Results 9,961-9,980 of 10,459 for speaker:Bertie Ahern

Order of Business. (5 Oct 2004)

Bertie Ahern: On the first matter, on today's Order of Business is a motion to refer the Residential Institutions Redress Act 2002 (Additional Institutions) Order 2004 to the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Education and Science. This order outlines the areas to which the remit of the Act will be extended. I am not sure if there are any more extensions, but the idea of moving it to all day schools is not...

Order of Business. (5 Oct 2004)

Bertie Ahern: I hope we will be ready to take the Disability Bill in the House shortly.

Order of Business. (5 Oct 2004)

Bertie Ahern: Both Bills will be published this session.

Order of Business. (5 Oct 2004)

Bertie Ahern: The health and social care professionals regulatory Bill is due this session. It will provide for the statutory registration of health and social care professionals for the purpose of ensuring a quality service for the public. The Deputy is suggesting that the regulations to be put to the committee would be better as part of the Bill.

Order of Business. (5 Oct 2004)

Bertie Ahern: I will check what the Deputy is saying. However, as I understand it the Bill has nothing to do with that statutory instrument.

Order of Business. (5 Oct 2004)

Bertie Ahern: The statutory instrument is separate from the Bill. The Deputy has made her point and I will refer the matter to the Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children. I believe they are separate issues.

Order of Business. (5 Oct 2004)

Bertie Ahern: I have sympathy with the Deputy's point. If I receive, as I do in my position, a gift to the value of more than €600 I must give it up. All of us in this House work hard and none of us could receive such a gift. Quite frankly I do not believe it is appropriate.

Order of Business. (5 Oct 2004)

Bertie Ahern: As soon as possible.

Order of Business. (5 Oct 2004)

Bertie Ahern: As the Bill is only at a preliminary stage, I do not have a date at this stage.

Order of Business. (5 Oct 2004)

Bertie Ahern: The Deputy is correct. Both these Bills have been listed for some time, one for the past ten months and the other for a few years. I will ask the Minister for Transport, Deputy Cullen, when he will bring them back to the House.

Order of Business. (5 Oct 2004)

Bertie Ahern: The heads of the Curragh of Kildare Bill have been approved and the Bill is being drafted, but it is likely to be the middle of next year before the Bill is ready.

Responsibilities of Ministers of State: Announcement by Taoiseach. (5 Oct 2004)

Bertie Ahern: I wish to announce for the information of the House that the Government has today assigned special responsibilities to Ministers of State as follows: the Minister of State at the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform, Deputy Fahey, will have special responsibility for equality issues; the Minister of State at the Department of Communications, Marine and Natural Resources, Deputy...

Responsibilities of Ministers of State: Announcement by Taoiseach. (5 Oct 2004)

Bertie Ahern: ——the Minister of State at the Departments of Foreign Affairs and the Taoiseach, Deputy Treacy, will have special responsibility for European affairs; the Minister of State at the Department of Health and Children, Deputy Seán Power, will have special responsibility for health promotion and other matters; the Minister of State at the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local...

Decentralisation Programme. (5 Oct 2004)

Bertie Ahern: I will try to answer a number of those questions while complying with the Ceann Comhairle's ruling. Phil Flynn who reports to the special Cabinet sub-committee chairs the implementation group responsible for driving forward the process. There has been no change in the composition of the sub-committee in terms of the Departments involved but different Ministers have come on board since the...

Decentralisation Programme. (5 Oct 2004)

Bertie Ahern: The best research is the practical knowledge that has been gleaned, based on the sizeable number of Departments and agencies that have moved to various locations around the country, from Donegal to Kerry, over the years. From that knowledge it is known where the demand is. Even before the budget of 2004 people were applying for relocation and that base is known. Many people would be surprised...

Decentralisation Programme. (5 Oct 2004)

Bertie Ahern: The Deputy asked a number of questions. A sum of €20 million has been provided for properties in this year's Department of Finance budget. It is obvious that we need to try to determine the locations as quickly as possible. The Office of Public Works, which has significant expertise in this area, will make decisions on the best locations. As I said, I understand from the last report that...

Decentralisation Programme. (5 Oct 2004)

Bertie Ahern: I wish to help Deputy McGinley briefly. The answer to his question is "Yes". The discussions on the cross-Border agencies are ongoing and progress is being made on those areas. They have to be agreed on the basis of the implementation bodies and the other cross-Border committees. That is happening and progress is ongoing.

Decentralisation Programme. (5 Oct 2004)

Bertie Ahern: The central applications facility and the implementation teams in the Departments must deal with that. Deputy Allen is right in saying that previous experience has shown it is more difficult to get professional groups to move. He will recall — I believe it is his area — that we moved the Central Statistics Office to Mahon in Cork about 12 years ago. We had some difficulty in doing so....

Appointments to State Boards. (5 Oct 2004)

Bertie Ahern: I propose to take Questions Nos. 8 to 10, inclusive, together. The information sought by the Deputies concerning the names of the persons appointed by me to State boards and agencies under my aegis, namely, the Information Society Commission, the National Statistics Board, the Law Reform Commission, the National Centre for Partnership and Performance, the National Economic and Social Council...

Appointments to State Boards. (5 Oct 2004)

Bertie Ahern: In reply to Deputy Kenny's first question, we always try to adhere to that figure, and most of the boards under my Department's control, such as the National Economic and Social Forum, draw from various groups, as Deputies will know from my responses to previous questions. One is therefore dependent on whom they put forward. However, we continually make the point. Some of them are very good,...