Results 18,221-18,240 of 50,297 for speaker:Micheál Martin

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (14 Oct 2020)

Micheál Martin: Just because Deputy Connolly says we did not does not mean we did not. We did. I do not use language lightly. I have not been in Government for ten years. The housing assistance payment has been in place for about that length of time, maybe less. Dismantling HAP now, as the Deputy seems to be advocating, would immediately create homelessness. The housing assistance payment is a very...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (14 Oct 2020)

Micheál Martin: I thank the Deputy for his question and raising the matters relating to Waterford in particular. Any previous Government with which I was involved put much investment into Waterford. As a former Minister with responsibility for education, I know the land we purchased for Waterford Institute of Technology was essential to its growth. It has developed into a very fine institute of technology...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (14 Oct 2020)

Micheál Martin: Fairness is a valid ask. The programme for Government identifies and recognises Waterford as a regional city and investment must follow that designation. The recovery fund in the budget of €3.4 billion is over and above the Covid-19 contingency fund and it will provide opportunities for infrastructural development, reskilling and retraining, as well as supporting investment in jobs....

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (14 Oct 2020)

Micheál Martin: I am interested in a resolution of this and I am not going to pretend that there will be an optimal solution. I do not want to take people up a hill and bring them back down again empty-handed. My assessment of this is that of course the workers have been treated very badly by the company. The company has gone into liquidation. It is in difficulty in the UK. As the Deputy knows, the UK...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (14 Oct 2020)

Micheál Martin: Mandate is the union that has been working on this. The Government will continue to engage with it-----

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (14 Oct 2020)

Micheál Martin: I presume the shop stewards are part of the union. I do not know why the Deputy is making that demarcation. I will also engage with ICTU because this has wider implications. The Deputy is not correct in saying that because €1 million emerged from the process that €10 million can emerge from it.

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (14 Oct 2020)

Micheál Martin: That is wonderfully said, but it is not entirely grounded in reality. Certain people, the Deputy included, have created the idea that this can be solved easily knowing full well that it cannot, unfortunately. There has been much interaction on how to get this resolved. The Government does not instruct liquidators and is not in a position to do so, despite what the Deputy said consistently...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (14 Oct 2020)

Micheál Martin: The Government cannot instruct.

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (14 Oct 2020)

Micheál Martin: I appeal to the Deputy to do it cross-party. She is not doing it. She has come in attacking the Minister’s bona fides. The Minister wants to help. What he is doing is sensible and the right thing to do before the end of October. Does the Deputy not see that? I have no doubt the Minister will talk to the Deputy.

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (14 Oct 2020)

Micheál Martin: I am not attacking the Deputy. I am just saying if the Deputy wants cross-party-----

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (14 Oct 2020)

Micheál Martin: I am not aggressive at all.

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (14 Oct 2020)

Micheál Martin: I am simply saying the Deputy is wronging the Minister and not accepting his bona fides. I am sure the Minister would be more than willing to talk to the Deputy’s spokesperson and other spokespeople. In the final report of the commission, the section on the confidential committee will reproduce the anonymised testimony of each individual who appeared before it. While the testimony...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (14 Oct 2020)

Micheál Martin: I thank the Deputy for raising this matter. From my own perspective, the situation with regard to mother and baby homes represented a very dark period in our history and an appalling approach to the treatment of women and mothers and, at the time, the separation of child from mother. I accept the norms of later years but as an individual and as a parent, the separation of child from mother...

Written Answers — Department of An Taoiseach: Future of Media Commission (13 Oct 2020)

Micheál Martin: I propose to take Questions Nos. 1 and 6 together. On Tuesday 29 September, Government approved the terms of reference and membership of the Future of Media Commission. In line with the standard approach to establishing a Commission of this nature, members were appointed by Government with regard to the particular mix of skills and experience that the Government considers appropriate to the...

Written Answers — Department of An Taoiseach: Departmental Contracts (13 Oct 2020)

Micheál Martin: My Department has no contracts with consultants or Public Relations agencies. The Citizens’ Assembly, which is staffed by my Department, has engaged Q4 Public Relations to provide media liaison and communication services incurring costs of €16,394 to date in 2020. Its remit includes raising public awareness of the Assembly’s work; managing media attendance at face to...

Written Answers — Department of An Taoiseach: Departmental Staff (13 Oct 2020)

Micheál Martin: I propose to take Questions Nos. 3, 10 and 12 together. Details of my Department's organisational structure and its senior management team (including their names and a description of all individual roles from Secretary General to Principal Officer level) are available on the 'whodoeswhat' website available at the following link: A copy of my Department's organisational chart is available on...

Written Answers — Department of An Taoiseach: Cabinet Committees (13 Oct 2020)

Micheál Martin: I propose to take Questions Nos. 4, 5 and 9 together. The Government has established 10 Cabinet Committees, with membership as shown in the table below. Cabinet Committees are established by the Government to assist it in carrying out the responsibilities of Government in the areas indicated by their titles. They meet as appropriate according to their work schedules. Other Ministers or...

Written Answers — Department of An Taoiseach: Citizens' Assembly (13 Oct 2020)

Micheál Martin: The Programme for Government provides for establishment of Citizens' Assemblies to consider matters relating to the type of directly elected mayor and local government structures best suited for Dublin; drugs use; biodiversity; and the future of education. The timing of each of these Assemblies has yet to be worked out but it is expected that the Assembly to consider the type of mayor...

Written Answers — Department of An Taoiseach: Question Heading (13 Oct 2020)

Micheál Martin: The following table details the figures requested by the Deputy. Online Advertising 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 - to 30th June €0 €0 €436,823 €12,281 €900,216 Broadcast Advertising ...

Written Answers — Department of An Taoiseach: Parliamentary Questions (13 Oct 2020)

Micheál Martin: The grouping of parliamentary questions for reply is a routine administrative process carried out by officials in Government Departments, including mine. As the Deputy will appreciate, it is frequently the case that Members ask similar or identical questions on a given policy area or topic. These questions are generally grouped together for reply in order to ensure that as many questions as...