Results 13,261-13,280 of 50,151 for speaker:Micheál Martin

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 1 - President's Establishment (Revised)
Vote 2 - Taoiseach (Revised)
Vote 3 - Attorney General (Revised)
Vote 5 - Director of Public Prosecutions (Revised)
Vote 6 - Chief State Solicitor's Office (Revised) (9 Feb 2022)

Micheál Martin: No, that process is still ongoing and has not concluded.

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 1 - President's Establishment (Revised)
Vote 2 - Taoiseach (Revised)
Vote 3 - Attorney General (Revised)
Vote 5 - Director of Public Prosecutions (Revised)
Vote 6 - Chief State Solicitor's Office (Revised) (9 Feb 2022)

Micheál Martin: It has probably been going on for a good 12 months, although I would have to check on that.

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 1 - President's Establishment (Revised)
Vote 2 - Taoiseach (Revised)
Vote 3 - Attorney General (Revised)
Vote 5 - Director of Public Prosecutions (Revised)
Vote 6 - Chief State Solicitor's Office (Revised) (9 Feb 2022)

Micheál Martin: Yes-----

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 1 - President's Establishment (Revised)
Vote 2 - Taoiseach (Revised)
Vote 3 - Attorney General (Revised)
Vote 5 - Director of Public Prosecutions (Revised)
Vote 6 - Chief State Solicitor's Office (Revised) (9 Feb 2022)

Micheál Martin: As I said, I have not interfered with the Secretary General in relation to the broader issue or this issue, which was of course an issue of concern. The Government has focused on dealing with the substantive issues around the commission of investigation into the mother and baby homes. We moved at pace in respect of both the payment scheme that has been introduced and the Birth Information...

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 1 - President's Establishment (Revised)
Vote 2 - Taoiseach (Revised)
Vote 3 - Attorney General (Revised)
Vote 5 - Director of Public Prosecutions (Revised)
Vote 6 - Chief State Solicitor's Office (Revised) (9 Feb 2022)

Micheál Martin: I just want to make the point regarding the recommendations of the commission itself. This is because I think this will turn out to be an unprecedented time for actual delivery on issues that, unfortunately, have been around for a long time and with which the previous Oireachtas could not deal. The legal advice was that we could not, in terms of the investigation that has been undertaken....

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 1 - President's Establishment (Revised)
Vote 2 - Taoiseach (Revised)
Vote 3 - Attorney General (Revised)
Vote 5 - Director of Public Prosecutions (Revised)
Vote 6 - Chief State Solicitor's Office (Revised) (9 Feb 2022)

Micheál Martin: I cannot give that information here because-----

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 1 - President's Establishment (Revised)
Vote 2 - Taoiseach (Revised)
Vote 3 - Attorney General (Revised)
Vote 5 - Director of Public Prosecutions (Revised)
Vote 6 - Chief State Solicitor's Office (Revised) (9 Feb 2022)

Micheál Martin: Again, I am awaiting its conclusion. Once this is concluded, we will deal with----

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 1 - President's Establishment (Revised)
Vote 2 - Taoiseach (Revised)
Vote 3 - Attorney General (Revised)
Vote 5 - Director of Public Prosecutions (Revised)
Vote 6 - Chief State Solicitor's Office (Revised) (9 Feb 2022)

Micheál Martin: I am not in the position-----

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 1 - President's Establishment (Revised)
Vote 2 - Taoiseach (Revised)
Vote 3 - Attorney General (Revised)
Vote 5 - Director of Public Prosecutions (Revised)
Vote 6 - Chief State Solicitor's Office (Revised) (9 Feb 2022)

Micheál Martin: To be fair, public officials put a lot of work into a lot of issues. The broad Estimate covers the man-hours and the work that people put into a whole range of issues.

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 1 - President's Establishment (Revised)
Vote 2 - Taoiseach (Revised)
Vote 3 - Attorney General (Revised)
Vote 5 - Director of Public Prosecutions (Revised)
Vote 6 - Chief State Solicitor's Office (Revised) (9 Feb 2022)

Micheál Martin: No, I would not accept that.

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 1 - President's Establishment (Revised)
Vote 2 - Taoiseach (Revised)
Vote 3 - Attorney General (Revised)
Vote 5 - Director of Public Prosecutions (Revised)
Vote 6 - Chief State Solicitor's Office (Revised) (9 Feb 2022)

Micheál Martin: I have not involved myself in the investigation.

