Results 9,861-9,880 of 20,763 for speaker:Alan Kelly

Topical Issue Debate: Medicinal Products Availability (6 Dec 2017)

Alan Kelly: The Minister is aware of my views on this issue. I have spoken with him and raised it numerous different ways with the HSE and with his office. I spoke about orphan drugs at a committee. Last Friday was, for personal reasons, probably one of the angriest days of my life in politics. I was quite upset. A neighbour of mine, Marion Kelly, passed away. She was one of the two people who...

Ceisteanna - Questions (Resumed): Commissions of Investigation (6 Dec 2017)

Alan Kelly: That is fair enough. I suggest that the Taoiseach asks his party colleagues about it.

Ceisteanna - Questions (Resumed): Commissions of Investigation (6 Dec 2017)

Alan Kelly: Eight days to be precise.

Ceisteanna - Questions (Resumed): Commissions of Investigation (6 Dec 2017)

Alan Kelly: We were asking about the section 41 letter.

Ceisteanna - Questions (Resumed): Commissions of Investigation (6 Dec 2017)

Alan Kelly: On a point of order, is the Taoiseach sure that it is a protected disclosure? The section 41 letter is from the acting Commissioner and is based on information that was provided to him internally. I was never aware that it was a protected disclosure.

Ceisteanna - Questions (Resumed): Commissions of Investigation (6 Dec 2017)

Alan Kelly: I thank the Taoiseach for the reply and correcting the record. It was an important point. There is an element of denial about what is going on. I spent a period of time at the Joint Committee on Justice and Equality this morning and genuinely ask the Taoiseach to ask his colleagues, Deputy Colm Brophy and Senator Martin Conway, who made good contributions about what happened. It was...

Ceisteanna - Questions (Resumed): Commissions of Investigation (6 Dec 2017)

Alan Kelly: 3. To ask the Taoiseach the reason, during Leaders' Questions on both 14 and 15 November 2017, he stated the Department of Justice and Equality was informed of the legal strategy of the then Garda Commissioner at the O'Higgins commission after the cross-examination of a person (details supplied) had taken place, in view of the fact that this cross-examination took place on 18 May 2015 and the...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Functioning of the Department of Justice and Equality: Department of Justice and Equality (6 Dec 2017)

Alan Kelly: I thank the Chairman and witnesses. I wish the acting Secretary General the best of luck in her role, as I have done already. It is certainly a very challenging role. I have a number of questions and I will jump from area to area. I had been listening and watching some of the committee proceedings earlier. I could not watch it all unfortunately. I refer to the four parliamentary...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Functioning of the Department of Justice and Equality: Department of Justice and Equality (6 Dec 2017)

Alan Kelly: Does Ms McPhillips accept it is not credible to say this information, not given to the tribunal initially, could not be found and given to the tribunal? Thereafter, all of a sudden, once a few defined parliamentary questions were asked, the information was found and eventually given to the tribunal.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Functioning of the Department of Justice and Equality: Department of Justice and Equality (6 Dec 2017)

Alan Kelly: Let us go through this. A small number of people are at high level in the policing section in the Department of Justice and Equality. I am a former information technology manager. I know questions were asked in respect of clients for email servers. However, it is not credible that in a discovery phase, in searches for "O'Higgins" and "McCabe", information could not have been initially...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Functioning of the Department of Justice and Equality: Department of Justice and Equality (6 Dec 2017)

Alan Kelly: I do not buy that.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Functioning of the Department of Justice and Equality: Department of Justice and Equality (6 Dec 2017)

Alan Kelly: I do not believe that. I honestly cannot-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Functioning of the Department of Justice and Equality: Department of Justice and Equality (6 Dec 2017)

Alan Kelly: It is no excuse to say that just because there are specific discovery orders, that we did not provide information. In fact-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Functioning of the Department of Justice and Equality: Department of Justice and Equality (6 Dec 2017)

Alan Kelly: Yes, I apologise. I appreciate that. To clarify, it is not acceptable that because there were specific discovery orders, the Department did not provide the information.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Functioning of the Department of Justice and Equality: Department of Justice and Equality (6 Dec 2017)

Alan Kelly: That is very alarming. I am jumping into this committee today - albeit for a reason - but each member is finding out from the Department of Justice and Equality that, effectively, it did not provide the information because it was not asked for it. That is why I had to ask the questions that I did and ended in the situation that we did-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Functioning of the Department of Justice and Equality: Department of Justice and Equality (6 Dec 2017)

Alan Kelly: That is what I am surmising.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Functioning of the Department of Justice and Equality: Department of Justice and Equality (6 Dec 2017)

Alan Kelly: The facts of the matter are that had I not asked those questions, this information would not have been provided. The discovery orders were made and were answered specifically. I can accept that. What I cannot accept is that the terms of reference, as read out here earlier on, the judge asked for all information to be provided. Ms McPhillips's Department set up the terms of reference and...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Functioning of the Department of Justice and Equality: Department of Justice and Equality (6 Dec 2017)

Alan Kelly: I think it is fair to state the Department of Justice and Equality is leading in the supply of information. I want to move on because I have a number of other questions. We got the message from that. As for the current trawl and the provision of information, today's proceedings are extremely worrying. The idea that there is a whole load of information in the Department and that judgment...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Functioning of the Department of Justice and Equality: Department of Justice and Equality (6 Dec 2017)

Alan Kelly: The reason for urging Ms McPhillips in regard to this is because there are lot of people watching this today who will find her answers unacceptable. This is a national scandal. I agree that it is unprecedented for the Taoiseach to stand up in the Dáil and say the Department is dysfunctional. This is another example of it. Just because the Department is not being asked certain...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Functioning of the Department of Justice and Equality: Department of Justice and Equality (6 Dec 2017)

Alan Kelly: Let me finish my question. I am asking the Department here and now to provide that information to the Charlton tribunal and I cannot understand why it would not do it anyway because the terms of reference, which were read out by Deputy Clare Daly or others, actually require this and the request from Mr. Justice Charlton requests this information as well. I disagree with Ms McPhillips...