Results 121-140 of 3,513 for speaker:Emer Higgins

Seanad: Statute Law Revision Bill 2024: Committee Stage (27 Feb 2025)

Emer Higgins: This Bill is rather technical legislation, but it is important and necessary. It represents another step in the journey to clarifying and simplifying the Irish Statute Book. I would like to commend my officials and the Law Reform Commission, who have worked on this. That involved reviewing all primary legislation from 1860 to 1922. We understand this represents the most extensive review...

Seanad: Statute Law Revision Bill 2024: Committee Stage (27 Feb 2025)

Emer Higgins: I thank the Senator. To reiterate, the Office of the Chief Herald was established in 1943 as a mechanism to fold the office into the Irish State. Two separate orders happened to that. That is where it became part of our more modern history as we entered into our Republic. I appreciate where the Senator is coming from in his comments on Schedule 2 and potential revocation. That is...

Seanad: Statute Law Revision Bill 2024: Committee Stage (27 Feb 2025)

Emer Higgins: Amendments Nos. 2 and 4 are regarding Schedule 1, Part 2 of the Bill. These are technical amendments which remove the instrument known as Smuggling Order 1807 from Schedule 1 of the Statute Law Revision Bill 2024, instruments to be retained. The purpose of this order was to allow for the payment of rewards to soldiers who assisted customs officers in making any seizures of prohibited or...

Seanad: Statute Law Revision Bill 2024: Committee Stage (27 Feb 2025)

Emer Higgins: These are minor technical amendments about replacing the phrase "Parliament of Parliament" with the correct legal term, "Prorogation of Parliament" throughout Schedule 2. These amendments do not in any way fundamentally change the Bill. They are not amendments to policy in any way. They are technical minor amendments.

Seanad: Statute Law Revision Bill 2024: Committee Stage (27 Feb 2025)

Emer Higgins: This is a minor amendment to rectify a technical error.

Seanad: Statute Law Revision Bill 2024: Committee Stage (27 Feb 2025)

Emer Higgins: These are very minor technical amendments. They are typographical amendments that were recommended by the Law Commission. They do not fundamentally change the Bill in any way or the policy behind the Bill. They are merely technical.

Seanad: Statute Law Revision Bill 2024: Committee Stage (27 Feb 2025)

Emer Higgins: I thank Members for their co-operation and their input into this Bill. The Bill we considered here today proposes the revocation of all statutory and prerogative instruments made before 1 January 1861, except for five instruments, which will be retained. More than 40,000 secondary instruments were reviewed by the Law Reform Commission to ascertain whether they were obsolete or whether they...

Seanad: Ministers and Secretaries and Ministerial, Parliamentary, Judicial and Court Offices (Amendment) Bill 2025: Second Stage (13 Feb 2025)

Emer Higgins: I congratulate everybody who is taking up a seat in the Chamber. In particular, I congratulate those who undertook successful elections to get here and everybody who took their seat in Seanad Éireann for the first time yesterday. It is an immense honour and I wish them every success over the next five years. I also take this opportunity to offer comhghairdeas to you, a Chathaoirligh,...

Seanad: Ministers and Secretaries and Ministerial, Parliamentary, Judicial and Court Offices (Amendment) Bill 2025: Committee and Remaining Stages (13 Feb 2025)

Emer Higgins: I thank the Senator. The expansion in ministerial duties arises from the increasing complexity of policy issues, the challenges associated with managing extensive Government initiatives and the enhanced engagement with stakeholders at all levels both domestically and internationally. It is very important that we ground this discussion in wider societal and economic developments. Based on...

Seanad: Ministers and Secretaries and Ministerial, Parliamentary, Judicial and Court Offices (Amendment) Bill 2025: Committee and Remaining Stages (13 Feb 2025)

Emer Higgins: I thank Senator Harmon for this amendment, which I think is very well intentioned. Accountability, transparency and value for money are all elements that we want to make sure we are achieving as we do our work in government. Regarding the Secretary General providing detailed statements of costs, this is already provided for because a lot of this information is publicly available....

