Results 14,921-14,940 of 50,297 for speaker:Micheál Martin

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (3 Nov 2021)

Micheál Martin: I thank the Deputy for raising what is a very important issue and I share his impatience. We want to get this done as fast as we possibly can. I was in Cobh recently, as was, I believe, the Deputy. This was a very significant achievement by Irish Water on the wastewater treatment system that is now operational and in place in the lower harbour region of Cork and significant progress was...

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (3 Nov 2021)

Micheál Martin: -----if we are serious about all of these issues as a country and as an Oireachtas, we need to get a bit real in how we deliver these projects faster. They are just being held up all over the place across the board and we cannot afford the luxury of doing that anymore.

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (3 Nov 2021)

Micheál Martin: Everybody needs to be honest. The farmers do not believe that what we are proposing is anything other than too much.

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (3 Nov 2021)

Micheál Martin: Let us all be honest here. The farming representatives have a view that what is being proposed is excessive.

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (3 Nov 2021)

Micheál Martin: I am just taking that point. The Deputy is giving the impression that they would appreciate if there were higher targets set for them. They would not, actually.

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (3 Nov 2021)

Micheál Martin: They need supports and they will be provided with them. We need a more diverse approach to farming in income streams to give opportunities to farming. We need to work with farmers. As I said earlier, there is a very significant hunger in the farming community for its capacity to reduce costs through alternative energy solutions, and that is something that I am very supportive of, but again...

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (3 Nov 2021)

Micheál Martin: We need to be clear about this. The Deputy reported the figure of 3,726 cases and he almost, by juxtaposition, blames schools for this. This is an incredible presentation and it is not the case.

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (3 Nov 2021)

Micheál Martin: The issue is this. It is vital that children go to school and that their full range of development is catered for. That is the first priority and objective. What is the biggest issue facing children right now, if you talk to public health people or to people in hospitals? I was in Clonmel on Friday and met the paediatrician, the director of nursing in the paediatric ward there. The...

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (3 Nov 2021)

Micheál Martin: I think that there will be a role, having spoken to the Chief Medical Officer, for antigen testing in specific areas, in schools and so on.

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (3 Nov 2021)

Micheál Martin: I will engage with the Minister for Justice on that Bill and legislation, where it is and I will come back to the Deputy on that.

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (3 Nov 2021)

Micheál Martin: I thank the Deputy for raising this issue, which is impacting on many businesses, people and homeowners throughout the country. The Government is very aware of the affordability issues and the difficulties very often with getting adequate insurance cover and availability of cover for certain businesses, particularly in the leisure sector and the sector the Deputy has just outlined....

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (3 Nov 2021)

Micheál Martin: I ask the Deputy to send on the details of the situation to me and the background to it. I fully commend the work of Air Bound with children with disabilities and special needs. Unfortunately, under the EU Solvency II legislation, the Government is prohibited from setting insurance premiums so there is no silver bullet. However, I would like to hear more detail on the background to this....

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (3 Nov 2021)

Micheál Martin: ----and are we prepared to allow them properly-----

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (3 Nov 2021)

Micheál Martin: Yes. I am absolutely serious.

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (3 Nov 2021)

Micheál Martin: I made that clear yesterday. When we were in opposition as a party, we supported the carbon tax, for example, even though-----

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (3 Nov 2021)

Micheál Martin: -----it would have been far easier for us to oppose it as an Opposition party, like the current party opposite has done.

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (3 Nov 2021)

Micheál Martin: We have worked to be progressive on the issue for a number of years. I am very serious about it, because we simply do not have time-----

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (3 Nov 2021)

Micheál Martin: -----as a race, to hang around any longer without dealing with climate change. We have to do it.

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (3 Nov 2021)

Micheál Martin: I would prefer it if the Deputy was a bit more engaging and was an advocate for change, as opposed to nitpicking all the time.

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (3 Nov 2021)

Micheál Martin: The first point I would make is that the prism through which the Deputy sees climate change really is in the overall world view he has about what he calls the political establishment, and his perception of an elite capitalist caste that is responsible for all the ills in the world and for climate change itself. He believes that nobody else has a role to play. As he does with every other...