Results 16,641-16,660 of 36,764 for speaker:Enda Kenny

Ceisteanna - Questions (Resumed): Freedom of Information Requests (29 Jan 2013)

Enda Kenny: Politics is about people, essentially, and government is about making decisions. Far from my going on a rant about Sinn Féin, Deputy McDonald was beside Deputy Adams, making peculiar facial expressions about Wexford and Kilkenny, and obviously could not resist the temptation to comment on that. The point is that it is about moving things along in the interests of people. The projects...

Ceisteanna - Questions (Resumed): Freedom of Information Requests (29 Jan 2013)

Enda Kenny: Of course.

Ceisteanna - Questions (Resumed): Freedom of Information Requests (29 Jan 2013)

Enda Kenny: That seems to be the rationale for putting in a lot of this stuff. Also on the website of the Department of the Taoiseach are the expense reports on foreign travel by the Taoiseach and Ministers of State, and reports on payments made to the Department's suppliers. My understanding is that most complaints in regard to freedom of information relate not to the processes of obtaining...

Ceisteanna - Questions (Resumed): Freedom of Information Requests (29 Jan 2013)

Enda Kenny: Perhaps the issue the Deputy is raising relates more to the accuracy or succinctness of the questions tabled for parliamentary reply in the first place. In the vast majority of questions Ministers are asked to make statements on individual issues. As a general rule, Ministers are anxious to supply information that should be public knowledge. The changes made in 2003 increased the exemption...

Ceisteanna - Questions (Resumed): Law Reform Commission (29 Jan 2013)

Enda Kenny: It is not my place to comment on any individual case that has been determined by a court. The clarification given by the judge involved in the case mentioned by the Deputy was very welcome. I had intended to meet the victim in the case, Mrs. Doyle. I have great admiration for her courage, which sends out the message that people who go through that horrific process should not be afraid to...

Ceisteanna - Questions (Resumed): Law Reform Commission (29 Jan 2013)

Enda Kenny: Not only must justice be done in these cases, but it must be seen to be done. We can reflect on the Deputy's suggestion for a sentencing council. Currently there is an appeal process from one court to the next. It is not a question of putting in place something that may cause even further backlogs in the judicial system. The growth of delays in the court process is part of what the...

Ceisteanna - Questions (Resumed): Freedom of Information Requests (29 Jan 2013)

Enda Kenny: I propose to take Questions Nos. 2 and 3 together. My Department received 153 FOI requests in 2012. Of the 153 requests received, 97 were granted or part-granted, 14 were refused, in 15 cases no records existed, 18 requests were withdrawn and there are nine requests ongoing. The Department applied €3,918.96 in charges to FOI requests made in 2012. Of this, €1,750.57 related...

Ceisteanna - Questions (Resumed): Law Reform Commission (29 Jan 2013)

Enda Kenny: The Law Reform Commission has initiated a comprehensive consultation process in order to develop proposals for its fourth programme of law reform. Following this consultation the commission intends to bring its proposals for the fourth programme to the Attorney General for her views early this year. I will then submit a draft programme to the Government for approval, as required by the Law...

Ceisteanna - Questions (Resumed): Law Reform Commission (29 Jan 2013)

Enda Kenny: The consultation process for the fourth programme began in October 2012. The commission posted a general notice on its website and invited submissions for consideration from various groups. The president of the commission sent out letters in October to a wide range of public bodies and non-governmental organisations inviting submissions on the fourth programme and it also wrote to the...

Ceisteanna - Questions (Resumed): Law Reform Commission (29 Jan 2013)

Enda Kenny: I have been examining the way in which legislation is produced for the Oireachtas. For many years Governments have published lists of legislation which they hoped to publish during Oireachtas sessions. Over the last couple of years these lists have come under pressure from troika requirements because the country happens to be in a programme. This has put additional pressure both on the...

Leaders' Questions (29 Jan 2013)

Enda Kenny: That would be a good speech from the back of a trailer outside Clonmel. I am glad to see the foremost member of the investigative troika in full flight. Compliments to him on his tie. My visit to Davos was not a sojourn, rathe, it was a working visit that involved meeting international business leaders and politicians. The dividends will speak for themselves in due course. The Deputy...

Leaders' Questions (29 Jan 2013)

Enda Kenny: In respect of the difference of opinion between the Deputy and me regarding the meaning of NewERA, in June 2012, the Minister for Health appointed Professor John Higgins to chair a strategic group on the establishment of hospital groups. That board has representatives with both national and international experience in health service delivery, governance and linkages with academic...

Leaders' Questions (29 Jan 2013)

Enda Kenny: The rationale behind the restructuring of the health system is to establish hospital groups to allow for increased operational autonomy within those groups and to have accountability for hospital services that will drive the service reforms and give the best possible outcome for patients. This is all part of the process of leading to a system where money follows the patient and where we...

Leaders' Questions (29 Jan 2013)

Enda Kenny: These projects have been in the pipeline since 2006. Deputy Adams will be aware that it is now 2013.

Leaders' Questions (29 Jan 2013)

Enda Kenny: The Wexford General Hospital accident and emergency unit operated out of a converted pharmacy. I do not know if Deputy Adams considers that suitable or whether he thinks it should continue in that situation. At St. Luke's General Hospital in Kilkenny, accident and emergency has operated from a portakabin since 2000. Any public representative will understand that these are major hospitals...

Leaders' Questions (29 Jan 2013)

Enda Kenny: Clearly, since this Government was appointed, waiting times have reduced significantly, while critical hospital infrastructure has been prioritised. The project in Wexford comprises an emergency department, including a maternity delivery suite and a theatre with necessary equipment, with a main entrance. The project is under construction and good progress is being made. Do not deny that...

Leaders' Questions (29 Jan 2013)

Enda Kenny: The St. Luke's hospital project comprises an emergency department, a medical assessment unit and a unit for day services, including endoscopy. Construction commenced in 2012 and the facilities are expected to be completed and operational by 2014. To the end of 2012, €1 million has been spent. Deputy Adams should consider the outcome. Instead of having more reports, more capital...

Leaders' Questions (29 Jan 2013)

Enda Kenny: Deputy Mary Lou McDonald is shaking her head. If she does not want these facilities made available to patients in those counties, she should stand up and say so.

Leaders' Questions (29 Jan 2013)

Enda Kenny: In the supplementary budget of 2009, the HSE's capital allocation was reduced by 32%. As a consequence, certain capital projects were deferred, or paused, as they like to call it in official terms. The Wexford and St. Luke's hospital projects were among those deferred. Despite the previous Minister's statement that urgent action was being taken and that the situation was unacceptable, the...

Leaders' Questions (29 Jan 2013)

Enda Kenny: In 2011, planning permission was in place for both locations and both projects had reached the detailed design stage. As it happens, in 2011, the Minister for Health, Deputy Reilly, made it crystal clear that his initial priority was to reduce the number of patients on trolleys, as set out in his policy on transforming the structure of health services delivery. As Deputies are aware, the...