Results 16,321-16,340 of 40,330 for speaker:Leo Varadkar

Leaders' Questions (28 Nov 2017)

Leo Varadkar: As in the normal course of events, either he will take questions after that or he will take questions as Minister for Justice and Equality, as he does on a routine basis.

Leaders' Questions (28 Nov 2017)

Leo Varadkar: Of course, there will also be questions on promised legislation later and tomorrow as well. To answer the Deputy's other question, I ordered the trawl of documents because I had to come to the House twice to correct the record as I had not received full information from the Department of Justice and Equality. I ordered the trawl that allowed these documents to be found and I put them in the...

Leaders' Questions (28 Nov 2017)

Leo Varadkar: I received an interim report on Saturday. I wanted to see what was in the interim report and I wanted to talk to the former Tánaiste about the content of those emails. More than that, I wanted to end the drip, drip of information, emails and email threads emerging day after day. That is the reason I waited until I had the full report on Monday. When I had it, we put it in the public...

Leaders' Questions (28 Nov 2017)

Leo Varadkar: Not for the first time the Deputy's question is a little confused. He started by saying how pleased he was the people would not have to tolerate a general election before Christmas and finished by saying we needed to have one as soon as possible; therefore, it is a little hard to reply to questions of that nature.

Leaders' Questions (28 Nov 2017)

Leo Varadkar: I did not request that I not take Leaders' Questions today. If anybody made that request, it certainly did not come from me. I am here two days a week to answer questions for the best part of three hours. I am happy to do so and will continue to do so.

Leaders' Questions (28 Nov 2017)

Leo Varadkar: I will continue to do so for as long as I hold this office. It was never and will never be my intention to plunge the country into an unnecessary general election. I did everything I could over the weekend and in the past few days to ensure that would not be the case because we have a lot of work to do as a Government, not least with phase one and phase two of the Brexit talks coming up....

Leaders' Questions (28 Nov 2017)

Leo Varadkar: I have already answered the Deputy McDonald's question. Last week I ordered a trawl of all the documents and Members have seen the outcome of that already. I ordered a progress report on the implementation of the Toland report and Members have seen the output of that already. As of today, I am ordering an external inquiry into why the Department of Justice and Equality did not find those...

Leaders' Questions (28 Nov 2017)

Leo Varadkar: -----and why they were not sent on to the tribunal.

Leaders' Questions (28 Nov 2017)

Leo Varadkar: I am absolutely open to suggestions for who should carry it out but the norm in these circumstances is for it to be carried out by a Secretary General of another Department or of the Government. It may be the case that a reason cannot be discovered for why these documents were missed but I want to find out, for my own information at the very least. We will deal with it when we have an...

Leaders' Questions (28 Nov 2017)

Leo Varadkar: It is of deep regret to me that he did not actually see that email, that document for another week, when I saw it. Perhaps if he had seen it, we might have been in a different situation today but he acted absolutely appropriately in saying the email should be sent on to the tribunal, which is exactly where these documents are supposed to end up.

Leaders' Questions (28 Nov 2017)

Leo Varadkar: -----it did not stop her putting down a motion of confidence in the Tánaiste.

Leaders' Questions (28 Nov 2017)

Leo Varadkar: That is because for Deputy McDonald and the Sinn Féin Party this was never about getting to the truth or ensuring fair play; it was just about getting ahead and scoring points. Now, they are just trying to figure out on whom they can inflict damage next.

Leaders' Questions (28 Nov 2017)

Leo Varadkar: That is not the way honourable parties and politicians should operate.

Leaders' Questions (28 Nov 2017)

Leo Varadkar: The allegations that have been made against Deputy Fitzgerald by Deputy McDonald are now matters for the tribunal. I hope that, after this episode, Members on all sides of the House will at least allow the tribunal to do its work and hear evidence in the calm, judicious way in which tribunals operate and to give us the full facts. It will be interesting to see what the outcome of that...

Leaders' Questions (28 Nov 2017)

Leo Varadkar: I never want to be put in that position again. The House can be sure I will be holding the Department and its senior officials to account to ensure that neither I nor any Minister or Member of the Dáil will ever be put in that position again.

Leaders' Questions (28 Nov 2017)

Leo Varadkar: There were indeed emails from gardaí to officials in the Department of Justice and Equality, but not among those which were in the public domain last Thursday or the one to which the Deputy referred in her contribution last Thursday, which was that of 15 May 2015. The latter was entirely an email involving officials, advisers and the Minister.

Leaders' Questions (28 Nov 2017)

Leo Varadkar: I thank the Deputy. I assure the Deputy that neither I nor anyone on this side of the House has any fear of genuine accountability. Every time I come to the House, I act in good faith and tell the truth as I believe it to be. I put on the record the facts as they are given to me. If Members of the Deputy's party down the years and today acted with that level of standard, honesty and truth,...

Leaders' Questions (28 Nov 2017)

Leo Varadkar: I can confirm that arrangements are being made for the Minister for Justice and Equality, Deputy Charles Flanagan, to make a statement to the House to apologise for the failure of his Department to answer questions fully in the past couple of weeks, to offer further assurance that questions which have not yet been answered will be answered in full and that in the future he will ensure, as...

Leaders' Questions (28 Nov 2017)

Leo Varadkar: I will add to that by acknowledging that Deputy Micheál Martin, as leader of Fianna Fáil, and the Fianna Fáil Party engaged in good faith with me and the Government over the weekend in our efforts to avert an unnecessary general election. Both parties were always of the view that an election should be avoided if it could be. I regret that it necessitated the resignation of a...

Termination of Ministerial Appointment: Announcement by Taoiseach (28 Nov 2017)

Leo Varadkar: I wish to announce for the information of the House that I am advising the President to accept the resignation of Deputy Frances Fitzgerald as a member of the Government and that I have accepted the Minister's resignation with regret. I have nominated myself to serve as Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation for a temporary period in addition to my existing duties pursuant to...