Results 10,601-10,620 of 40,330 for speaker:Leo Varadkar

Written Answers — Department of An Taoiseach: Cabinet Committee Meetings (26 Jun 2019)

Leo Varadkar: Cabinet Committee D works to ensure a co-ordinated approach in the areas of infrastructure investment and delivery, housing and climate action. The Cabinet Committee last met on 27 May 2019 and its next meeting has not yet been scheduled. Since then the Government published the Climate Action Plan, which aims to give Irish people a cleaner, safer and more sustainable future. This...

Written Answers — Department of An Taoiseach: Taoiseach's Meetings and Engagements (26 Jun 2019)

Leo Varadkar: I travelled to Luxembourg following the European Council in Brussels on Friday 21 June. I had a bilateral meeting with Prime Minister Bettel, as well as engagements at the European Investment Bank and the European Court of Justice. Ireland and Luxembourg are, of course, like-minded on many EU matters and, in my meeting with Prime Minister Bettel, our discussions covered bilateral...

Ceisteanna - Questions: Cabinet Committee Meetings (25 Jun 2019)

Leo Varadkar: I do and I appreciate her recognition that we had come to a good outcome and resolution of the issues around establishing a special school in Dublin 15. That will open in the autumn and it is a first for the Dublin 15 area. That was achieved without a need for a Cabinet sub-committee and there are many ways to get things done.

Ceisteanna - Questions: Cabinet Committee Meetings (25 Jun 2019)

Leo Varadkar: I will get back to her on the school completion programme. The Government absolutely acknowledges the challenges we face in recruiting and retaining consultants in the public health service. They are particularly severe when it comes to psychiatry and small hospitals but they are not unique to those areas by any means. I have read some reports on this, including the Public Servicer Pay...

Ceisteanna - Questions: Cabinet Committee Meetings (25 Jun 2019)

Leo Varadkar: As Deputy Micheál Martin said, there are more coming in than are going out.

Ceisteanna - Questions: Cabinet Committee Meetings (25 Jun 2019)

Leo Varadkar: It is positive.

Ceisteanna - Questions: Cabinet Committee Meetings (25 Jun 2019)

Leo Varadkar: He said something approaching it. It is a fact either way that there are now more doctors working in our public health service than ever before. There are also more on the medical register than ever before.

Ceisteanna - Questions: Cabinet Committee Meetings (25 Jun 2019)

Leo Varadkar: I checkedpublicjobs.iejust the other day and there are currently only 20 consultant posts being advertised there. Others may be advertised through the voluntary bodies but on publicjobs.ieonly 20 posts are being advertised at present. It seems we will need a fresh approach as notwithstanding the issues around pay, there are also issues around the recruitment process. It has far too many...

Ceisteanna - Questions: Cabinet Committee Meetings (25 Jun 2019)

Leo Varadkar: That would follow a 1.75% increase for all staff in September, an increase earlier this year and, of course, an increase for new entrants, as well as increments. The matter should be considered in the round. Deputy Pearse Doherty referred to a code of practice and I believe it is long defunct and it has not applied for quite some time.

Ceisteanna - Questions: Cabinet Committee Meetings (25 Jun 2019)

Leo Varadkar: If a loan is sold on, the customer retains all the same legal and contractual rights, and that is as it should be. I am a little bemused to hear Sinn Féin throwing the Irish Fiscal Advisory Council's criticisms at the Government's fiscal policy. I know Sinn Féin's fiscal and budgetary policy, which is on record. It is that we should have spent and borrowed more and that we should...

Ceisteanna - Questions: Cabinet Committee Meetings (25 Jun 2019)

Leo Varadkar: The Sinn Féin policy was to spend and borrow more, increasing the deficit every year.

Ceisteanna - Questions: Cabinet Committee Meetings (25 Jun 2019)

Leo Varadkar: It might be useful for Opposition parties to consider whether they would be willing-----

Ceisteanna - Questions: Cabinet Committee Meetings (25 Jun 2019)

Leo Varadkar: -----to have their budget proposals submitted to IFAC to see if thinks much of them.

Ceisteanna - Questions: Cabinet Committee Meetings (25 Jun 2019)

Leo Varadkar: I have not finished answering.

Ceisteanna - Questions: Cabinet Committee Meetings (25 Jun 2019)

Leo Varadkar: I shall continue to answer the questions. I do not agree with Deputy Pearse Doherty's assessment on corporation tax; it is quite the contrary. We have mitigated our exposure to risks from the very high levels of corporation tax we are receiving by setting up a rainy day fund. There is €1.5 billion in it already and an extra €500 million will be added.

Ceisteanna - Questions: Cabinet Committee Meetings (25 Jun 2019)

Leo Varadkar: Our receipts projections indicate the amount of corporation profit tax that we will take in this year will be less than what we took in last year. Again, it was prudent not to assume the graph would always go up and we are basing our projections on the graph turning and receipts going down this year. We have also increased capital spending, and there has been a 25% increase in capital...

Ceisteanna - Questions: Cabinet Committee Meetings (25 Jun 2019)

Leo Varadkar: Deputy Boyd Barrett is aware of our policy on the social mix in housing. Inasmuch as it is possible, it is desirable to have communities with a social mix and people with all sorts of backgrounds and different incomes in different types of housing. Most people in the House would agree on that approach. We do not want to build the massive sprawling estates that we saw so much of in the...

Ceisteanna - Questions: Cabinet Committee Meetings (25 Jun 2019)

Leo Varadkar: -----down the road.

Ceisteanna - Questions: Cabinet Committee Meetings (25 Jun 2019)

Leo Varadkar: I am doing my best. I am condemned for not answering questions but when I do, I am interrupted. This is not really a forum where much opportunity is given-----

Ceisteanna - Questions: Cabinet Committee Meetings (25 Jun 2019)

Leo Varadkar: Thank you.