Results 11,221-11,240 of 21,128 for speaker:James Reilly

Seanad: Adjournment Matters: Local Authority Offices (17 Oct 2012)

James Reilly: I am responding to this Adjournment matter on behalf of my colleague, the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government, Deputy Phil Hogan, who is not available. I thank the Senator for raising it. Local authority office accommodation is a matter, in the first instance, for local authorities. However, they are expected to provide such accommodation in the most...

Seanad: Adjournment Matters: Local Authority Offices (17 Oct 2012)

James Reilly: I concur with the Senator that it does not make sense to rent premises for a prolonged period of time rather than building a new premises. Of course, one has to factor in maintenance costs. Obviously, a new building will require less maintenance than an older one. There will never be a better time to buy because property will never again be as cheap. We have a real opportunity to develop...

Seanad: Adjournment Matters: Third Level Grant Eligibility (17 Oct 2012)

James Reilly: I thank Senator Burke for raising this important matter which I am taking on behalf of the Minister for Education and Skills. Under the terms of the student grant scheme, grant assistance is awarded to students who meet the prescribed conditions of funding, including those which relate to nationality, residency, previous academic attainment and means. The nationality requirements for the...

Seanad: Adjournment Matters: Third Level Grant Eligibility (17 Oct 2012)

James Reilly: My pages do not correspond exactly with those of the Senator, so I am not quite sure to which paragraph he is alluding. However, I will alert the Minister, Deputy Quinn, to the issue and will facilitate a resolution of this in whatever way I can.

Seanad: Adjournment Matters: Hospital Services (17 Oct 2012)

James Reilly: More than 1.8 million medical cards have been issued to individuals, the highest number in the history of the State. It represents an increase of approximately 500,000 since the end of 2008. It is expected that the provision of GP services and prescription drugs under the general medical services scheme will cost almost ¤2 billion in 2012. We have already issued a further 35,000 medical...

Seanad: Adjournment Matters: Hospital Services (17 Oct 2012)

James Reilly: I acknowledge that the Senator has raised issues in this regard. Significant latitude was shown over the years, in the case of car loans and other loans, when the country was awash with money. We do not have the money now. We have 1.8 million people on medical cards and another 120,000 or more on GP cards. We want everybody in this country to have free GP care and we are moving towards...

Seanad: Adjournment Matters: Hospital Services (17 Oct 2012)

James Reilly: I thank the Senator for raising this matter and for the opportunity to clarify the position. Senator Maurice Cummins has also made several representations to me on this issue. Under the programme for Government 2011-2016, the Government committed to developing a universal, single-tier health service which guarantees access to medical care based on need, not income. On foot of this...

Seanad: Adjournment Matters: Hospital Services (17 Oct 2012)

James Reilly: I am afraid I must say to the Senator that it is broken and that is why it must be fixed. The Senator's party might say that the budget is broken, but it is not, but I am not trying to score points here. The bottom line is that the health service is not delivering the level of care it should and could do with the resources at its disposal. It has always been a mystery to me that this is...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Departmental Reports (17 Oct 2012)

James Reilly: The HSE provides a range of services to women who continue to suffer the effects of having undergone this procedure. These services include the provision of medical cards, the availability of independent clinical advice and the organisation of individual pathways of care and the arrangement of appropriate follow-up. My Department has commissioned an independent research report in relation...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Water Fluoridation (17 Oct 2012)

James Reilly: As this is a service matter, it has been referred to the HSE for direct reply.

Written Answers — Department of Health: Departmental Expenditure (17 Oct 2012)

James Reilly: The information requested by the Deputy is not routinely collected by my Department. However, I can assure the Deputy that both my Department and the agencies under its aegis make every effort to comply with the terms set out in the Prompt Payments of Accounts Act, 1997. My Department is committed to making every effort to pay its suppliers promptly. In line with Government Decision No....

Written Answers — Department of Health: Hospital Appointments Administration (17 Oct 2012)

James Reilly: As this is a service matter, it has been referred to the HSE for direct reply.

Written Answers — Department of Health: Departmental Reports (17 Oct 2012)

James Reilly: The Expert Group has met nine times and is making good progress towards finalising its report. They expect their report will be completed and submitted to me shortly and I will subsequently submit it to Government for its consideration.

Written Answers — Department of Health: Health Services Expenditure (17 Oct 2012)

James Reilly: The management and delivery of the health capital programme is a service matter. Therefore your question has been referred to the Health Service Executive for direct reply.

Written Answers — Department of Health: Lourdes Hospital Redress Scheme Extension (17 Oct 2012)

James Reilly: A commitment was given in the Programme for Government to seek a mechanism to compensate those women who were excluded on age grounds alone from the Lourdes Hospital Redress Scheme. The Scheme of Redress approved by Government was a non-statutory, ex-gratia scheme. Awards were determined by an independent Redress Board in 2007 and 2008. My Department has been engaged in a review to...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Patients Forums (17 Oct 2012)

James Reilly: I am not aware of any correspondence in relation to the proposed forum referred to by the Deputy but if the group concerned wish to submit proposals to my office they will be considered.

Written Answers — Department of Health: Hospital Appointments Administration (17 Oct 2012)

James Reilly: As this is a service matter, it has been referred to the HSE for direct reply.

Written Answers — Department of Health: Thalidomide Victims Compensation (17 Oct 2012)

James Reilly: I have met with both the Irish Thalidomide Association and the Irish Thalidomide Survivors Society. My Department has been in discussions with Dr. Paul O'Connell, Consultant Rheumatologist at Beaumont Hospital and Carmel Buckley, Health Service Executive Nurse Liaison, with regard to developing a health care assessment process for survivors of thalidomide living in Ireland. An element of...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Vaccination Programme (17 Oct 2012)

James Reilly: I propose to take Questions Nos. 298 and 304 together. In November 1977 the then Minister for Health established the Expert Medical Group on Whooping Cough Vaccination to - Examine persons who, it was claimed, had been permanently damaged by whooping cough vaccination, - Review the medical information available in relation to them and - Indicate whether, in its opinion, the damage was...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Vaccination Programme (17 Oct 2012)

James Reilly: I propose to take Questions Nos. 301 and 305 together. The Joint Oireachtas Committee Report on Childhood Immunisation dated July 2001 made over 18 recommendations in relation to the development of vaccination services for children in Ireland. Since that time the majority of the recommendations made in the report have been addressed and implemented. In relation to the recommendation...