Results 10,941-10,960 of 40,330 for speaker:Leo Varadkar

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (29 May 2019)

Leo Varadkar: It is managed through management, the WRC and the Labour Court. My understanding is that this is largely an inter-union dispute and that one union is going on strike while the other three are not. I am confident that the HSE will put in place the necessary contingency plans.

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (29 May 2019)

Leo Varadkar: The fair deal, or nursing home support, scheme is a very good scheme that has worked well and stood the test of time. I want to recognise the former Minister for Health, Mary Harney, and the Government of which she was a member, for bringing that through. It gives fair access to nursing home support to people when they need it. We are working very hard at the moment to ensure that we keep...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (29 May 2019)

Leo Varadkar: -----when it comes to the way it is being assessed. That legislation is overdue but we expect the heads to be at Cabinet in June, and we will see that through. The Deputy also asked about the difference in cost between public and private nursing homes. The Minister of State, Deputy Jim Daly, is doing an analysis of that at the moment. It is important to bear in mind that we are not...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (29 May 2019)

Leo Varadkar: I accept this is long promised and long overdue. We will get it done and see it through. The Minister of State, Deputy Jim Daly, assured me the heads will be before Cabinet in the month of June. It is nearly June now. After that it usually takes a few months for legislation to be drafted. The Bill will then be published. After that it is in the Deputy's hands, because he is a member of...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (29 May 2019)

Leo Varadkar: I do not control how long it takes to get through this House and the Seanad-----

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (29 May 2019)

Leo Varadkar: -----but we will certainly play our part.

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (29 May 2019)

Leo Varadkar: Even in a very wealthy country, and this is a wealthy country, there is only a certain amount of money. When we approach full employment, there is only a certain number of people who can possibly be recruited into the public workforce or the private workforce. Notwithstanding that, the Garda budget is at an all-time high of €1.7 billion and extra recruitment is happening every year....

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (29 May 2019)

Leo Varadkar: The report of the national review panel was published yesterday. I have not had a chance to read it yet but I have it and I will certainly read it before the end of the week. These terrible, tragic and appalling events which befell these young women are almost unspeakable and hard for us to even think about or speak about as human beings. They are events, though, that occurred in 2007 and...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (29 May 2019)

Leo Varadkar: I am advised that the reviewers concluded that it was unlikely that the abuse could have been uncovered prior to the disclosures. Once the abuse was disclosed in 2007, there was sufficient evidence for the long-term foster children to have been removed from the family. This did not happen. It should have happened and the report calls out some poor decision-making in that regard. No abuse...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (29 May 2019)

Leo Varadkar: I thank the Deputy for his question. We have a strong and proud Defence Forces in this State, ensuring the security of our State, protecting our democracy, asserting our sovereignty, dealing with subversive threats, participating in peacekeeping missions for the UN and the EU - for example, we recently extended the mission in Lebanon - and also providing essential aid to the civil power,...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (29 May 2019)

Leo Varadkar: I thank the Deputy for raising this important issue. I want to share with the House our collective revulsion at the killings that have happened in different parts of Dublin and Drogheda in recent weeks and to express solidarity with the communities in which these killings have happened. This is a matter which Cabinet discussed on Monday night at the specific request of the Minister of...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (29 May 2019)

Leo Varadkar: I heard former Commandant Berry’s interview yesterday when I was on my way to Brussels. It was a stinging criticism. Sometimes the Government needs to hear criticism and sometimes it needs to take it on board. I am very much aware of the anger among Defence Forces families and members about the current situation. When it comes to recruitment, it is actually going very well. We...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (29 May 2019)

Leo Varadkar: -----but we have a real problem with retention in that more people are leaving than are coming in. I have acknowledged that in the House in the past. This year, for example, we are investing an extra €50 million in our Defence Forces. There is a suggestion that this money is handed back. It is not.

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (29 May 2019)

Leo Varadkar: Up to €50 million extra is being invested in our Defence Forces this year. It is going into new vessels, new aircraft, new equipment, better and improved barracks, as well as improved pay and pensions for members and retired members of the Defence Forces. The Defence Forces are covered by the public sector pay agreement. We have a pay agreement across the entire public service...

Written Answers — Department of An Taoiseach: Taoiseach's Meetings and Engagements (29 May 2019)

Leo Varadkar: I travelled to Paris on 15 May for an event co-hosted by French President Emmanuel Macron and New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern in response to the terrorist attack on the Muslim community in Christchurch. I had the opportunity to speak with Prime Minister May and other leaders in the margins of the event. Prime Minister May expressed her hope at that stage that she would be able to...

Ceisteanna (Atógáil) - Questions (Resumed): Cabinet Committee Meetings (22 May 2019)

Leo Varadkar: The macroprudential rules are specifically designed to reduce the likelihood of a boom-bust cycle re-emerging. The report, in particular, warned of the increased vulnerabilities of the Irish commercial property sector, given the increase in foreign investment. The Department of Finance is very much aware of this issue and monitors it closely. Indeed, it was one of the reasons we increased...

Ceisteanna (Atógáil) - Questions (Resumed): Cabinet Committee Meetings (22 May 2019)

Leo Varadkar: I hope it is now evident to everyone that the economy is performing very well again this year. We know this from the labour force survey figures released by the CSO yesterday. It shows there has been a net increase in employment of 81,000 in the past year. There are now 2.3 million people working, more than ever before. The unemployment rate has fallen below 5%, representing a 14-year...

Ceisteanna (Atógáil) - Questions (Resumed): Cabinet Committee Meetings (22 May 2019)

Leo Varadkar: I thank the Deputies for their questions. I was asked about the establishment of the new national security analysis centre. By the end of quarter 2 of this year we anticipate having the following actions done: the appointment of the director of the national security analysis centre, which position has been advertised; identification and securing of premises; procurement of IT systems;...

Ceisteanna (Atógáil) - Questions (Resumed): Cabinet Committee Meetings (22 May 2019)

Leo Varadkar: I propose to take Questions Nos. 12 to 16, inclusive, together. Cabinet committee A covers issues relating to the economy. This includes rural issues under the action plan on rural development, covering the period 2017 to 2019. The Department of Rural and Community Development has commenced work on the next phase of rural development policy from 2020 onwards. It will seek to strengthen...

Ceisteanna (Atógáil) - Questions (Resumed): Cabinet Committee Meetings (22 May 2019)

Leo Varadkar: I thank the Deputies. As I have explained to the House in the past, I engage with Ministers and officials in all sorts of different ways, including through Cabinet meetings, which the Attorney General and Secretary General to the Government attend, Cabinet subcommittee meetings, at which a greater number of officials are present, and meetings with Ministers and officials. With regard to the...