Results 16,961-16,980 of 40,330 for speaker:Leo Varadkar

Leaders' Questions (17 Oct 2017)

Leo Varadkar: It was not raised with me by Fianna Fáil or by Sinn Féin or by any other party in fact.

Leaders' Questions (17 Oct 2017)

Leo Varadkar: The question I was asked was whether in the run up to the pre-budget discussions, Fianna Fáil raised the issue with me. Fianna Fáil did not. Did any other party? No, they did not. They might have done a year or two years ago but that is a different question.

Leaders' Questions (17 Oct 2017)

Leo Varadkar: That is not to say the matter was not raised in other discussions, perhaps with the Minister, Deputy Donohoe, but I was not at other discussions. As a Government we absolutely accept that there is a need to review this whole area, to examine anomalies and to come up with changes but those changes should not be made in isolation. If we are going to introduce pension reform we should do it...

Leaders' Questions (17 Oct 2017)

Leo Varadkar: This is a very complicated area. It is an area that took me quite some time to understand when I was Minister for Social Protection.

Leaders' Questions (17 Oct 2017)

Leo Varadkar: Based on a lot of the commentary I have heard and even some opinion pieces I saw in the newspapers yesterday, I believe it is not fully understood by many of those who write about it or comment on it. With regard to the comments of the Minister for Finance, Deputy Paschal Donohoe, it is very important to say his term "bonkers and unbelievable" referred to the existence of the marriage...

Leaders' Questions (17 Oct 2017)

Leo Varadkar: With regard to the dangerous trees, it is a very valid point and I will certainly ask the Minister, Deputy Eoghan Murphy, to engage with the County and City Management Association to see whether there is merit in a special programme to assess and remove some of the trees that may pose a danger to the public in future. The national mitigation plan on climate change was published-----

Leaders' Questions (17 Oct 2017)

Leo Varadkar: I do not have a date for the publication of the adaptation plan, but the mitigation plan was published a month or two ago after a special meeting in Celbridge. In terms of our response to climate change, Deputies will be aware of the budget announcements yesterday, which included provision for special incentives to encourage more people to use electric vehicles, additional funding for...

Leaders' Questions (17 Oct 2017)

Leo Varadkar: It is always possible to learn lessons and strengthen future responses in the case of a national emergency. Today the Cabinet decided that it would undertake a full evaluation of our response once the clean-up was complete and power and water had been restored to everyone in the country. It will take place prior to the next meeting of the Office of Emergency Planning in November. I very...

Written Answers — Department of An Taoiseach: Departmental Bodies Data (17 Oct 2017)

Leo Varadkar: There are no professional bodies or boards under the remit of my Department.

Written Answers — Department of An Taoiseach: Government Information Service (17 Oct 2017)

Leo Varadkar: I propose to take Questions Nos. 77 to 84, inclusive, 95 and 99 together. The Strategic Communications Unit (SCU) will be integrated within the Civil Service structures in my Department, with the Director of the Unit reporting to the Secretary General of the Department. The Civil Service Management Board (CSMB) has decided to establish a sub group of the CSMB which will act as a...

Written Answers — Department of An Taoiseach: Cabinet Committee Meetings (17 Oct 2017)

Leo Varadkar: Cabinet Committee E last met on 12 September 2017. It is scheduled to meet again in the coming weeks.

Written Answers — Department of An Taoiseach: Taoiseach's Meetings and Engagements (17 Oct 2017)

Leo Varadkar: On 31 August last I held my first formal meeting with representatives of the Catholic Church under the structured dialogue process. I intend to hold further meetings with other dialogue partners and I have asked my office to progress this matter and make the necessary arrangements. I hope to be in a position to meet next with representatives of the Church of Ireland, the Presbyterian...

Written Answers — Department of An Taoiseach: Seanad Reform (17 Oct 2017)

Leo Varadkar: I propose to take Questions Nos. 87 and 88 together. In the Programme for a Partnership Government, the Government stated its commitment to pursuing the implementation of the Report of the Working Group on Seanad Reform (the Manning Report). That Report was published in 2015 and it is available on my Department's website. One of the recommendations of the Report was the establishment of an...

Written Answers — Department of An Taoiseach: Northern Ireland (17 Oct 2017)

Leo Varadkar: I propose to take Questions Nos. 89 and 90 together. The Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade is keeping me informed on a regular basis on political developments in Northern Ireland and on his contact with the Northern parties and with the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland. The absence of an Executive in Northern Ireland continues to be a major concern for the Government who have been...

Written Answers — Department of An Taoiseach: Strategic Communications Unit (17 Oct 2017)

Leo Varadkar: I propose to take Questions Nos. 91 to 93, inclusive, 96 and 97 together. My Department's budget for 2018 has decreased by 2% compared to 2017. My Department does not have any budget for capital expenditure. The focus of the new Strategic Communications Unit established in my Department will be to streamline Government communications for citizens, develop and deliver major cross-Government...

Written Answers — Department of An Taoiseach: Brexit Issues (17 Oct 2017)

Leo Varadkar: Ongoing political engagement with our EU and international partners is crucial, especially as negotiations on Brexit proceed. I continue to use every opportunity to ensure that other Member States and the EU institutions fully understand our particular concerns arising from Brexit, to enable the best possible outcome for this country. Of course, other Ministers - particularly Minister...

Written Answers — Department of An Taoiseach: Tender Process (17 Oct 2017)

Leo Varadkar: My Department has seven tenders which are ongoing at present.

Written Answers — Department of An Taoiseach: Brexit Documents (17 Oct 2017)

Leo Varadkar: As I said in the House last Wednesday, I had read the Revenue Commissioners desktop analysis report on the customs implications of a hard Brexit in the previous few days. The report referred to is a draft internal working paper and preliminary analysis, in September 2016, of potential administrative implications on customs processes following the UK vote in June 2016 to exit the EU. It did...

Financial Resolutions 2018 - Financial Resolution No. 4: General (Resumed) (11 Oct 2017)

Leo Varadkar: Interestingly enough, Sinn Féin's pre-budget submission from a couple of years ago was entitled "Route to Recovery" and was about going towards a "just society", something that also rings a bell because it was a slogan that Fine Gael used many times in the past. If history is to be repeated, I look forward to reading Sinn Féin's submission in a few years' time and its plans for...

Financial Resolutions 2018 - Financial Resolution No. 4: General (Resumed) (11 Oct 2017)

Leo Varadkar: They would tax them to the hilt. It might have been better if their economic policies actually had been on the people's side during the worst years of the economic crisis. They offer easy answers but no real solutions.