Results 19,421-19,440 of 50,453 for speaker:Micheál Martin

Ceisteanna - Questions: Departmental Staff (14 Jul 2020)

Micheál Martin: It is not rubbish. I recall Deputy Howlin and the then Tánaiste, Mr. Dick Spring, won a substantial number of seats. They no longer wanted to play second fiddle to the Fine Gael party and did not go into coalition with them. They entered into coalition with Fianna Fáil and developed this idea. We are political parties, and I do not mean political in the sense that one is just...

Ceisteanna - Questions: Departmental Staff (14 Jul 2020)

Micheál Martin: I am not even criticising it; I just note it. The emails were flying to and fro on that between all the special advisers of all parties so let us not pretend that this is something new. Ministers of State either mean something or they do not mean. In my view, they mean something in terms of the policy areas that are under their responsibility. The Minister of State with responsibility for...

Ceisteanna - Questions: Departmental Staff (14 Jul 2020)

Micheál Martin: That is the whole idea. The Deputy must accept in that situation there has to be a need for policy input to drive things on and get things done. The security issue has surfaced with regard to the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade in terms of travel.

Ceisteanna - Questions: Departmental Staff (14 Jul 2020)

Micheál Martin: The Deputy may say that. Ordinarily, Ministers outside of the Taoiseach, Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality hire drivers that are paid for by the taxpayer and travel-related costs are also associated with that. I am not sure where the Deputy got the figure of €200,000 net. I have no figures on that.

Ceisteanna - Questions: Departmental Staff (14 Jul 2020)

Micheál Martin: My understanding is that there was a security aspect to it. It is my understanding that the Tánaiste sought an aide-de-camp to assist him in his duties in terms of public occasions and events he will attend. In terms of equality, there are three super junior Ministers, as they are called, or super Ministers of State, at the Cabinet table, and there should be equality between all three....

Ceisteanna - Questions: Economic Growth (14 Jul 2020)

Micheál Martin: I propose to take Questions Nos. 4 and 5 together. As committed to in the programme for Government, a national economic plan will be developed in the coming months to chart our longer-term, jobs-led recovery. The plan will put sustainability at the heart of our fiscal, enterprise, innovation and environmental policies. As part of the development of the new national economic plan, my...

Ceisteanna - Questions: Economic Growth (14 Jul 2020)

Micheál Martin: Regarding the Government and its formation, when we published the programme for Government we attached a document on the functioning of Government. I emphasise again that three parties came together. My overall objective is to ensure the three parties work seamlessly and in co-operation in getting the work of the nation done, and I take that very seriously. My ego is not going to get in...

Ceisteanna - Questions: Departmental Staff (14 Jul 2020)

Micheál Martin: I was going to come back to the Deputy.

Ceisteanna - Questions: Departmental Staff (14 Jul 2020)

Micheál Martin: I will deal with Deputy McDonald's queries. This is a tripartite Government. In fact, the model for it goes back to when the Labour Party was in government between 1992 and 1994 when Dick Spring-----

Ceisteanna - Questions: Departmental Staff (14 Jul 2020)

Micheál Martin: I was a humble backbench Deputy at the time. The Labour Party pioneered the idea of policy people coming in from the political world, which I happen to agree with, to ensure the implementation of a programme for Government.

Ceisteanna - Questions: Departmental Staff (14 Jul 2020)

Micheál Martin: People want the programme for Government to be implemented. They want to see through the political commitments that have been made. That was a major turning point in how Government works in terms of the use of special advisers. In the Northern Ireland Executive, the role of special advisers is strong and I have no difficulty with that. We know that special advisers in Northern Ireland...

Ceisteanna - Questions: Departmental Staff (14 Jul 2020)

Micheál Martin: I do not agree with that. There is a need and Government is becoming wide-ranging. There are areas, such as insurance, that need specialist attention. As we heard on the Order of Business, it is a key area and it is a good idea to have a Minister of State, together with senior Ministers, specifically charged with trying to deal with that area. That is the position. When we get further...

Ceisteanna - Questions: Regeneration Projects (14 Jul 2020)

Micheál Martin: 4 o’clock First of all, I would never see something like this as a box-ticking exercise. All my life I have been committed to the idea of dealing with the vulnerable, those living in poor conditions and those in disadvantaged communities. For example, I believe the RAPID programme of earlier years was an effective multisectoral multidepartmental approach to dealing with urban...

Ceisteanna - Questions: Regeneration Projects (14 Jul 2020)

Micheál Martin: Deputy McDonald should write to me on that. I will talk to the Minister for Health on the point she has made and on what she was saying. I am unsure of the background. Deputy McDonald is suggesting that the HSE is undermining community participation. We will get that looked at. I have gone into some of the flat complexes with Senator Mary Fitzpatrick. I agree with Deputy McDonald...

Ceisteanna - Questions: Departmental Staff (14 Jul 2020)

Micheál Martin: I propose to take Questions Nos. 2 and 3 together. As outlined in the programme for Government, several reforms will be implemented to ensure openness and constructive co-operation within the Government. The details of the roles and staffing of these offices have not been finalised to date. Appointments to these offices will be made in line with the Public Service Management Act 1997...

Ceisteanna - Questions: Regeneration Projects (14 Jul 2020)

Micheál Martin: The Mulvey report, Dublin North East Inner City - Creating a Brighter Future, commissioned by the Government and published in February 2017, contained recommendations for the social and economic regeneration of Dublin's north-east inner city, NEIC. This report has been further supplemented by the publication of the NEIC strategic plan 2020 to 2022, which is available onwww.neic.ie In June...

An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (14 Jul 2020)

Micheál Martin: The first point I would make is that we do not control the private hospitals in terms of their fee structures. However, I reiterate what I said last week, namely, that there should be no profiteering out of the Covid situation in respect of any patients, be they private or public. Private hospitals should not be levying charges that are disproportionate to the costs of providing those...

An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (14 Jul 2020)

Micheál Martin: To be fair, I recall the pub owners themselves, in tandem with the previous Government, saying that they needed to close at the time they did close. In terms of the reopening under phase 4 of the roadmap, there will be a Government meeting tomorrow to discuss it. NPHET is meeting today and will give us its up-to-date advice. I am taken by some of the points made by Deputies McNamara,...

An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (14 Jul 2020)

Micheál Martin: I agree with the Deputy that it is a shocking cost. It is not sustainable for a young man going into business to take a cost like that on board. Such costs militate against young people becoming entrepreneurs, getting into business and going out to work. The programme for Government sets out a multipronged approach to dealing with insurance, both on the personal injuries side and in terms...

An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (14 Jul 2020)

Micheál Martin: Will the Deputy forward me the background and details of the case? Is it because of his private working hours that this individual is not allowed to perform his firefighting role?