Seanad: Ministers and Secretaries and Ministerial, Parliamentary, Judicial and Court Offices (Amendment) Bill 2025: Committee and Remaining Stages (13 Feb 2025)

Emer Higgins: I do not believe this is anecdotal. It is data-centred evidence coming from the CSO, which I referred to earlier. The CSO is the State agency responsible for gathering information and statistics in Ireland. That is why I believe its data is worth looking at.

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate: Water Quality (6 Feb 2025)

Emer Higgins: At the outset I congratulate Deputy Gould on his successful re-election to Dáil Éireann. I thank him for raising this really important issue. As the Deputy has alluded to, I am taking this Topical Issue on behalf of the relevant Minister, who cannot be here today but has provided me with quite a lot of briefing material on this. That is because it is a hugely important issue....

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate: Water Quality (6 Feb 2025)

Emer Higgins: I thank the Deputy. To be clear, the message from both the EPA and the HSE is not to drink discoloured water, and to report it to the EPA. I take on board the Deputy's feedback that the EPA and the HSE are not doing enough in that regard, and not doing enough to interact with the public in that regard too. I will absolutely pass that on to the Minister, Deputy Browne, and ask him to act on...

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate: Water Supply (6 Feb 2025)

Emer Higgins: The Deputy is right that we need to invest in our water supply. That is crucial and the examples he gave of water shortages and outages really reinforce that. Our water and wastewater systems require substantial and sustained investment over a number of investment cycles to bring them up to the quality and resilience standards required of a modern service, to provide for population growth...

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate: Water Supply (6 Feb 2025)

Emer Higgins: It will support improved water supplies across Ireland, including in Tipperary and rural Ireland, and it will support a range of programmes delivering improved water services in our rivers, lakes and marine areas. It will make a significant contribution to addressing Ireland's needs. Uisce Éireann, as we both acknowledged, has a dedicated team to deal with representations and I will...

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate: Water Supply (6 Feb 2025)

Emer Higgins: I thank the Deputy and I congratulate him for his successful re-election to Dáil Éireann. As he alluded, I am taking this Topical Issue on behalf of the relevant Minister, Deputy Browne, and the Minister of State, Deputy Cummins. I am happy to pass on the Deputy's feedback in terms of what he has just said about Uisce Éireann and his ask of that company. The supply of...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Dairy Sector (22 Jan 2025)

Emer Higgins: The company in question is at an early stage of development and is being supported by Enterprise Ireland (EI) to explore business opportunities in the nutritional powders market. EI has ongoing contact with the company in this regard. I understand that the process to allow for the commencement of production at the factory is progressing. There are currently a small number of full-time...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Business Supports (22 Jan 2025)

Emer Higgins: In total, the Increased Cost of Business (ICOB) and Power Up grant schemes paid out over €400 million in 2024. Following an extension to the deadline, the ICOB scheme closed on 29th May, 2024 and the Power Up grant closed on 22nd November, 2024 also following an extension to the deadline. The Local Authorities contacted eligible businesses to let them know how to register for the...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Visa Applications (22 Jan 2025)

Emer Higgins: The Employment Permits Section of my Department informs me that no Employment Permit application for the person concerned in the details supplied has been received by them to date. It is therefore not possible to expedite an employment permit application in respect of this person. It should be noted that it is not permissible for a company to employ a non-EEA national without an employment permit.

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Employment Rights (22 Jan 2025)

Emer Higgins: The Sick Leave Act 2022 introduced 3 days of employer-paid, statutory sick leave for the first time in Ireland, coming into force on 1 January 2023. The entitlement for employees increased from 3 to 5 days on January 1 2024. An important anti-abuse provision is contained within Section 5, Subsection 9 of the Sick Leave Act 2022, which provides that statutory sick leave is only payable if...