Results 21-40 of 1,064,693 for in 'Dáil debates' OR in 'Committee meetings' (speaker:Ciarán Cuffe OR speaker:Paul Murphy OR speaker:Peadar Tóibín OR speaker:Joe O'Brien OR speaker:Gary Gannon OR speaker:Dessie Ellis OR speaker:Bernard Durkan OR speaker:Paschal Donohoe OR speaker:Paul Donnelly)

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 11 - Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform (Supplementary)
Vote 12 - Superannuation and Retired Allowances (Supplementary)
Vote 13 - Office of Public Works (Supplementary)
Vote 14 - State Laboratory (Supplementary)
Vote 17 - Public Appointments Service (Supplementary)
Vote 18 - National Shared Services Office (Supplementary)
Vote 19 - Office of the Ombudsman (Supplementary) (5 Nov 2024)

Bernard Durkan: The question is who is to blame. Who is to compensate whom? The people of the area have been disadvantaged.

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 11 - Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform (Supplementary)
Vote 12 - Superannuation and Retired Allowances (Supplementary)
Vote 13 - Office of Public Works (Supplementary)
Vote 14 - State Laboratory (Supplementary)
Vote 17 - Public Appointments Service (Supplementary)
Vote 18 - National Shared Services Office (Supplementary)
Vote 19 - Office of the Ombudsman (Supplementary) (5 Nov 2024)

Bernard Durkan: I will move on to the OPW. I am not going to ask the question the Minister might think I am going to ask. I am going to ask a different question. This is regarding the arterial drainage issues all over the country. Given the situation that has arisen in Spain recently and recognising that in Ireland has fairly high levels of rainfall in any given year, is the Minister of State in any way...

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 11 - Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform (Supplementary)
Vote 12 - Superannuation and Retired Allowances (Supplementary)
Vote 13 - Office of Public Works (Supplementary)
Vote 14 - State Laboratory (Supplementary)
Vote 17 - Public Appointments Service (Supplementary)
Vote 18 - National Shared Services Office (Supplementary)
Vote 19 - Office of the Ombudsman (Supplementary) (5 Nov 2024)

Bernard Durkan: Is the Minister of State satisfied that plans are sufficiently advanced at this stage to be able to reassure the people who have been the victims of flooding more than once, in recent times, suffering damage to their properties and businesses?

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 11 - Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform (Supplementary)
Vote 12 - Superannuation and Retired Allowances (Supplementary)
Vote 13 - Office of Public Works (Supplementary)
Vote 14 - State Laboratory (Supplementary)
Vote 17 - Public Appointments Service (Supplementary)
Vote 18 - National Shared Services Office (Supplementary)
Vote 19 - Office of the Ombudsman (Supplementary) (5 Nov 2024)

Bernard Durkan: A considerable amount of time has elapsed since the original scheme for Lough Funshinagh was abandoned, following judicial review or whatever the case was at the time. The case was taken by someone who did not live in the area at all. My concern is coming directly from people who live in my constituency. Householders and farmers have been discommoded severely in going about their business....

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 11 - Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform (Supplementary)
Vote 12 - Superannuation and Retired Allowances (Supplementary)
Vote 13 - Office of Public Works (Supplementary)
Vote 14 - State Laboratory (Supplementary)
Vote 17 - Public Appointments Service (Supplementary)
Vote 18 - National Shared Services Office (Supplementary)
Vote 19 - Office of the Ombudsman (Supplementary) (5 Nov 2024)

Paschal Donohoe: I completely take that point. Of course, the Oireachtas should know, and I am sure the people want to know as well, what level of money is involved in the settlement of legal cases. All I would say is that that will have little interaction with the work of the Ombudsman. Not only is the Ombudsman independent, it covers off a particular set of functions. Many issues relating to the...

