Results 18,061-18,080 of 50,297 for speaker:Micheál Martin

Ceisteanna - Questions: European Council Meetings (21 Oct 2020)

Micheál Martin: No, the Deputy extolled the virtues of a national health service in Germany. It did not actually apply to testing.

Ceisteanna - Questions: European Council Meetings (21 Oct 2020)

Micheál Martin: I learned a lot. The Dutch support our plan. Other Parliaments-----

Ceisteanna - Questions: Shared Island Unit (21 Oct 2020)

Micheál Martin: I thank the Deputies for raising the issues. It was my initiative to secure €500 million additional and ring-fenced funding for the shared island agenda. Deputy Howlin, as a former Minister, will be aware that successive Governments since the signing of the Good Friday Agreement, and I am not casting aspersions on any specific Government, have only done some projects on canals and...

Ceisteanna - Questions: Shared Island Unit (21 Oct 2020)

Micheál Martin: The Departments of Public Expenditure and Reform and the Taoiseach will have oversight. We will work with individual Departments and agencies on delivery. The Department of Public Expenditure and Reform will have a key oversight role. Reference was made to the House of Lords and that is an interesting presentation. Building relationships is key to this and I would like Deputies and...

Ceisteanna - Questions: Shared Island Unit (21 Oct 2020)

Micheál Martin: We secured €120 million from the European package, which is very good news because, of course, that has to be more than matched by the British Government at a ratio of either 2:1 or 3:1; let us work from the higher number. We also have to match it, so that gets us substantial funding that will be organised separately from this, involving separate accountancy, approach and all of that....

Ceisteanna - Questions: Shared Island Unit (21 Oct 2020)

Micheál Martin: Our geography is substantially different and whether we like it or not, there are two separate jurisdictions operating on the island, governed by an Executive and Assembly in the North, the Government and Oireachtas here. Those are realities. We have a long Border. It is not possible to seal the Border to pursue a zero-Covid strategy. Deputy Boyd Barrett asked about concrete stuff which...

Ceisteanna - Questions: European Council Meetings (21 Oct 2020)

Micheál Martin: I attended a meeting of the European Council in Brussels on 15 and 16 October. The agenda included Brexit, Covid-19, climate action, EU relations with Africa, and a number of external relations issues. On Brexit, the European Union chief negotiator, Michel Barnier, shared his assessment of the state of play in the negotiations. While recalling our determination to have as close as possible...

Ceisteanna - Questions: Cabinet Committees (21 Oct 2020)

Micheál Martin: The Deputy's central thesis about the health service does not apply in that context. As for treatments and outcomes, I ask the Deputy to defer to clinicians. The outcomes in Ireland during the first phase, in terms of hospital treatments, were quite good, which speaks well of the clinical qualities in our hospitals, such as the quality of clinicians and all our staff, including those in...

Ceisteanna - Questions: Cabinet Committees (21 Oct 2020)

Micheál Martin: We have been told they are not zero-hour contracts and I will further interrogate that to ensure that they are proper and to the level they should be. We want a deal and that is still the outcome that Europe wants, that Ireland certainly wants and that the United Kingdom says it wants. Notwithstanding all the talk last week, therefore, the joint committee has remained engaged on the...

Ceisteanna - Questions: Cabinet Committees (21 Oct 2020)

Micheál Martin: I am not going to go into specifics now because it could influence or have an impact on the negotiations. It might be perceived in a certain way. There are realities that Europe will have to consider, such as what will happen if we are in a no-deal scenario and what contingency plans Europe will apply and in what form.

Ceisteanna - Questions: Cabinet Committees (21 Oct 2020)

Micheál Martin: We are in a negotiating process. Let us, first, work on ensuring we can bring the United Kingdom to the promised landing zone. Having been apprised by Michel Barnier, I believe the UK can get to a proper landing zone, even on the key issues of a level playing field, governance and fishing. I believe that a great deal of progress was made in earlier chapters of the negotiating process,...

Ceisteanna - Questions: Cabinet Committees (21 Oct 2020)

Micheál Martin: We have put on record that contingency has to happen.

Ceisteanna - Questions: Shared Island Unit (21 Oct 2020)

Micheál Martin: I propose to take Questions Nos. 2 to 6, inclusive, together. The programme for Government sets out the Government's commitment to working with all communities and traditions on the island to build consensus around a shared future underpinned by the Good Friday Agreement. A shared island unit has been established in my Department to support this work. The unit is led by an assistant...

Ceisteanna - Questions: Cabinet Committees (21 Oct 2020)

Micheál Martin: The Cabinet committee on Europe was established to oversee implementation of the programme for Government commitments on the European Union and related issues. It last met on 8 October in advance of the European Council meeting held in Brussels on 15 and 16 of October, when it discussed European Union and UK relations, climate change and external relations. It will continue to meet as...

Ceisteanna - Questions: Cabinet Committees (21 Oct 2020)

Micheál Martin: I thank the Deputies for the issues they have raised. The committee deals with Europe and we have a separate Cabinet subcommittee on Covid-19, which deals with all aspects of that. This committee meets to discuss broader European issues, specifically in preparation for European Council meetings. The most important response of the European Council and member states to Covid-19 has been the...

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (21 Oct 2020)

Micheál Martin: No. Community tracing has improved dramatically as well. There are now far more people working in community tracing than there were previously. Community transmission has been at a very high level for the past number of weeks. The HSE has said it will be able to deal with 1,500 positive cases a day from next week onwards in respect of community tracing.

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (21 Oct 2020)

Micheál Martin: I take exception to Deputy Collins trying to suppress and censor Deputy O'Sullivan. That is not on either. The Deputy always gets an opportunity.

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (21 Oct 2020)

Micheál Martin: Deputy Christopher O'Sullivan approached me yesterday about Bantry. I ensured that the incorporeal meeting yesterday evening, which was designed to provide for the application of the compensation scheme and the humanitarian scheme for Cork city would also apply to Bantry, as well as to Aghada, Youghal and other areas which suffered as a result of the flooding. That has happened. On the...

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (21 Oct 2020)

Micheál Martin: They should pay up.

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (21 Oct 2020)

Micheál Martin: What new regime is the Deputy referring to?