Results 16,841-16,860 of 40,330 for speaker:Leo Varadkar

Leaders' Questions (25 Oct 2017)

Leo Varadkar: This does not sound like the language of somebody who is trying to lead his party into an agreement with the unionists or into co-operation with the British and Irish Governments.

Leaders' Questions (25 Oct 2017)

Leo Varadkar: This sounds like somebody who has already given up and is trying to spread the blame to others.

Leaders' Questions (25 Oct 2017)

Leo Varadkar: I have no difficulty speaking for myself. I think anyone in this House will know that I speak my mind and do not mince my words. I do not need to operate through Government briefings and I am not going to account for Government briefings any more than I would expect Deputy Adams to account for Sinn Féin briefings or unattributed sources in newspapers. What I have said, I have said...

Leaders' Questions (25 Oct 2017)

Leo Varadkar: First, on behalf of the Government, I want to once again express our very strong support for our Defence Forces - the Army, the Naval Service and the Air Corps. The Government is very proud of the role our Defence Forces play, whether it is around the world on missions such as in Mali, which I discussed with President Macron yesterday, or in Lebanon, whether it is in the context of what they...

Written Answers — Department of An Taoiseach: European Council Meetings (25 Oct 2017)

Leo Varadkar: Meetings of the European Council always provide useful opportunities to meet and interact with the Heads of State or Government of the other 27 EU Member States. I attended the October European Council in Brussels last week and, over the course of the two days, had the opportunity to engage with several of my EU counterparts. I was also invited, along with the Dutch Prime Minister, to join...

Written Answers — Department of An Taoiseach: Taoiseach's Meetings and Engagements (25 Oct 2017)

Leo Varadkar: I visited Derry on the 13th and 14th of October.On Friday 13th, I addressed the Londonderry Chamber of Commerce President's Dinner when I set out the Irish Government’s ongoing commitment to the peace process and North/South Co-operation, particularly in the context of Brexit.I also highlighted the success of cross-border co-operation in the North West and the future potential of the...

Written Answers — Department of An Taoiseach: European Council Meetings (25 Oct 2017)

Leo Varadkar: Although 'EU reform' was not an agenda item at the recent meeting of the European Council in Brussels, the Future of Europe was discussed over breakfast on Friday 20 October. This issue is part of an ongoing process, and has been discussed at a series of Informal Summits in Bratislava, Valletta, Rome and Tallinn. President Juncker and President Macron have also recently made useful...

Pre-European Council: Statements (18 Oct 2017)

Leo Varadkar: A Cheann Comhairle, tá áthas orm labhairt libh inniu roimh Chomhairle na hEorpa an Deireadh Fómhair, a thionólfar sa Bhruiséil ar an Déardaoin agus ar an Aoine seo chugainn. Is ea an dara uair a fhreastalóidh mé ar chruinniú foirmiúil de Chomhairle na hÉorpa ó cheapadh i mo Thaoiseach. Áirítear an Eoraip Digiteach;...

Ceisteanna - Questions: EU Summits (18 Oct 2017)

Leo Varadkar: If Commissioner Hogan made new comments today, I am not aware of them. I would prefer to see his comments in full and in context before commenting on them specifically. The informal dinner was very much about the future of Europe, including future co-operation and integration. It touched on what is already in train as a result of the Bratislava process, as well as the Juncker and Macron...

Ceisteanna - Questions: Cabinet Committee Meetings (18 Oct 2017)

Leo Varadkar: We have closed a loophole in respect of stateless companies. I read the Coffey report. We are closing some of the loopholes in respect of intellectual property. That was in the budget and will be addressed in the Finance Bill tomorrow. A very good report to read for anyone interested in this area is the report of the Comptroller and Auditor General from a number of weeks ago. It...

Ceisteanna - Questions: Cabinet Committee Meetings (18 Oct 2017)

Leo Varadkar: We have any number of economic strategies. I encourage Deputy Eamon Ryan to read them. They include, for example, the Action Plan for Jobs, the speech I made to IBEC outlining our five key economic policies, Enterprise 2025 and the trade strategy. There are any number of documents which could supply the Deputy with bedtime reading for a number of days and inform him fully of our...

Ceisteanna - Questions: EU Summits (18 Oct 2017)

Leo Varadkar: I propose to take Questions Nos. 11 to 16, inclusive, together. The digital summit in Tallinn was an important opportunity for EU leaders to discuss the evolution of digital technologies and their wide-ranging implications in a less formal setting than regular European Council business. The Estonian Presidency prepared a very useful, forward-looking agenda to stimulate discussion on how...

Ceisteanna - Questions: Cabinet Committee Meetings (18 Oct 2017)

Leo Varadkar: I intend that the capital plan will be considered by the Cabinet as a whole because it will have an impact on all Departments. I am not suggesting that it will not be discussed by individual Cabinet subcommittees as well. My intention is that it will be discussed and approved by the Cabinet as a whole. I would welcome the involvement of this House in discussing the ten-year capital plan...

Ceisteanna - Questions: Departmental Communications (18 Oct 2017)

Leo Varadkar: Most of the questions were very detailed and would really be more for a civil servant than a politician to answer. However, I will answer them as far as I can. I do not know who commissioned and designed the research, but I assume it was the director of the unit. The thinking behind the unit is very simple, one I hope most Members of the House will understand, namely, that if we do not...

Ceisteanna - Questions: Departmental Communications (18 Oct 2017)

Leo Varadkar: No. As I said, I am giving the House an example of the concept involved.

Ceisteanna - Questions: Departmental Communications (18 Oct 2017)

Leo Varadkar: That is correct. It was done separately. I am doing my best to answer the Deputy's question, with all of the others. The concept behind it, as used by governments across the world, is that when it comes to research, one cannot improve something, unless one can measure it. Separate from the strategic communications unit, the Department of Health has for the first time commissioned a...

Ceisteanna - Questions: Departmental Communications (18 Oct 2017)

Leo Varadkar: There will be no political advertising and no promotion of political parties. The Civil Service and public sector code will continue to apply in that regard. On the issue of costings, I cannot explain it any better. Cost-neutral is not the same as it will cost nothing. The money is being found within my Department and my departmental budget is, in fact, being reduced. The unit will...

Ceisteanna - Questions: Cabinet Committee Meetings (18 Oct 2017)

Leo Varadkar: I propose to take Questions Nos. 7 to 10, inclusive, together. Cabinet Committee A held its first meeting on 12September. Its focus is on economic issues, including implementation of the Action Plan for Jobs 2017 and preparation of a new, more focused, action plan for next year; labour market policies, including implementation of Pathways to Work and responding to emerging skills pressures;...

Questions on Promised Legislation (18 Oct 2017)

Leo Varadkar: The upgrading of the N4 and the N5 are included in the capital plan. We are very keen as a Government to see both roads upgraded as soon as possible because access to Sligo and Mayo in particular, and to Roscommon, is essential. It is one of the few parts of the country that is still quite remote from the motorway network. It is intended to bring these projects forward but I am not in a...

Questions on Promised Legislation (18 Oct 2017)

Leo Varadkar: I am afraid I cannot answer it but I will ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Deputy Creed, to contact the Deputies and to provide them with some information.