Results 17,361-17,380 of 40,330 for speaker:Leo Varadkar

Leaders' Questions (20 Sep 2017)

Leo Varadkar: It is not possible to reduce USC or income tax for the 30% of people who pay nothing------

Leaders' Questions (20 Sep 2017)

Leo Varadkar: We again have this continual pattern. All of us here listen with respect to the questions being asked.

Leaders' Questions (20 Sep 2017)

Leo Varadkar: The minute Deputies get an answer or have to hear some facts, they get upset.

Leaders' Questions (20 Sep 2017)

Leo Varadkar: I did not twist Deputy Brendan Howlin's words; he twisted mine. He has tried to make out that I said there would be nothing in the budget for the 30% of working people who do not pay USC or income tax.

Leaders' Questions (20 Sep 2017)

Leo Varadkar: The kinds of things that are included in our budget and economic policy for people who are on such low pay that they do not pay any income tax because we have taken them out of that net are increases in the minimum wage. This Government and Members on these benches increased the minimum wage twice since the Deputy left office.

Leaders' Questions (20 Sep 2017)

Leo Varadkar: We all believe in equal rights for people with disabilities. I will give the Deputy an example of what the Government has done just in the year gone by to improve the rights of and the support available to people with disabilities. We all believe in supporting the families concerned, whether it be through the provision of medical cards, increases in welfare payments, employment...

Leaders' Questions (20 Sep 2017)

Leo Varadkar: Let us consider the service deficits in Northern Ireland in terms of the cutbacks social care trusts are making in Northern Ireland. I do not accuse the Deputy of being uncaring or heartless because of the challenges faced in Northern Ireland, nor do I accuse him of abdicating his responsibility to look after people in Belfast or Derry.

Leaders' Questions (20 Sep 2017)

Leo Varadkar: I have talked about the real progress made already and commit to making further progress in the years ahead.

Leaders' Questions (20 Sep 2017)

Leo Varadkar: The Deputy will appreciate that I am unable to comment on individual cases on which I do not have the details and that even if I do have the details of individual cases it is not possible for me to breach client or patient confidentiality without the permission of the client or patient to do so. That said, in regard to the case of Caoimh, the Minister for Health, Deputy Simon Harris, and the...

Leaders' Questions (20 Sep 2017)

Leo Varadkar: There are 21,000 additional individuals and their families who are being housed this year.

Leaders' Questions (20 Sep 2017)

Leo Varadkar: In some cases they are people-----

Leaders' Questions (20 Sep 2017)

Leo Varadkar: I see that we are going to have a repeat of the same pattern whereby Deputies will be allowed to ask questions and will be treated with respect but the minute someone gives a reply that they do not want to hear, one will be interrupted right away.

Leaders' Questions (20 Sep 2017)

Leo Varadkar: We will have 21,000 individuals and families housed this year. In some cases, people will be moving into newly built council houses, while in others they wil be moving into voids that have been brought back into use. Others will be housed through the housing assistance payment, HAP, scheme which Deputy Micheál Martin's party supported, or the rent supplement scheme. There is a...

Leaders' Questions (20 Sep 2017)

Leo Varadkar: We are making real progress as evidenced in the fact, as I mentioned earlier, that today 80 people and their families will be housed by the State and that there will be 21,000 new tenancies this year.

Leaders' Questions (20 Sep 2017)

Leo Varadkar: I want to start by saying some words about Jimmy Magee. It was with great sadness that we all learned today of the death of this iconic sports commentator. His commentaries were legendary and based on a breadth of knowledge of sport that was peerless. He also had an innate sense of timing, which often meant that his descriptions of events became as memorable as the events themselves. He...

Written Answers — Department of An Taoiseach: Ministerial Responsibilities (20 Sep 2017)

Leo Varadkar: On 14 June 2017 the Government appointed Deputy Joe McHugh as Government Chief Whip and Minister of State at my Department and at the Department of Culture, Heritage, and the Gaeltacht with special responsibility for Gaeilge, Gaeltacht and the Islands, and Deputy Paul Kehoe as Minister of State at my Department and at the Department of Defence with special responsibility for Defence. On...

Written Answers — Department of An Taoiseach: Taoiseach's Meetings and Engagements (20 Sep 2017)

Leo Varadkar: I propose to take Questions Nos. 10 and 11 together. I have not met with religious orders recently. However, like public representatives generally, I meet with church leaders from all faiths informally from time to time in the course of attending official or public events. On 31 August last, I held a formal meeting under the structured dialogue process with representatives of the Catholic...

Written Answers — Department of An Taoiseach: Taoiseach's Communications (20 Sep 2017)

Leo Varadkar: I spoke with Egyptian President, Abdel Fattah el-Sisi by telephone on Monday 28 August. The call was instigated at my request to discuss the case of Irish Citizen, Ibrahim Halawa. I emphasised the importance the Irish Government places on the case and received assurances from the President that he would intervene, if necessary, following the announcement of a verdict to ensure that Ibrahim...

Written Answers — Department of An Taoiseach: Cabinet Committees (20 Sep 2017)

Leo Varadkar: I propose to take Questions Nos. 75 and 118 together. The Government has established the following six Cabinet Committees, which I will chair: - Cabinet Committee A (Economy) - Cabinet Committee B (Social Policy and Public Services) - Cabinet Committee C (European Union including Brexit) - Cabinet Committee D (Infrastructure) - Cabinet Committee E (Health), and - Cabinet Committee F (National...

Written Answers — Department of An Taoiseach: Departmental Staff Data (20 Sep 2017)

Leo Varadkar: The information requested by the Deputy is contained in the tables. Department of the Taoiseach Political Staff 2015-2016 Job Title Salary Scale Chief of Staff Deputy Secretary Programme Manager Deputy Secretary Special Adviser to the Taoiseach (2) Principal Officer Personal Assistant to the Taoiseach (5) Assistant Principal Officer Personal Assistant to the Taoiseach (1) Higher...