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 1 - President's Establishment (Revised)
Vote 2 - Taoiseach (Revised)
Vote 3 - Attorney General (Revised)
Vote 5 - Director of Public Prosecutions (Revised)
Vote 6 - Chief State Solicitor's Office (Revised) (9 Feb 2022)

Micheál Martin: How does the Deputy know that there is not one?

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 1 - President's Establishment (Revised)
Vote 2 - Taoiseach (Revised)
Vote 3 - Attorney General (Revised)
Vote 5 - Director of Public Prosecutions (Revised)
Vote 6 - Chief State Solicitor's Office (Revised) (9 Feb 2022)

Micheál Martin: Could the Deputy repeat that? Would I challenge them?

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 1 - President's Establishment (Revised)
Vote 2 - Taoiseach (Revised)
Vote 3 - Attorney General (Revised)
Vote 5 - Director of Public Prosecutions (Revised)
Vote 6 - Chief State Solicitor's Office (Revised) (9 Feb 2022)

Micheál Martin: That is an issue that we would have to consider at the time. There is the whole history and journey of relations between Ireland and Britain. The British and Irish Governments have avoided that type of litigation or legal process in modern times. Let us be clear, the relationship between the two Governments has been transformed over the past 30 years. That is a very good thing. We have...

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 1 - President's Establishment (Revised)
Vote 2 - Taoiseach (Revised)
Vote 3 - Attorney General (Revised)
Vote 5 - Director of Public Prosecutions (Revised)
Vote 6 - Chief State Solicitor's Office (Revised) (9 Feb 2022)

Micheál Martin: I want to make the point that we believe that this is the correct route right now. We believe that it would be very damaging indeed if the British Government were to pursue this. There is, as the Deputy knows, a mechanism in the agreement and in the British-Irish Intergovernmental Conference, BIIGC. The Minister for Foreign Affairs, Deputy Coveney, has engaged in that process and on that...

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 1 - President's Establishment (Revised)
Vote 2 - Taoiseach (Revised)
Vote 3 - Attorney General (Revised)
Vote 5 - Director of Public Prosecutions (Revised)
Vote 6 - Chief State Solicitor's Office (Revised) (9 Feb 2022)

Micheál Martin: I have not interfered with the conduct of this or with the manner by which the senior official within the Department is approaching it. It is also dealing with the management of documents for Government meetings and with the protection of the confidentiality. My understanding, however, is that the process has not been completed. Obviously, we endeavour to bring that to a conclusion.

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 1 - President's Establishment (Revised)
Vote 2 - Taoiseach (Revised)
Vote 3 - Attorney General (Revised)
Vote 5 - Director of Public Prosecutions (Revised)
Vote 6 - Chief State Solicitor's Office (Revised) (9 Feb 2022)

Micheál Martin: On the Deputy's overall point, since Brexit, the British Government has had wider issues that I think are impacting on its perspectives on Northern Ireland. We can compare this with previous British governments, for example, the governments led by Tony Blair or John Major. The relationship between John Major's government and Albert Reynolds's Government was key to the Downing Street...

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 1 - President's Establishment (Revised)
Vote 2 - Taoiseach (Revised)
Vote 3 - Attorney General (Revised)
Vote 5 - Director of Public Prosecutions (Revised)
Vote 6 - Chief State Solicitor's Office (Revised) (9 Feb 2022)

Micheál Martin: The Deputy has made a fair point. This British Government seems to be taking more of a union stance - it is concerned about Scotland - and it is manifesting itself in many ways. We need to pivot again and we need to-----

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 1 - President's Establishment (Revised)
Vote 2 - Taoiseach (Revised)
Vote 3 - Attorney General (Revised)
Vote 5 - Director of Public Prosecutions (Revised)
Vote 6 - Chief State Solicitor's Office (Revised) (9 Feb 2022)

Micheál Martin: Not only do we need to strengthen our message, but the British-Irish joint approach to the issues of the Good Friday Agreement in the North must be repositioned and the British Government needs to move away from what I detect to be a degree of unilateralism regarding legacy, protocols and so on.

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 1 - President's Establishment (Revised)
Vote 2 - Taoiseach (Revised)
Vote 3 - Attorney General (Revised)
Vote 5 - Director of Public Prosecutions (Revised)
Vote 6 - Chief State Solicitor's Office (Revised) (9 Feb 2022)

Micheál Martin: I take the Deputy's point on a number of fronts. The DUP represents a very important constituency. It represents people of particular views in Northern Ireland. That needs to be respected as we must respect the UUP and the views it represents. Notwithstanding that we might disagree with some of the policies the parties might present, we need to respect that they have electoral mandates. ...