Results 181-200 of 11,045 for speaker:Damien English

Select Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 32 - Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Supplementary) (30 Nov 2022)

Damien English: Can I finish?

Select Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 32 - Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Supplementary) (30 Nov 2022)

Damien English: There are a number of questions there. I will try to answer them all but if I miss some, the Chair might correct me. On the two loan products, the one most useful to SMEs under financial pressure to survive in the coming years is the loan guarantee because it is to do with working capital and finance now. That is the most urgent and useful one and the Covid version of that has been proven...

Select Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 32 - Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Supplementary) (30 Nov 2022)

Damien English: We are constantly working with Enterprise Ireland to see how we can improve the situation on both ends but we have to understand it is taxpayers' money. There are checks and balances and that dreaded red tape to go through. However, when one is availing of quite a high amount of taxpayers' money, those checks and balances have to be in place. It is not always to do with that. It is to do...

Select Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 32 - Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Supplementary) (30 Nov 2022)

Damien English: I apologise to the Deputy. I meant to address the issue earlier on. It does not just fall to our Department. There are a number of options here with regard to the Department of Transport with regard to fuel supports, as well as the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine. The Deputy is right, to correct it we have adjusted the loan guarantee criteria to allow those in the fishing...

Select Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 32 - Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Supplementary) (30 Nov 2022)

Damien English: We are okay on that. That is fine.

Select Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 32 - Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Supplementary) (30 Nov 2022)

Damien English: It was until 18 months or so ago-----

Select Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 32 - Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Supplementary) (30 Nov 2022)

Damien English: I will check it for Deputy Stanton and get a response back to him. From having been involved in this conversation previously, I know that you make a decision that you wants to be part of something and then you are into negotiations about the how, the when and the size of the cheque. That is why, even with this opportunity here when we can afford to do it, it is worth our while to pay more...

Select Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Employment Permits Bill 2022: Committee Stage (30 Nov 2022)

Damien English: I thank the Chair for his time and co-operation with this legislation. I am pleased to have the opportunity to discuss the Employment Permits Bill with the committee today along with the officials from the Department. The purpose of the Bill is to consolidate and update the legislative provisions that regulate the employment permits system, namely, the Employment Permits Acts of 2003 and...

Select Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Employment Permits Bill 2022: Committee Stage (30 Nov 2022)

Damien English: I move amendment No. 1: In page 10, between lines 35 and 36, to insert the following: “ “public health facility” has the same meaning assigned to it bysection 25(5)*;”. The text of this amendment provides for a definition of a public health facility in order to underpin the new section 25, which will facilitate the annual rotations that are a feature...

Select Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Employment Permits Bill 2022: Committee Stage (30 Nov 2022)

Damien English: I move amendment No. 2: In page 11, between lines 4 and 5, to insert the following: “ “register” has the same meaning assigned to it by section 57(2);”. The effect of this amendment is to insert a definition of "register" in section 2 to mirror that contained in section 57(2) of the Act.

Select Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Employment Permits Bill 2022: Committee Stage (30 Nov 2022)

Damien English: I accept that most of the members of the committee have a different view on this matter, as we have discussed at length a few times. That is why I have said I am willing to work with members to get this right and put in place additional protections. We can do that on Report Stage. Before Report Stage, I am willing to sit down with members to tease through any issues. We are working on a...

Select Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Employment Permits Bill 2022: Committee Stage (30 Nov 2022)

Damien English: The best way of answering that is to say that this legislation provides for a seasonal permit. It does not grant it to any sector individually. We have the legislation and we have regulations. As with every other operation of the permits, if any particular sector is looking for access to permits, we go through exactly what Deputy Nash said about the home care sector. We analyse it,...

Select Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Employment Permits Bill 2022: Committee Stage (30 Nov 2022)

Damien English: If it eases the Deputy's concerns, we have engaged with the WRC specifically on the seasonal employment permits and how we can strengthen things to enable it to police this and manage it. The Deputy is assuming this will be abused. I have to defend the majority of employers and say this will not be abused and they will honour the terms and conditions.

Select Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Employment Permits Bill 2022: Committee Stage (30 Nov 2022)

Damien English: Can I finish the point? The Deputy wants to have a law that penalises all the good employers. We want to allow for seasonal permits and track and monitor that to make sure everyone honours that and that protections are in place to try to prevent any move away from proper terms and conditions or poor treatment of people. Of course we will do that. We would do that for anyone who works in...

Select Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Employment Permits Bill 2022: Committee Stage (30 Nov 2022)

Damien English: I have tried to respond to the committee's concerns during pre-legislative scrutiny and the Second Stage debate. The committee has identified a major concern here. I acknowledge that in any employment, seasonal or non-seasonal, we have to have protections in place for employees. That is what we do. The committee members are the ones highlighting this as a concern so we are going beyond...

Select Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Employment Permits Bill 2022: Committee Stage (30 Nov 2022)

Damien English: To be very clear, the mechanisms are in place but we must make sure there is guidance on accessing them. We dealt with amendments in this regard earlier. It is important there is a roadmap to getting the assistance. I have several comments to make on this. The freedom to choose is key, as are the protections that are available. On foot of discussions with the committee and others, we are...

Select Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Employment Permits Bill 2022: Committee Stage (30 Nov 2022)

Damien English: It is also healthcare assistants as well as doctors and nurses. There could be several thousand a year. During one year of Covid there were 4,500 medical-related permits. I want to put that information out there. The legislation before us will allow for the automatic indexation of wages. There are particular sectors that traditionally obtain permits. We look at them and if we see in...

Select Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Employment Permits Bill 2022: Committee Stage (30 Nov 2022)

Damien English: At present a spouse or partner is entitled to apply for a general employment permit. The position is that our permits are generally job specific. The issue of family reunification was raised on Second Stage. We are speaking to the Department of Justice about this from an employment point of view. We can update the committee on it on Report Stage.

Select Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Employment Permits Bill 2022: Committee Stage (30 Nov 2022)

Damien English: They generally apply for a general employment permit.

Select Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation: Employment Permits Bill 2022: Committee Stage (30 Nov 2022)

Damien English: Deputy Stanton wants it to be the same as the critical skills permit.