Results 13,241-13,260 of 29,533 for speaker:Brendan Howlin
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Disposal of State Assets and Quarterly Review: Discussion with Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform (19 Jun 2013)
Brendan Howlin: The focus of our State companies must be on investing in our economy and creating jobs on this island. That is certainly the Government's view. Not everything State companies have done in recent years have been in the interest of the stakeholder. That is why we are introducing a much more disciplined approach, under NewERA, to ensure the Irish people get full value for their investment....
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Disposal of State Assets and Quarterly Review: Discussion with Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform (19 Jun 2013)
Brendan Howlin: The troika is fully apprised of everything we do, step by step.
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Disposal of State Assets and Quarterly Review: Discussion with Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform (19 Jun 2013)
Brendan Howlin: The troika has understood about the Aer Lingus situation for months.
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Disposal of State Assets and Quarterly Review: Discussion with Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform (19 Jun 2013)
Brendan Howlin: Because the troika members would have been aware of the intervention of the UK Competition Authority and the implication that had for the sale in the short term.
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Disposal of State Assets and Quarterly Review: Discussion with Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform (19 Jun 2013)
Brendan Howlin: Obviously it would make no sense at all to make any decision about Aer Lingus while the actual shareholding of another significant shareholder in the company was under scrutiny.
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Disposal of State Assets and Quarterly Review: Discussion with Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform (19 Jun 2013)
Brendan Howlin: If it was still a wholly State-owned company I would probably agree with the Deputy. However, I am afraid the small shareholding that we now have, which is not only a minority shareholding but a small enough minority shareholding, unfortunately is not strategic in the sense that it can no longer influence the policy of the company. That was a decision made by a previous Government.
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Disposal of State Assets and Quarterly Review: Discussion with Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform (19 Jun 2013)
Brendan Howlin: I do not know and if I did know I would not tell this committee.
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Disposal of State Assets and Quarterly Review: Discussion with Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform (19 Jun 2013)
Brendan Howlin: That is what I am advised.
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Disposal of State Assets and Quarterly Review: Discussion with Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform (19 Jun 2013)
Brendan Howlin: I did not ask.
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Disposal of State Assets and Quarterly Review: Discussion with Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform (19 Jun 2013)
Brendan Howlin: The only question I asked was whether it was likely we would get a fair value in our own estimations for these companies and the advice was that we would.
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Disposal of State Assets and Quarterly Review: Discussion with Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform (19 Jun 2013)
Brendan Howlin: No, I did not.
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Disposal of State Assets and Quarterly Review: Discussion with Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform (19 Jun 2013)
Brendan Howlin: It would be strange if I were confident that one single bidder would possibly give us the price. The Deputy can be certain that there clearly is competitive bidding. That is the advice I have been given. To put it bluntly, I have gone to extraordinary lengths to stay away from knowledge of who is bidding, the number of bidders or the prices they are bidding at. I will leave that to a...
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Disposal of State Assets and Quarterly Review: Discussion with Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform (19 Jun 2013)
Brendan Howlin: There is certainly more than one.
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Disposal of State Assets and Quarterly Review: Discussion with Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform (19 Jun 2013)
Brendan Howlin: Yes; there is competitive bidding.
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Disposal of State Assets and Quarterly Review: Discussion with Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform (19 Jun 2013)
Brendan Howlin: Obviously the company is in discussion with its own unions. Those particular State companies have very elaborate industrial relations machinery, and the discussions are ongoing. I am not party to them. I suggest the Deputy talk to the companies directly or to the line Ministers in order to find out the specific details.
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Disposal of State Assets and Quarterly Review: Discussion with Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform (19 Jun 2013)
Brendan Howlin: Other than to know that workers' interests are fully comprehended in the process.
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Disposal of State Assets and Quarterly Review: Discussion with Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform (19 Jun 2013)
Brendan Howlin: I will accept the good wishes of Deputy Boyd Barrett on the Government decision. He is correct that we are a listening Government. The criteria we set down for the sale of any asset is simple: it must make economic sense. Bluntly, this is not anything ideological. If the sale of these harvesting rights made economic sense I would be recommending a sale to the Government. However, it does...
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Disposal of State Assets and Quarterly Review: Discussion with Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform (19 Jun 2013)
Brendan Howlin: I am saying that the plan we had for the investment-----
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Disposal of State Assets and Quarterly Review: Discussion with Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform (19 Jun 2013)
Brendan Howlin: We will be selling Coillte's trees because that is why Coillte grows trees.
- Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Disposal of State Assets and Quarterly Review: Discussion with Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform (19 Jun 2013)
Brendan Howlin: That is what Coillte has always done. However, we are not proceeding with the advance sale of the harvesting rights; that is off the agenda. The Deputy should not confuse the two issues.