Results 15,761-15,780 of 40,330 for speaker:Leo Varadkar

Seanad: Statement by the Taoiseach (1 Feb 2018)

Leo Varadkar: I think the term the Senator is looking for is "workable alternatives".

Seanad: Statement by the Taoiseach (1 Feb 2018)

Leo Varadkar: I will leave that to the committee.

Seanad: Statement by the Taoiseach (1 Feb 2018)

Leo Varadkar: I thank the Chair, Leader and Senators for their speeches, contributions and questions. I do not think I will be able to cover them all in the time I have and I do not know all the answers to the questions. However, I will do my best to touch on some of the topics that were mentioned more than once. Housing was one of those topics. In the run-up to Christmas, I took the opportunity to try...

Seanad: Statement by the Taoiseach (1 Feb 2018)

Leo Varadkar: I have been in Limerick recently and it is great to see that city with cranes all over the place as a consequence of Limerick 2030. Jobs are being created everywhere. Out in Shannon, where passenger numbers are being increased again, new jobs are being created. Take the Shannon estate for example. It was 60% vacant a few years ago. It is now 90% full. Those are the real things that are...

Seanad: Statement by the Taoiseach (1 Feb 2018)

Leo Varadkar: Those are all towns that I have been to in recent times that are doing well. However, I do acknowledge that the recovery is happening at different speeds and at different speeds in different places. Even within Dublin, there are communities where there has been very little recovery. I refer to communities with long-term economic and social problems, including some in my own constituency....

Seanad: Statement by the Taoiseach (1 Feb 2018)

Leo Varadkar: I have said that what we want to build is a republic of opportunity. It is about a vision for the future rather than celebrating everything as it is now, because everything is not worthy of celebration at the moment in our country. However, it does not mean equality of outcome – I will be straight with Senators about that. To me equality of outcome, if we really mean it, means that...

Ceisteanna - Questions (Resumed) - Taoiseach's Meetings and Engagements: Supplementary Questions: Cabinet Committee Meetings (31 Jan 2018)

Leo Varadkar: I will do my best to answer as many direct questions as I can, but it is not always possible to answer questions directly when one does not have the answers or information in front of one or one's mind. We have this cycle most years in respect of the health service budget. The levels of activity are set out in the Health Service Executive, HSE, service plan for the numbers of outpatient...

Ceisteanna - Questions (Resumed) - Taoiseach's Meetings and Engagements: Supplementary Questions: Cabinet Committee Meetings (31 Jan 2018)

Leo Varadkar: Every year they are met or exceeded.

Ceisteanna - Questions (Resumed) - Taoiseach's Meetings and Engagements: Supplementary Questions: Cabinet Committee Meetings (31 Jan 2018)

Leo Varadkar: I do not accept the contention that the things set out in the HSE service plan will not be delivered. I think they will be because pretty much every year the level of activity has increased. At the same time, there is almost always a financial challenge during the year which we must work out and almost always it requires a Supplementary Estimate. It is hard to do it because the financial...

Ceisteanna - Questions (Resumed) - Taoiseach's Meetings and Engagements: Supplementary Questions: Cabinet Committee Meetings (31 Jan 2018)

Leo Varadkar: I hope that when Michelle O'Neill is back behind her desk, that matter will be sorted out. The index ranked us very highly on matters such as smoking prevention, blood pressure, vaccinations, cancer survival rates and potential years of life lost. It is a mixed picture, but it is not surprising. It is poor on access but reasonably good on patient outcomes and experiences. I discussed...

Ceisteanna - Questions (Resumed) - Taoiseach's Meetings and Engagements: Supplementary Questions: Cabinet Committee Meetings (31 Jan 2018)

Leo Varadkar: No; I cannot. It is important to distinguish between cardiology services and 24-hour primary percutaneous coronary intervention, PCI. They are not quite the same. Primary PCI for 24 hours is a highly specialised service that can be provided only in a relatively small number of regional centres. In the entirety of Scotland which has a population of 5 million people it might be provided in...

Ceisteanna - Questions (Resumed) - Taoiseach's Meetings and Engagements: Supplementary Questions: Cabinet Committee Meetings (31 Jan 2018)

Leo Varadkar: It is a question of ensuring quality because if the operators are not doing enough cases, the standard falls and the outcomes are worse.

Ceisteanna - Questions (Resumed) - Taoiseach's Meetings and Engagements: Supplementary Questions: Cabinet Committee Meetings (31 Jan 2018)

Leo Varadkar: I propose to take Questions Nos. 19 to 21, inclusive, together. Cabinet committee E covers issues relating to the health service, including health system reforms. The committee last met on 23 November and will meet again on 15 February. In addition to meetings of the full Cabinet and Cabinet committees, I meet Ministers individually, as required, on particular issues. In this regard, I...

Ceisteanna - Questions (Resumed) - Taoiseach's Meetings and Engagements: Supplementary Questions: Taoiseach's Meetings and Engagements (31 Jan 2018)

Leo Varadkar: What was secured back in December is there in black and white for anyone to see and anyone to read. It is there in the joint report, which was agreed between the European Union and the United Kingdom. It contains specific "commitments" - that is the term used - from the UK Government in respect of the avoidance of a hard border. It is now our objective to ensure that those commitments are...

Ceisteanna - Questions (Resumed) - Taoiseach's Meetings and Engagements: Supplementary Questions (31 Jan 2018)

Leo Varadkar: Prime Minister Orbán gave me and the Minister of State, Deputy Helen McEntee, quite a lot of time. There was an opportunity for the two of us to understand, parse and analyse his philosophy a little better. Essentially, he believes in four pillars: Christianity, the Hungarian nation, the family and competitiveness. Even though his party is part of the same political family as mine, it...

Ceisteanna - Questions (Resumed) - Taoiseach's Meetings and Engagements: Supplementary Questions (31 Jan 2018)

Leo Varadkar: What happened in Venezuela was not that socialism was not implemented properly but that it was implemented to the letter.

Ceisteanna - Questions (Resumed) - Taoiseach's Meetings and Engagements: Supplementary Questions: Taoiseach's Meetings and Engagements (31 Jan 2018)

Leo Varadkar: I propose to take Questions Nos. 11 to 18, inclusive, together. I last spoke to Prime Minister May on Thursday, 7 December, as I reported to the House on 12 December. I had no scheduled bilateral meeting with the Prime Minister around the European Council meeting on 14 December, although I did see her and we discussed a number of issues, both on a one-to-one basis and as part of group...

Questions on Promised Legislation (31 Jan 2018)

Leo Varadkar: I will certainly commit to doing that and to getting a proper answer for the Deputy.

Questions on Promised Legislation (31 Jan 2018)

Leo Varadkar: There is no legislation promised on this matter. It would be best raised with the relevant Minister. However, I am told that Minister of State, Deputy Jim Daly, has committed to visiting the unit in the coming weeks and meeting with residents and family members.

Questions on Promised Legislation (31 Jan 2018)

Leo Varadkar: I am very aware of the issue and the Deputy has that commitment. I gave that commitment to the Irish Farmers' Association at its annual meeting not so long ago. I have met Commissioner Hogan, Commissioner Katainen, Commissioner Vestager, President Macron, who has a similar view on this matter, and the President of Argentina to discuss this and to relay our specific concerns around the...