Results 10,401-10,420 of 40,330 for speaker:Leo Varadkar

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (10 Jul 2019)

Leo Varadkar: Three major actions are under way to improve terms and conditions in our Defence Forces. First, the public sector pay deal means full pay restoration for all Defence Forces staff earning less than €70,000 by next year. This is already being phased in. Second is a €10 million package of improvements in allowances, as recommended by the Public Sector Pay Commission. This has...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (10 Jul 2019)

Leo Varadkar: Everyone in the Government and on these benches understands the pressures our beef farmers are under, particularly at a time when prices are so low and at a time when they face the threat of a no-deal Brexit in a few months' time. The best thing we can do for our beef industry and beef farmers, recognising their importance to the wider rural economy, is to ensure we secure a deal on Brexit...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (10 Jul 2019)

Leo Varadkar: I have absolute, total and full confidence in Deputy Kehoe as Minister with responsibility for Defence. He has held the post for seven years, initially as Minister of State and more recently as Minister with responsibility for Defence. Nobody in this House knows more about military matters or understands defence given his seven years experience.

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (10 Jul 2019)

Leo Varadkar: Let us look at a few of the things that have been done in the last three, four or five years since he has held the post. First recruitment, which had been paused by the previous Government, was resumed, and second, there has been major investment in the Defence Forces, with five new vessels and the most modern fleet ever. There has been investment in aircraft with a new fisheries protection...

Written Answers — Department of An Taoiseach: Cabinet Committee Meetings (10 Jul 2019)

Leo Varadkar: I propose to take Questions Nos. 18, 19, 22 and 23 together. Cabinet Committee A was scheduled to have its first meeting of 2019 on Monday 1 July, which was unfortunately postponed due to the extended European Council meetings. Cabinet Committee A covers issues relating to the Economy such as Jobs, the Labour Market, Competitiveness, Productivity, the Digital Economy and Pensions, and rural...

Written Answers — Department of An Taoiseach: Taoiseach's Meetings and Engagements (10 Jul 2019)

Leo Varadkar: I propose to take Questions Nos. 25 to 27, inclusive, together. I saw Prime Minister May most recently at the Special meeting of the European Council on 30 of June, 1 July and 2 July. I also saw her at the European Council meeting in Brussels on 20 and 21 June. I did not have any formal bilateral meetings with the Prime Minister during these meetings. However, I spoke by phone with the...

Written Answers — Department of An Taoiseach: Cyber Security Policy (10 Jul 2019)

Leo Varadkar: My Department has put in place safeguards to mitigate the threats and risks to its information and communications technology systems in so far as is possible. My Department uses industry leading security products to filter email and web traffic to automatically stop spam, viruses, and other malicious agents from infecting the network. My Department maintains ongoing contact with the...

Written Answers — Department of An Taoiseach: Departmental Communications (10 Jul 2019)

Leo Varadkar: It is important to communicate across a variety of platforms, including social media, to ensure transparency and clarity for all citizens. The Government Information Service is now required to provide a 24/7 service to media organizations, on all topics of public interest, and with short response times.The social media channels for my Department are Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and Youtube....

Written Answers — Department of An Taoiseach: European Council Meetings (10 Jul 2019)

Leo Varadkar: I propose to take Questions Nos. 33 and 35 to 39, inclusive, together. I attended a special meeting of the European Council in Brussels from Sunday 30 June to Tuesday 2 July. The President of the European Council, Donald Tusk, convened the meeting with a view to agreeing an approach to the high-level appointments to the EU institutions that will arise in the coming period. The positions of...

Written Answers — Department of An Taoiseach: British-Irish Council (10 Jul 2019)

Leo Varadkar: I propose to take Questions Nos. 41, 43 and 44 together. I attended the 32nd British Irish Council (BIC) Summit which was hosted in Manchester by the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, Rt. Hon David Lidington MP on Friday 28 June. I was accompanied by the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment, Richard Bruton TD. First Ministers from Scotland, Wales...

Written Answers — Department of An Taoiseach: Taoiseach's Meetings and Engagements (10 Jul 2019)

Leo Varadkar: A Plenary Meeting with Churches, Faith Communities and Non-Confessional Organisations was held on Thursday 4 July 2019 in Dublin Castle. Discussion at the Meeting focused on three main themes: effective structured dialogue; inclusive and diverse communities; and education. The Meeting offered a good opportunity to discuss what a new relationship between Church and State might look like....

Written Answers — Department of An Taoiseach: Departmental Shareholdings (10 Jul 2019)

Leo Varadkar: Neither the Department of the Taoiseach nor the Taoiseach on behalf of the Department hold shares in any entity.

Written Answers — Department of An Taoiseach: Departmental Contracts Data (10 Jul 2019)

Leo Varadkar: My Department does not procure any security services. The National Economic & Social Development Office (NESDO), which is the only body under the aegis of my Department, does not procure any security services.

Ceisteanna - Questions: Departmental Operations (9 Jul 2019)

Leo Varadkar: As I said earlier in relation to my Department, there are no protected disclosures on hand at present. With regard to GSOC, I do not have that information to hand but I will inform GSOC that Deputy Burton has raised these questions here and I will ask GSOC to provide a reply to her. Deputy McDonald raises some issues about particular protected disclosures. I am conscious that protected...

Ceisteanna - Questions: Departmental Operations (9 Jul 2019)

Leo Varadkar: I am the Minister for Defence but the Government has delegated responsibility for defence and almost all of the associated functions to the Minister of State, Deputy Kehoe. I will get an update on those particular matters from the Minister of State and I will respond, in my name, to the Deputies' queries.

Ceisteanna - Questions: Freedom of Information Data (9 Jul 2019)

Leo Varadkar: I am not familiar with the specifics of the freedom of information request to which Deputy Micheál Martin referred. I imagine there has been little contact with media owners and probably a lot with individual journalists and editors. I will, however, check on that because it is not something that I am familiar with or that I have been briefed about. Regarding personal emails, the...

Ceisteanna - Questions: Departmental Operations (9 Jul 2019)

Leo Varadkar: I propose to take Questions Nos. 6 and 7 together. The Protected Disclosures Act 2014 provides a robust statutory framework which aims to provide protections to whistleblowers who raise concerns regarding potential wrongdoing in their workplace. These protections apply to workers in all sectors of the economy, both public and private. They protect whistleblowers from being penalised by...

Ceisteanna - Questions: Cabinet Committee Meetings (9 Jul 2019)

Leo Varadkar: To explain, the Brexit Cabinet sub-committee is just one mechanism by which people can meet. I do not believe Cabinet sub-committees exist under the Constitution. The Cabinet is the main mechanism by which Ministers meet. We have had 25 detailed Cabinet discussions on Brexit. Ministers, officials and advisers meet, and we did so only yesterday with a meeting of my officials and advisers...

Ceisteanna - Questions: Cabinet Committee Meetings (9 Jul 2019)

Leo Varadkar: The senior officials group also meets. This is the main co-ordinating body on the Civil Service side. The main co-ordinating body on the political side is the Cabinet. On Rosslare, the matter to which Deputy Burton referred falls into the TEN-T regulation and that is revised periodically. We would have to wait for the next time the TEN-T regulation, which is connected to the connecting...

Ceisteanna - Questions: Freedom of Information Data (9 Jul 2019)

Leo Varadkar: From 1 January 2017 to the end of May this year, the Department received 1,069 freedom of information requests. Of these, 230 were fully granted, 502 were partially granted, 89 were refused and no records were held in relation to 182 requests. A total of 62 requests were either transferred, withdrawn or handled outside the freedom of information process, while four requests are ongoing....