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 11 - Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform (Supplementary)
Vote 12 - Superannuation and Retired Allowances (Supplementary)
Vote 13 - Office of Public Works (Supplementary)
Vote 14 - State Laboratory (Supplementary)
Vote 17 - Public Appointments Service (Supplementary)
Vote 18 - National Shared Services Office (Supplementary)
Vote 19 - Office of the Ombudsman (Supplementary) (5 Nov 2024)

Paschal Donohoe: Of course they do, but it may not be being spent by the Ombudsman. That is my point. Of course the figure exists, but it is almost certainly not within the Ombudsman. If the Ombudsman does have health-related expenditure, I anticipate that would constitute a small share of its overall legal costs.

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 11 - Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform (Supplementary)
Vote 12 - Superannuation and Retired Allowances (Supplementary)
Vote 13 - Office of Public Works (Supplementary)
Vote 14 - State Laboratory (Supplementary)
Vote 17 - Public Appointments Service (Supplementary)
Vote 18 - National Shared Services Office (Supplementary)
Vote 19 - Office of the Ombudsman (Supplementary) (5 Nov 2024)

Bernard Durkan: I thank the Minister, the Minister of State and their officials for coming before the committee. I have a couple of questions on the national development plan and the reform thereof. To what extent has that reform taken place, and to what extent has the economy from any reforms that have taken place or that are proposed?

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 11 - Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform (Supplementary)
Vote 12 - Superannuation and Retired Allowances (Supplementary)
Vote 13 - Office of Public Works (Supplementary)
Vote 14 - State Laboratory (Supplementary)
Vote 17 - Public Appointments Service (Supplementary)
Vote 18 - National Shared Services Office (Supplementary)
Vote 19 - Office of the Ombudsman (Supplementary) (5 Nov 2024)

Paschal Donohoe: If I were to highlight two reforms I believe are making a difference, the first is the way in which we have changed the process with regard to the public spending code. We have increased the threshold above which a further level of work needs to be done in evaluating the business case and where additional processes need to be triggered because the cost of the project is high. We have...

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 11 - Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform (Supplementary)
Vote 12 - Superannuation and Retired Allowances (Supplementary)
Vote 13 - Office of Public Works (Supplementary)
Vote 14 - State Laboratory (Supplementary)
Vote 17 - Public Appointments Service (Supplementary)
Vote 18 - National Shared Services Office (Supplementary)
Vote 19 - Office of the Ombudsman (Supplementary) (5 Nov 2024)

Paschal Donohoe: In the lifetime of this Government, by some way the most disruptive issue to us delivering our capital projects has been the impact of cost-price inflation. It has meant the costs for certain projects, through nobody's fault, have moved significantly ahead of what they would have been expected to be because the costs of concrete, steel, wood and energy have all changed over the past two...

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 11 - Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform (Supplementary)
Vote 12 - Superannuation and Retired Allowances (Supplementary)
Vote 13 - Office of Public Works (Supplementary)
Vote 14 - State Laboratory (Supplementary)
Vote 17 - Public Appointments Service (Supplementary)
Vote 18 - National Shared Services Office (Supplementary)
Vote 19 - Office of the Ombudsman (Supplementary) (5 Nov 2024)

Bernard Durkan: Has any assessment been carried out to identify the direct causes of the inflation? I accept the Minister's point that costs have increased generally and so on, but there appear to be some cases where inflation comes in under a heading, and individual rates of inflation that seem to have a further impact come in under numerous headings, and the inflationary spiral continues. Is that...

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 11 - Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform (Supplementary)
Vote 12 - Superannuation and Retired Allowances (Supplementary)
Vote 13 - Office of Public Works (Supplementary)
Vote 14 - State Laboratory (Supplementary)
Vote 17 - Public Appointments Service (Supplementary)
Vote 18 - National Shared Services Office (Supplementary)
Vote 19 - Office of the Ombudsman (Supplementary) (5 Nov 2024)

Bernard Durkan: Various snags and obstacles have impacted negatively on some, though not all, public projects in the past. Is the Minister satisfied at this stage that these matters have been brought into focus for review and improvement and is that likely to happen? For example, I was recently looking at an application to a local authority for something very small. It contained a file that was about 4...

