Results 181-200 of 40,263 for speaker:Leo Varadkar

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (20 Feb 2024)

Leo Varadkar: I thank the Deputy. It is a little bit of stretch for her to accuse me of spin when she is quite the Social Democrat spinmeister herself. She is the one who brought up the Children's Rights Alliance report, not me, and she did not acknowledge that of the 16 areas under which it assesses us, our grades are up in four and down in none. Of the 16 areas, there are no fail grades but there is...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (20 Feb 2024)

Leo Varadkar: -----and we absolutely take on board that criticism. In terms of a date for the report, I do not have it but I will check with the Minister, Deputy Ryan, and come back to the Deputy as soon as I can.

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (20 Feb 2024)

Leo Varadkar: I thank the Deputy for raising the really important issue of stroke on Leaders' Questions. I know the topic has been raised previously but not for a long time. We all know the extent to which stroke affects people and their families. We know people who have died as a result of stroke, people who are surviving with the effects of stroke or who are at risk of stroke. We have a national...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (20 Feb 2024)

Leo Varadkar: The Deputy started the question by referring to the annual report card on Government performance that the Children's Rights Alliance produces. This is an independent body and issues its report card every year. It might be useful for people to know that of the 16 measures the Children's Rights Alliance rates the Government on, our grades are up in four, the same in 12 and not down in any...

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (20 Feb 2024)

Leo Varadkar: I thank the Deputy. The Minister, Deputy Catherine Martin, met the director general on the day the McCann report was published. That report dealt with the voluntary redundancy schemes of 2017 and 2020. Yesterday's meeting between the Minister, the DG and the chairperson was in relation to termination packages. We need all transparency on this to the extent that is possible within the law....

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (20 Feb 2024)

Leo Varadkar: There are people behind her who have sued RTÉ and taken a lot of money out of it, which is ultimately taxpayers' money,as the Deputy has pointed out.

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (20 Feb 2024)

Leo Varadkar: That is a real concern. We see all over the western world democracies being undermined by governments that want to control the purse strings around the media. I would be really concerned if we were to go down that route.

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (20 Feb 2024)

Leo Varadkar: Yes.

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (20 Feb 2024)

Leo Varadkar: I thank the Deputy. I take this opportunity to note the passing of Michael O'Regan. I know his friends, colleagues and the people of Kerry, who will be well familiar with the Dáil hour programme on the radio, will mourn his loss. I understand there will be a moment of silence at the end of Leaders' Questions to pay our respects to him and his family and colleagues. On the Deputy's...

Written Answers — Department of An Taoiseach: Northern Ireland (20 Feb 2024)

Leo Varadkar: Today, (Tuesday 20thFebruary) the Government confirmed a range of funding allocations which affirms its commitment to work with the new Executive, and with the UK Government, to implement cross-border investment cooperation that will make the island of Ireland a better place to live for all communities. This is the largest ever package of Government funding for cross-border investments and is...

Written Answers — Department of An Taoiseach: EU Meetings (20 Feb 2024)

Leo Varadkar: On 1 February, I attended a Special European Council in Brussels. The main item on the agenda was the mid-term review of the EU budget for the period 2021-27, including agreement on a €50 billion assistance package for Ukraine. The package agreed provides an additional financial envelope in the budget of €64.6 billion, through a mix of new and existing funds. Taking account of...

Written Answers — Department of An Taoiseach: Cabinet Committees (20 Feb 2024)

Leo Varadkar: The Cabinet Committee on the Environment and Climate Change oversees the implementation of the ambitious Programme for Government commitments in relation to the environment and climate change. The Cabinet Committee first met on 30 July 2020 and has met on a total of 20 occasions, most recently on 27 November 2023. The next meeting of the Cabinet Committee is due to take place later this...

Written Answers — Department of An Taoiseach: Cabinet Committees (20 Feb 2024)

Leo Varadkar: The Government Coordination Committee is scheduled to meet again on Monday, 26 February 2024.

Written Answers — Department of An Taoiseach: Cabinet Committees (20 Feb 2024)

Leo Varadkar: The Cabinet Committee on Brexit and Northern Ireland is one of ten Cabinet Committees re-established in January 2023. It last met on 29 November 2023. The Cabinet Committee oversees implementation of Programme for Government commitments in the areas of Brexit and Northern Ireland, and ongoing related developments. Issues related to Brexit and Northern Ireland are also discussed at Cabinet...

Written Answers — Department of An Taoiseach: Commissions of Inquiry (20 Feb 2024)

Leo Varadkar: I propose to take Questions Nos. 115 and 116 together. A comprehensive evaluation of how the country managed COVID-19 will provide an opportunity to learn lessons from our experiences in dealing with a pandemic. It will include a review of the whole-of-government response to the pandemic and how we might do better and be in a stronger position if another pandemic or other similar type event...

Ceisteanna - Questions: Taoiseach's Meetings and Engagements (14 Feb 2024)

Leo Varadkar: I thank Deputies for their remarks. I do not think Deputy Boyd Barrett meant to say it but, just in case I misheard him, I do not think we should in any way equate the expansion of NATO to Russia's invasion of Ukraine. That is part of the Russian narrative and a Russian speaking point, to blame NATO expansion or use it as an excuse for what it has done in Ukraine. I would hope that none of...

Ceisteanna - Questions: Taoiseach's Meetings and Engagements (14 Feb 2024)

Leo Varadkar: That is a different thing. I am glad that is clear because it is a Russian speaking point. Aside from the historical lectures that one gets from Russia, one of its speaking points is that the expansion of NATO forced them to invade Ukraine-----

Ceisteanna - Questions: Taoiseach's Meetings and Engagements (14 Feb 2024)

Leo Varadkar: -----in order to prevent it from joining NATO, which would be its choice, not Russia's, in my view. Whether we agree with NATO expansion or not, I think it is up to individual countries and their democratically elected governments to decide whether they want to join. It should not be decided in Russia or other places. We of course discussed NATO in our conversations. All three are...

Ceisteanna - Questions: Taoiseach's Meetings and Engagements (14 Feb 2024)

Leo Varadkar: Decisions on security matters, including road closures such as, for example, in the Phoenix Park, are not made by me. They are security matters, they are dealt with by the Garda and the Defence Forces and they must, of course, remain confidential. At my meeting with the Chinese Premier, I raised our concerns about the treatment of the Uyghur population in Xinjiang. Premier Li disputed the...

Ceisteanna - Questions: Taoiseach's Meetings and Engagements (14 Feb 2024)

Leo Varadkar: I propose to take Questions Nos. 16 to 20, inclusive, together. I visited the western Balkans from 10 to 12 January 2024. My visit to Kosovo was an opportunity, in particular, to thank the Irish members of the Defence Forces serving with the Kosovo Force, KFOR, and the Irish people serving with the European Union Rule of Law Mission in Kosovo, EULEX, for the vital work they do in...