Results 1,321-1,340 of 45,495 for speaker:Simon Harris

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (23 Oct 2024)

Simon Harris: With the cacophony of noise it is hard to concentrate. Including in respect of the Deputy's own local hospital, the Mater Hospital, I went through the material difference that has made in terms of hundreds of additional nurses working on the ground, thousands of extra doctors, thousands of extra healthcare professionals. The Deputy can say all that and she can acknowledge that to be true,...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (23 Oct 2024)

Simon Harris: In relation to agency, I guarantee you if the Minister for Health said tomorrow that we are not doing any more agency, despite all this recruitment, your Deputies would be writing to me saying "what about this?" and "what about that?".

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (23 Oct 2024)

Simon Harris: There is always a need for flexibility and agility when it is hard to fill posts. We are recruiting record levels, more than ever. We have set a target of a two-thirds reduction in agency staff in 2025. The Deputy made a very important point that I ant to deal with directly about radiation therapists and cancer treatment. This is a real issue and I thank her for raising it. There are...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (23 Oct 2024)

Simon Harris: Thank you, a Cheann Comhairle. I thank Deputy Bacik who is clearly raising an important issue here----

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (23 Oct 2024)

Simon Harris: ---- which deserves to be treated with the seriousness with which the question is asked. Of course education is a vitally important issue. The Deputy is right to highlight that there are some challenges and pinch points in respect of recruitment that I want to deal with directly. We need to remind ourselves again that the vast majority of allocated teaching posts are of course filled....

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (23 Oct 2024)

Simon Harris: Very shortly we are probably going to ask the people of Ireland to elect a citizens' assembly called the Dáil. I do not want to mislead the Deputy or the House on that. It is unlikely that there will be any further citizens' assemblies proposed by this Government. I would like to say on the record of the House that I do see merit in a citizens' assembly on education. We have had...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (23 Oct 2024)

Simon Harris: I thank Deputy McDonald for raising important issues in our health service and recruitment into our health service. Of course, the reason we talk about numbers of people working in our health service is because we all want to see improved patient outcomes and improved patient wait times. I will dwell on that in a moment. A bit of context that is important when we are discussing health...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (23 Oct 2024)

Simon Harris: She does not need any help. Deputy McDonald is right that there is an importance to the whole issue of safe staffing and the safe staffing framework. Indeed, I would have worked on this when I was in the Department of Health. The Minister, Deputy Donnelly, has done huge work on this. I am pleased to tell the House and, more importantly, people watching at home that the safe nursing...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (23 Oct 2024)

Simon Harris: I will get you a figure for Kerry but that has gone up, too, Deputy.

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (23 Oct 2024)

Simon Harris: Let me tell the Deputy this, because it is too important to shout and interrupt here. In terms of waiting times, it means that we are seeing waiting times fall. They are not falling in the North, they are not falling in the UK, they are not falling in most of Europe but they are falling here in Ireland. Wait times for outpatient services have reduced from 13.2 months in July 2021 to seven...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (23 Oct 2024)

Simon Harris: Says you.

Written Answers — Department of An Taoiseach: Departmental Strategies (23 Oct 2024)

Simon Harris: I propose to take Questions Nos. 14 and 15 together. The Shared Island Initiative continues to progress working with all communities and political traditions for a shared future, underpinned by the Good Friday Agreement. Inclusive dialogue with all communities and political traditions is central to our approach. Earlier this month, I launched a new Future Takes online interview series as...

Written Answers — Department of An Taoiseach: Departmental Advertising (23 Oct 2024)

Simon Harris: The table below details expenditure by the Department of the Taoiseach on advertising from 2015 to September 2024. As set out below, most advertising expenditure occurred in 2020, 2021 and 2022 and relates to public information campaigns during COVID-19, which played a vital role in communicating the various strands of the pandemic including the supports made available by Government. ...

Written Answers — Department of An Taoiseach: Cabinet Committees (23 Oct 2024)

Simon Harris: The Cabinet Committee on Northern Ireland was created on 10 April 2024 to oversee implementation of programme for Government commitments and ongoing developments related to Northern Ireland. Its membership comprises me as Taoiseach, the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Defence, and the Ministers for the Environment, Climate and Communications and Transport, Justice,...

Written Answers — Department of An Taoiseach: Cabinet Committees (23 Oct 2024)

Simon Harris: The next meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Government Co-ordination is scheduled for Tuesday, 29 October 2024.

Written Answers — Department of An Taoiseach: Taoiseach's Meetings and Engagements (23 Oct 2024)

Simon Harris: I propose to take Questions Nos. 23 to 25, inclusive, together. I visited Washington D.C. earlier this month to mark 100 years of diplomatic relations between Ireland and the United States. This is an especially important landmark, as the United States was the first international partner to recognise the fledgling Irish State. My planned programme included a meeting at the White House...

Ceisteanna - Questions: Taoiseach's Meetings and Engagements (22 Oct 2024)

Simon Harris: While I remember it, I will start with the Deputy's point about the hub, which is a good idea. I am very eager to engage, and to have our counterparts here engage, with Ministers Murphy and Archibald on it. If that has not happened, I will ask that it does. It is a sensible suggestion that the Deputy has made. He also referenced the case of Sean Brown. I will say, on the record of the...

Ceisteanna - Questions: Cabinet Committees (22 Oct 2024)

Simon Harris: Regarding Deputy Barry's point about bus services, the commitments given by Minister for Transport yesterday were given in good faith after his engagement with Bus Éireann on these matters. I will continue to keep a close eye on this. I hope to be back in this House too. If we are, I am sure both of us will continue to monitor this issue and no doubt, Deputy Barry will continue to...

Ceisteanna - Questions: Taoiseach's Meetings and Engagements (22 Oct 2024)

Simon Harris: I propose to take Questions Nos. 11 to 15, inclusive, together. I welcomed the UK Prime Minister, Keir Starmer, to Farmleigh House on 7 September. His visit to Dublin followed our meeting in Chequers on 17 July, when we resolved to have a reset of the Irish-British relationship. At Farmleigh, we agreed to take forward strategic co-operation across four pillars, which we set out in the...

Ceisteanna - Questions: Cabinet Committees (22 Oct 2024)

Simon Harris: These questions get more interesting the closer you get to the end of this Dáil. I propose to take Questions Nos. 5 to 10, inclusive, together. The Cabinet committee on the economy and investment was re-established by the Government on 10 April and most recently met on 1 July. The next meeting of the Cabinet committee has not yet been scheduled. The membership of the committee...