Results 1,261-1,280 of 32,441 for speaker:Richard Bruton

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Climate Change Policy (11 May 2023)

Richard Bruton: 81. To ask the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the preparations that have been undertaken in his Department to develop a circular economy strategy in key economic sectors; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21544/23]

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Climate Change Policy (11 May 2023)

Richard Bruton: Ireland has not been good at either constructing buildings or enterprises that put sustainability at their core. We have 50% higher emissions and a low uptake of renewables outside of electricity, poor material and waste management systems and the lowest rate of circularity, bar Romania, in Europe. Does the Minister agree he has a central role in addressing this?

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Climate Change Policy (11 May 2023)

Richard Bruton: While we have now decided that is where we want to go, we are certainly not very advanced on the path. We passed legislation providing that every sector should have a strategy for circularity but I do not see sectoral strategies being evolved. The Dutch, who are the leaders in this field, have such strategies. We need to offer enterprise and consumers much more information on the...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Departmental Strategies (11 May 2023)

Richard Bruton: I appreciate the Minister's commitment to this area. It is one area where we would benefit from a set of succinct policy proposals that are built around stronger leadership, a stronger culture towards entrepreneurship and better opportunities for people to decide to set up their own business from within companies that are successful. A sustained focus on that, with policy instruments around...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Departmental Strategies (11 May 2023)

Richard Bruton: 70. To ask the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if he has plans to update the strategy for entrepreneurship; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21543/23]

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Departmental Strategies (11 May 2023)

Richard Bruton: I apologise for not being here earlier. The House is very efficient and speeding through the work. A key long-term investment for Ireland is to build a much stronger culture of entrepreneurship and stronger hubs around it. Will the Minister consider updating the strategy put in place some years ago? Time has passed considerably since then and it needs to be looked at again.

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Departmental Strategies (11 May 2023)

Richard Bruton: During the deep recession when we lost 300,000 jobs we would have lost 400,000 jobs were it not for the fact that people set up businesses that in the most difficult times created 100,000 jobs. Almost 10,000 businesses a year are formed. The obsession with high potential start-ups is misplaced. There will be only 100 of them per year and this will be pushed up to 120. We need to look at...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: National Development Plan (11 May 2023)

Richard Bruton: 12. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform if the recent patterns in demographic growth require a revision in the national development plan; and what are the key areas which he has identified where additional investment in transformative changes or in capacity is required. [21546/23]

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: National Development Plan (11 May 2023)

Richard Bruton: Everyone will agree that the world has changed dramatically in the past number of years. In that context, I will ask about the national development plan, NDP. Funding is not now a problem but there are huge capacity constraints. How does the Department plan for us to break out of the siloed thinking that has hampered much of our investment in the past?

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: National Development Plan (11 May 2023)

Richard Bruton: In short, the Department is saying, "God's in his heaven - All's right with the world!". I invite the Minister of State to challenge the thinking that lay behind that answer. The reality is we are seeing transformative change in the world we live in. There is a new expectation, for example, regarding offshore wind, or our capacity to build compact developments that do not just see...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: National Development Plan (11 May 2023)

Richard Bruton: I welcome the changes made to the delivery board but that board is essentially focusing on projects we have already signed up to. The reality is there are huge infrastructural bottlenecks that were not anticipated because of the change of expectations. We are now trying to deliver a 51% reduction in emissions, for example. That is much more ambitious than what we had previously. We need...

Written Answers — Department of Public Expenditure and Reform: Legislative Measures (11 May 2023)

Richard Bruton: 45. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform if he has reviewed the operation of the legislation which mandated the preparation of strategy statements, annual reporting against objectives and systematic annual evaluation of a rolling number of key programmes; his views on whether it has achieved its objectives; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21714/23]

European Year of Skills: Statements (10 May 2023)

Richard Bruton: When I was Minister for Education and Skills, when education and skills were harnessed together, I set a target to make Ireland the best education and skills provider in Europe by 2026. I do not know whether that is still monitored. An important approach to governance is to have such bold ambitions. Ireland has a lot to be proud of in this context. We achieved the fastest expansion of...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Engagement with the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment (10 May 2023)

Richard Bruton: I welcome the Minister and thank him for his time and presentation. I will talk about what I regard as one of the biggest challenges we face, that is, around achieving sustainable growth. We will not have long-term prosperity without it. Ireland's record is pretty dismal. Our emissions are 50% higher than the EU average. Our circularity rate, which measures the extent to which we harvest...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Tax Collection (9 May 2023)

Richard Bruton: 60. To ask the Minister for Finance if he is satisfied that the debts under tax warehousing can be successfully wound down by businesses; and if he has evolved methods for Revenue of working with companies who may have difficulties. [21510/23]

An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (9 May 2023)

Richard Bruton: As interest rates continue to rise and borrowers are coming under very severe pressure, it is very noticeable that the net margins of banks are also growing significantly. Yesterday the stock value of one Irish bank rose by just 4% in just a day. Would it be timely for the Government to review consumer protections and to sit down with the Central Bank, the Financial Services and Pensions...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Engagement with the Commission for Regulation of Utilities (9 May 2023)

Richard Bruton: I thank the witnesses for the presentation. I thought I heard a report today about serious arrears levels among consumers. The CRU's statement seems to suggest arrears are lower than they were. Maybe we could have a comment on that. On the take-up of the smart meters, at the moment it is 7% which seems very low for such a large investment. What is the target for that? What percentage...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Engagement with the Commission for Regulation of Utilities (9 May 2023)

Richard Bruton: Will the witnesses comment on the gas arrears and the target for the smart meters?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Engagement with the Commission for Regulation of Utilities (9 May 2023)

Richard Bruton: With disconnection bans gone, can the CRU manage to bring those arrears back down? Do we need to worry about it from a policy perspective or can it be managed by the CRU's interaction with the suppliers?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Engagement with the Commission for Regulation of Utilities (9 May 2023)

Richard Bruton: How high are arrears in absolute terms, as a percentage, or however the CRU measures them?