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 11 - Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform (Supplementary)
Vote 12 - Superannuation and Retired Allowances (Supplementary)
Vote 13 - Office of Public Works (Supplementary)
Vote 14 - State Laboratory (Supplementary)
Vote 17 - Public Appointments Service (Supplementary)
Vote 18 - National Shared Services Office (Supplementary)
Vote 19 - Office of the Ombudsman (Supplementary) (5 Nov 2024)

Paschal Donohoe: The Office of Government Procurement has done work to examine what the drivers of inflation I referred to are. It has been able to relate that back to raw materials and evaluate how the change in the cost of raw materials has impacted on the costs of projects and the procurement process. As for whether it is abating in any way, there have been some signs the rate of inflation is...

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 11 - Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform (Supplementary)
Vote 12 - Superannuation and Retired Allowances (Supplementary)
Vote 13 - Office of Public Works (Supplementary)
Vote 14 - State Laboratory (Supplementary)
Vote 17 - Public Appointments Service (Supplementary)
Vote 18 - National Shared Services Office (Supplementary)
Vote 19 - Office of the Ombudsman (Supplementary) (5 Nov 2024)

Paschal Donohoe: I would not have that information with me because that covers off such an array of legal actions the State is involved in. I can certainly try to find out for the Deputy and revert to her with an answer, but, obviously, it will transcend massively the activity of the Ombudsman.

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 11 - Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform (Supplementary)
Vote 12 - Superannuation and Retired Allowances (Supplementary)
Vote 13 - Office of Public Works (Supplementary)
Vote 14 - State Laboratory (Supplementary)
Vote 17 - Public Appointments Service (Supplementary)
Vote 18 - National Shared Services Office (Supplementary)
Vote 19 - Office of the Ombudsman (Supplementary) (5 Nov 2024)

Paschal Donohoe: The main driver of that would be the expenses incurred by the Ombudsman in the delivery of their services. It is very difficult for us to be able to form a very accurate view and predict with total accuracy what its costs are going to be in any given year from a legal perspective. That is because the number of cases the office is involved in varies. The settlement period for cases is...

Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 11 - Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform (Supplementary)
Vote 12 - Superannuation and Retired Allowances (Supplementary)
Vote 13 - Office of Public Works (Supplementary)
Vote 14 - State Laboratory (Supplementary)
Vote 17 - Public Appointments Service (Supplementary)
Vote 18 - National Shared Services Office (Supplementary)
Vote 19 - Office of the Ombudsman (Supplementary) (5 Nov 2024)

Paschal Donohoe: I thank the Cathaoirleach and members for the opportunity to be here this afternoon. I am here to engage on six Supplementary Estimates proposed for Votes under the Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform Vote group. I will detail the requirements for each Vote but, in summary, they comprise a technical Supplementary Estimate of €1,000 for Vote 11; a...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: COP29: Discussion (5 Nov 2024)

Paul Murphy: Could our guests give their opinions on the idea of a fossil fuel non-proliferation treaty? We are seeing the real structural limitations of the COP process, although that does not mean we should throw it in the bin, particularly as it is global in nature. Effectively, the slowest moving and most powerful countries in the world, which are beholden to fossil fuel interests, are able to stop...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: COP29: Discussion (5 Nov 2024)

Paul Murphy: To focus on the climate finance question, what are the obstacles and the forces behind those obstacles to the sort of agreement and ambition that our guests are arguing are necessary? I agree with what they have said.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: COP29: Discussion (5 Nov 2024)

Paul Murphy: Yes. I thank the witnesses for their presentations and their work. I also mention the presence of representatives from Friends of the Earth, who similarly have obviously been doing a lot of work on this. They have not been invited due to an oversight which we attempted to resolve earlier but were unable to due to various rules about privilege. Hopefully we will not make that mistake in...

Equitable Beef Pricing Bill 2020: Second Stage [Private Members] (24 Oct 2024)

Question put.

Equitable Beef Pricing Bill 2020: Second Stage [Private Members] (24 Oct 2024)

Bernard Durkan: In accordance with Standing Order 80(2), the division is postponed until the next weekly division time on Wednesday, 6 November 2024.