Results 10,621-10,640 of 50,136 for speaker:Micheál Martin
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Gender Equality: Recommendations of the Report of the Citizens’ Assembly on Gender Equality: Discussion (Resumed) (12 Oct 2022)
Micheál Martin: When I reference referendum commissions, I have been through it in the past. Once an allegation is made that a referendum commission is not allowed to do its job, that increases suspicion about what they are at and what the elite are at by putting a referendum on citizens when it has not been fully explained, and whether they are covering something up. That is my point. We have improved...
- Ceisteanna - Questions: Cabinet Committees (11 Oct 2022)
Micheál Martin: First, in regard to drug reform, Deputy Gino Kenny outlined the appalling death toll in Ireland from drug abuse. There are a number of approaches to dealing with this. I think part of the issue we have is that there tend to be stop-start initiatives. We need a continuous perseverance in communities in regard to drug traffickers and all of that, as well as in terms of giving young people...
- Ceisteanna - Questions: Cabinet Committees (11 Oct 2022)
Micheál Martin: Let us help the person in need, not engage in cross-examination. That is my position and I am making it absolutely clear legislation will not see any provision of that kind.
- Ceisteanna - Questions: Cabinet Committees (11 Oct 2022)
Micheál Martin: I will come back on that. Again, this is breaking new ground, to be fair to the Minister. It is a very good start but we will revisit it. Deputy Bacik raised the issue of funding for Acquired Brain Injury Ireland. I will look at that. It does fantastic work and I think it needs multi-annual funding. I have visited the organisation on many occasions. I believe it should also benefit...
- Ceisteanna - Questions: Cabinet Committees (11 Oct 2022)
Micheál Martin: I have dealt with the issue raised by Deputy Barry in my answer to Deputy O'Reilly's point about the leave entitlement of five days versus ten days.
- Ceisteanna - Questions: Cabinet Committees (11 Oct 2022)
Micheál Martin: In response to Deputy Bríd Smith, there is a dilemma here. In the first instance, the response to climate change must be global. It has to involve all the states insofar as that is possible. That includes Egypt and many other states whose political systems or systems of governance are obviously not what we would be happy with. Through the European Union, we consistently raise issues...
- Ceisteanna - Questions: Cabinet Committees (11 Oct 2022)
Micheál Martin: I did not decide on its location.
- Ceisteanna - Questions: Cabinet Committees (11 Oct 2022)
Micheál Martin: It has been decided; I am not going to change that.
- Ceisteanna - Questions: Cabinet Committees (11 Oct 2022)
Micheál Martin: The issue for us is whether we attend. That seems to be what the Deputy raised. We have to have a voice on the climate issue. We made significant contributions at COP26, as did the European Union. If anything, the European Union and United States led the charge on climate at COP26. Together with Japan and other countries, there is now potential that we can get better outcomes. I refer...
- Ceisteanna - Questions: Cabinet Committees (11 Oct 2022)
Micheál Martin: -----and not just within Europe. We need to convert those outside of Europe as well and persuade them towards this agenda. Deputy Cullinane raised the issue of solar panels. The Minister, Deputy Darragh O'Brien, announced good moves recently around planning around schools and houses and so on. Basically, we want to make it as fast as we possibly can in terms of the planning process....
- Ceisteanna - Questions: Cabinet Committees (11 Oct 2022)
Micheál Martin: The point is that we will need offshore wind.
- Ceisteanna - Questions: Cabinet Committees (11 Oct 2022)
Micheál Martin: The European Commission made a call on this as well, by the way. It is looking at a planning instrument to say the overriding public interest demands that we provide offshore wind.
- Ceisteanna - Questions: Cabinet Committees (11 Oct 2022)
Micheál Martin: No. It is to track climate change. They are not-----
- Ceisteanna - Questions: Cabinet Committees (11 Oct 2022)
Micheál Martin: They are not choosing their own sites here.
- Ceisteanna - Questions: Cabinet Committees (11 Oct 2022)
Micheál Martin: That is not what the Deputy said or what he was talking about.
- Ceisteanna - Questions: Cabinet Committees (11 Oct 2022)
Micheál Martin: I assumed the Deputy was talking about the trade-off between how we designate marine protected areas and how we have offshore wind as well-----
- Ceisteanna - Questions: Cabinet Committees (11 Oct 2022)
Micheál Martin: -----and that is the point. The point is that there will be trade-offs. There will have to be compromises because the overall good will be served by offshore wind if we take out fossil fuels. That is to the benefit of biodiversity. It is to the benefit of climate. We have to make a call and make the hard decisions-----
- Ceisteanna - Questions: Cabinet Committees (11 Oct 2022)
Micheál Martin: -----and hard decisions will have to be made about this. We cannot start one week attacking the fossil fuel and energy companies one week, however, and the next week start attacking industrial offshore wind. The bottom line of the Deputy's agenda is that anything to do with industry or anyone who is about investment is bad. That seems to be the Deputy's position.
- Ceisteanna - Questions: Cabinet Committees (11 Oct 2022)
Micheál Martin: In terms of the-----
- Ceisteanna - Questions: Cabinet Committees (11 Oct 2022)
Micheál Martin: I would say that-----