure he would agree with me that Councillor Micheál Anglim has been a very strong and proactive advocate for this.

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (18 May 2023)

Micheál Martin: I say that to be fair to Councillor Anglim. I went down to Ardfinnan. An external review took place. The NTA should approve this separate proposal, given that the independent review said this was the best way to go. I have spoken with the Minister in respect of this as well. I believe there has to be a balance and a proper response from national agencies as well. This is very unsafe....

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (18 May 2023)

Micheál Martin: I thank the Deputy for raising the issue. I do not have the specifics in respect of every county across the country at hand. There have been ongoing issues with the dental service and the reform of oral health services. Orthodontics have always been challenging, notwithstanding the unprecedented funding that has been allocated to the sector. We are probably better than most European...

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (18 May 2023)

Micheál Martin: We are, in terms of the fees paid and so on. An additional €15 million was allocated in the budget for public oral healthcare services, bringing it to €200 million to address backlogs and longer term reform. There is an issue here about value for money, efficiency and about getting some return for that investment.

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (18 May 2023)

Micheál Martin: It is a bit more complex than that. The home tuition grant scheme provides funding towards the provision of compensatory educational services for children who, for a number of specific reasons, are unable to attend school. This could be due to illness or certain conditions. By nature, it is a short-term intervention. Some of the providers could be more long term, some are more short term....

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (18 May 2023)

Micheál Martin: The Department is not the employer.

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (18 May 2023)

Micheál Martin: The Deputy raised this matter with me the other night and I raised it with the Minister. He seemed to be of the view that the project was progressing but he said he would check it for me in respect of its current status and the appointment of the design team. I will revert back to the Deputy on that.

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (18 May 2023)

Micheál Martin: The Deputy's proposals would create chaos.

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (18 May 2023)

Micheál Martin: There would be chaos if every Government in Europe were to take on and disagree with the ECB. We need monetary policies to be set by the ECB.

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (18 May 2023)

Micheál Martin: That is the way it should be. We need to get inflation down. Ireland has an unemployment rate of less than 4%. We have the lowest youth unemployment in Europe. We have dramatically increased employment in the past three years. There must be a balanced, measured and stable approach to managing the economy. Some countries outside the EU have inflation rates of up to 50% or 60%. When a...

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (18 May 2023)

Micheál Martin: It was agreed more recently than the St. Andrews Agreement in the context of the Fresh Start agreement and the shared island initiative. The issue is not financing, as the Deputy is well aware. A public inquiry is under way in Northern Ireland. There have been significant challenges in progressing route selection for the project in the North because of opposition from a variety of...

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (18 May 2023)

Micheál Martin: First, I thank the Deputy for her support of the Government's programme to provide accommodation for those seeking asylum. Some 84,000 people are now in State accommodation. That is unprecedented. Never before in the history of the State have we had to respond to a situation like this because of global conflict, not least the war in Ukraine which has been catastrophic for the people of...

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (18 May 2023)

Micheál Martin: I thank the Deputy for raising the issue and I share his horror at the violence and nature of that attack. I too have met representatives of the LGBTI community, especially young people who articulated on a personal level to me the bullying they have been subjected to. In some instances young people have to leave a school and go to an alternative school. That has happened. We must work...