Results 141-160 of 5,661 for speaker:Alan Dillon

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Weather Events (4 Mar 2025)

Alan Dillon: The Extreme Weather Event Assistance Scheme is a commitment in the Programme for Government and is designed to support affected households, farms and businesses. This initiative predates Storm Éowyn and is a strategic policy action for delivery within the timeframe of the current Government. While the full details of this scheme are still to be fully worked through, the broad aim...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Grant Payments (4 Mar 2025)

Alan Dillon: My Department facilitates the creation of high quality, sustainable enterprises, and employment in all sectors (including the hospitality sector) across Ireland. To achieve this, my Department and its Agencies provide a range of enterprise supports to businesses. The Local Enterprise Offices provide direct grant assistance to a wide range of small businesses. However, I understand that...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Departmental Advertising (4 Mar 2025)

Alan Dillon: The Enterprise Ireland CEO competition has been launched both inside and outside of the State. In terms of outside of the State, this role has been advertised via - Recruit Ireland (Executive Jobs) posting – which attracts an international candidate market; - Executive Search Partner, Odgers Berndtson, who have an extensive international footprint across 30+ locations and who are...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Health and Safety (4 Mar 2025)

Alan Dillon: The Health and Safety Authority (HSA) carries out investigations completely independently of the Minister. The Minister has no role or influence in any investigation being carried out and does not interfere in any way. Officials in my Department contacted the HSA regarding this particular matter and they advised they have commenced a criminal investigation into the incident which occurred...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Job Losses (4 Mar 2025)

Alan Dillon: The rules governing collective redundancies are set out in the Protection of Employment Act 1977, as amended. Collective redundancies arise where, during any period of 30 consecutive days, the employees being made redundant are: 5 employees where 21-49 are employed, 10 employees where 50-99 are employed, 10% of the employees where 100-299 are employed, 30 employees where 300 or more are...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Arts Council (27 Feb 2025)

Alan Dillon: The Design & Crafts Council Ireland (DCCI) is an independent organisation that supports the development of design and craft in Ireland. My Department provides funding to the DCCI through Enterprise Ireland. The DCCI has advised that it has not commenced any legal action against any individual or group of makers.

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Business Supports (26 Feb 2025)

Alan Dillon: The Government is committed to developing Ireland’s enterprise base by backing small businesses and start-ups, scaling up indigenous firms. I encourage any small business to contact their Local Enterprise Office (LEO) for support, advice and guidance. The LEO plays an extremely important role at local level, as part of a supportive ecosystem, providing their services direct to...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Enterprise Support Services (25 Feb 2025)

Alan Dillon: The Government is committed to supporting small businesses across the country and to supporting positive jobs creation, both of which the Local Enterprise Offices play a key role in. The LEOs play an extremely important role at local level, as part of a supportive ecosystem, providing their services direct to small businesses and promoting entrepreneurship within towns and communities across...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Enterprise Support Services (25 Feb 2025)

Alan Dillon: Since 2017, my Department has allocated over €150 million to regional enterprise development projects through a variety of schemes and funds administered by Enterprise Ireland. Much of this funding has supported the development of enterprise hubs and centres around the country with many of these projects aligned to the nine Regional Enterprise Plans. Enterprise hubs and centres...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Work Permits (25 Feb 2025)

Alan Dillon: Ireland operates a managed employment permits system maximising the benefits of economic migration and minimising the risk of disrupting Ireland’s labour market. The system is vacancy-led and managed through the operation of the Critical Skills Occupations List (CSOL) and the Ineligible Occupations List (IOL). In framing policy regarding employment permits, consideration is given to...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: National Broadband Plan (20 Feb 2025)

Alan Dillon: I thank Deputy Moynihan for raising this important issue. The national broadband plan, NBP, is the Government's initiative to deliver high-speed broadband services to all premises in Ireland. National Broadband Ireland is connecting more than 4,000 homes each month. In the Deputy’s own county of Cork, more than 36,490 premises are passed with a high-speed broadband network and...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: National Broadband Plan (20 Feb 2025)

Alan Dillon: The Deputy raised an important point. NBI has done a tremendous job on the roll-out. It is an all-of-Ireland contract across each of the Twenty-six Counties and significant progress has been made, as I said. More than 65,000 homes, farms and businesses are being moved to early completion dates in 2025, nine months earlier than had been originally scheduled, so NBI has made significant...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: National Broadband Plan (20 Feb 2025)

Alan Dillon: I understand the Deputy's frustration and the passion he has for the delivery of this in the areas he represents. However, there has been significant progress in the priority areas such as deployment to schools and enterprise hubs and in ensuring that they have the right manpower in each of the areas to cover each of the regions. We have seen the success in many communities in terms of what...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Energy Policy (20 Feb 2025)

Alan Dillon: Certainly, the potential is enormous. I talked to the Minister, Deputy O'Brien, and officials about this really important matter yesterday. Work has commenced on the implementation of the strategy in parallel with the delivery of many of the 21 actions currently in place that I outlined earlier. The delivery and commencement programme this year will be an important step forward in that...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Energy Policy (20 Feb 2025)

Alan Dillon: This is something that the Department is engaging with the industry on, including with many of the key stakeholders in the industry who are working in the area of hydrogen itself, along with the Health and Safety Authority, HSA. We are working on this from a safety point of view, as well as in terms of best practice to ensure that we have the best and safest practices going forward. As...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Energy Policy (20 Feb 2025)

Alan Dillon: I thank the Deputy for raising this important matter. The national hydrogen strategy was published in July 2023 and is our first major policy statement on renewable hydrogen. It marks an important first step in developing an indigenous hydrogen industry in Ireland. The strategy sets out our strategic vision for the role that hydrogen will play in Ireland’s energy system and as a key...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Departmental Contracts (20 Feb 2025)

Alan Dillon: I thank Deputy Coppinger for raising this important matter. My Department complies with public procurement guidelines for goods and services and relevant EU and national legal requirements and obligations. The aim of these European and national rules is to promote an open, competitive and non-discriminatory public procurement regime which delivers best value for money. Public procurement...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Departmental Contracts (20 Feb 2025)

Alan Dillon: I thank the Deputy. I am not fully familiar with the Veolia situation. The current approach is comprehensive, adequate and proportionate and aligns with the EU principles of openness, fairness and transparency. With all State contracts, each bidder in the procurement process must sign a statement confirming that if it is awarded any service contract, it will in the performance of that...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Departmental Contracts (20 Feb 2025)

Alan Dillon: We have a really strong track record in respect of our Office of Government Procurement and contract obligations. I am not aware of the situation the Deputy has raised with the company in question. There is a cohort of mechanisms in place within the employment law framework here in Ireland in conjunction with the Labour Court and the WRC, and also within the Departments of enterprise and...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Low Pay (20 Feb 2025)

Alan Dillon: Go raibh maith agat. It is an issue I have raised with the Department in preparation for today's Oral Questions. We do want this economic impact assessment to be provided, evaluated and reviewed. As I said, we have made substantial increases in the national minimum wage. The current system for youth rates is a percentage of the full minimum wage. They have also seen an increase in recent...