Results 101-120 of 1,120,789 for in 'Dáil debates' OR in 'Committee meetings' (speaker:Eoin Ó Broin OR speaker:Imelda Munster OR speaker:Réada Cronin OR speaker:Richard Bruton OR speaker:Paul Donnelly OR speaker:Duncan Smith OR speaker:Malcolm Noonan OR speaker:Richard Bruton8 OR speaker:Sorca Clarke OR speaker:Hildegarde Naughton OR speaker:Peter Fitzpatrick OR speaker:Aodhán Ó Ríordáin OR speaker:Patrick O'Donovan OR speaker:Pádraig Mac Lochlainn OR speaker:Rose Conway-Walsh OR speaker:Barry Cowen OR speaker:Steven Matthews OR speaker:Carol Nolan OR speaker:Martin Browne OR speaker:Matt Carthy OR speaker:Willie O'Dea OR speaker:Brendan Howlin OR speaker:Gary Gannon OR speaker:Thomas Byrne OR speaker:Eamon Ryan OR speaker:Cathal Crowe OR speaker:Johnny Mythen OR speaker:Catherine Murphy OR speaker:John Lahart OR speaker:Alan Kelly OR speaker:Joe Flaherty OR speaker:Mattie McGrath)

Select Committee on Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 29 - Environment, Climate and Communications (Supplementary) (17 Oct 2024)

Eamon Ryan: I thank Deputy O'Rourke for his kind words. I am blushing now. I had better get out of the place quickly before something goes wrong, but I appreciate his comments very much. I will speak to a couple of points on the electricity credit. First, I again need to look to my officials here who have been responsible. It was initiated and designed in our Department and delivered by our...

Select Committee on Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 29 - Environment, Climate and Communications (Supplementary) (17 Oct 2024)

Richard Bruton: I commend the progress made on this by the Department. As the Minister rightly alluded, we had a considerable battle to get this approved, and I was gratified about a year ago to see the Minister's colleague, the Minister of State, Deputy Ossian Smyth, issue a reply indicating that the present calculation of the benefits was double the benefits estimated at the time it was approved. That...

Select Committee on Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 29 - Environment, Climate and Communications (Supplementary) (17 Oct 2024)

Eamon Ryan: I remember I had concerns at the time about the ownership of the assets with regard to the national broadband plan, but not the underlying economic logic and rationale. There was reasonable cross-party consensus about proceeding even if there were concerns about aspects of it. In this country we can sometimes work to reach consensus in the political system. The deposit refund scheme worked...

Select Committee on Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 29 - Environment, Climate and Communications (Supplementary) (17 Oct 2024)

Richard Bruton: I also advocated for the "disruptive technologies" programme, where €500 million-----

Select Committee on Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 29 - Environment, Climate and Communications (Supplementary) (17 Oct 2024)

Eamon Ryan: That is where project finance is given for those ideas that are-----

Select Committee on Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 29 - Environment, Climate and Communications (Supplementary) (17 Oct 2024)

Richard Bruton: We have medical device companies and ICT companies; we have wonderful resources. We are probably better placed than almost any state to think about a transformative programme in this area. It would be a low-cost toe in the water. It would be harder to integrate the State, as the Minister said, but it would be a good first step.

Select Committee on Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 29 - Environment, Climate and Communications (Supplementary) (17 Oct 2024)

Eamon Ryan: Sorry for going into the weeds on this, Chair, but I very much agree with Deputy Bruton. The former head of digital strategy in the HSE, Martin Curley, was someone who I listened to with respect on this because he was doing exactly that. I was at events where he brought in the medical device industries we have here, which are highly resourced and capable, as well as the HSE, the hospital...

Select Committee on Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 29 - Environment, Climate and Communications (Supplementary) (17 Oct 2024)

Richard Bruton: Now that the Minister may have a little more time on his hands, he should listen to "The Rest is Politics - Leading", a podcast with Rory Stewart and Alastair Campbell, and the interview they did with Audrey Tang, the digital Minister in Taiwan. What Taiwan did around the co-designing of solutions is well worth a listen. It is amazing what was achieved in a relatively short period.

Select Committee on Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 29 - Environment, Climate and Communications (Supplementary) (17 Oct 2024)

Eamon Ryan: We talk of little else when we get into the canteen on the coffee break.

Committee on Public Petitions: Consideration of Public Petition on Voting for Irish-born Citizens Abroad: Discussion (17 Oct 2024)

Martin Browne: A delegation from the Czech Republic has been unable to join us. We wish its members all the best on their journey home tomorrow morning. Next on the agenda is the approval of the minutes of the previous meeting. The minutes were deferred so we are okay. I will read some formal notices before going any further. I remind members of the constitutional requirement that they must be...

Committee on Public Petitions: Consideration of Public Petition on Voting for Irish-born Citizens Abroad: Discussion (17 Oct 2024)

Martin Browne: Citizens abroad are interested in this. We spoke about this earlier in a private meeting.

Committee on Public Petitions: Consideration of Public Petition on Voting for Irish-born Citizens Abroad: Discussion (17 Oct 2024)

Martin Browne: Brazilians in their thousands voted here a couple of months ago. At the minute, Americans are voting in their election.

Committee on Public Petitions: Consideration of Public Petition on Voting for Irish-born Citizens Abroad: Discussion (17 Oct 2024)

Martin Browne: The opening statement mentions that the Irish diaspora stay connected to their homeland through their parents and family. Some of them have property. Do our guests think granting this voting right would increase that interest and connection with Ireland overall?

Committee on Public Petitions: Consideration of Public Petition on Voting for Irish-born Citizens Abroad: Discussion (17 Oct 2024)

Martin Browne: If they are making decisions, that will have an impact.

Committee on Public Petitions: Consideration of Public Petition on Voting for Irish-born Citizens Abroad: Discussion (17 Oct 2024)

Martin Browne: Yes, they can vote by proxy now.

Committee on Public Petitions: Consideration of Public Petition on Voting for Irish-born Citizens Abroad: Discussion (17 Oct 2024)

Martin Browne: People can nominate someone else to vote in their place. It is called a proxy vote.

Committee on Public Petitions: Consideration of Public Petition on Voting for Irish-born Citizens Abroad: Discussion (17 Oct 2024)

Martin Browne: Before the petitioners go any further, I wish to let them know about the permanent postal or proxy vote. To apply for a permanent postal or proxy vote, one must have a valid reason. It includes the following: illness or disability, being away from home for education reasons, and being away from home for reasons of work or employment. That is the system in Northern Ireland for nominating a...

Committee on Public Petitions: Consideration of Public Petition on Voting for Irish-born Citizens Abroad: Discussion (17 Oct 2024)

Martin Browne: In Northern Ireland, the proxy vote applies to the general public even. I could nominate a family member or somebody in the community-----

Committee on Public Petitions: Consideration of Public Petition on Voting for Irish-born Citizens Abroad: Discussion (17 Oct 2024)

Martin Browne: Yes.

Committee on Public Petitions: Consideration of Public Petition on Voting for Irish-born Citizens Abroad: Discussion (17 Oct 2024)

Martin Browne: That is the postal vote for Defence Forces personnel who are out of the country.