I was very saddened to hear of the death of Brian Farrell, who was among the very best of Irish broadcasters. He had an exceptional insight into Irish politics and current affairs, and he will be remembered as a rigorous and fair analyst and interviewer. He will be very much missed and my thoughts today are with his family.
Local jobseekers who avail of temporary seasonal work for up to 8 weeks over Christmas should know that their social welfare payment will be immediately reinstated when the period of employment ends.
It is around this time of year that temporary seasonal work opens up as the Christmas retail rush gets underway. I want to assure people on either Jobseeker’s Benefit or Jobseeker’s Allowance that, should they take up employment over the holidays, this payment will immediately resume once that employment ends.
Re-Opening the Permanent TSB Branch in Dundrum
I warmly welcome the latest CSO figures which show that in the past year there has been a 5.2% drop in the numbers signing on the live register at Nutgrove Social Welfare Office and an 11.6% drop at the Intreo Centre in Dún Laoghaire. These are really positive developments and signal strong progress in renewing our local economy.
Today I obtained Government approval for the appointment of seven new members of the RTÉ Board.
On my nomination, Moya Doherty was appointed as Chair to serve alongside four newly appointed Ministerial nominees; Frank Hannigan, Deborah Kelleher, PJ Mathews, Anne O’Leary. Mr Fergus Armstrong was also reappointed to the Board. In addition, the recently elected RTÉ staff representative, Mr Aengus Mac Grianna, was appointed by Government. RTÉ director-general Noel Curran is also a member of the Board. Four existing board members, nominated by the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport and Communications, remain in place until their terms expire in February 2015.
Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources, Alex White, T.D., has welcomed two developments announced this week, which will see fibre-to-the-home delivered to at least 500,000 homes and businesses across Ireland.
Today the contract was signed for the construction works for the GPO: Witness History Interpretive Exhibition Centre. Construction will begin in November and is expected to take 12 months. GPO: Witness History will officially open on Easter Sunday 2016. The overall development will cost €7.8 million.
I’m pleased to note that Dublin Bus has introduced extra departures at 15.45 and 17.40 on the 145 service from the 39a stop at Belfield Campus.
Budget 2015 - Alex White’s Budget Debate Speech
Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources
Labour TD for Dublin South
Dáil Éireann, October 15th 2014, 5.45pm
[youtube=http://youtu.be/CyMldb1WpUM]
Budget 2015 is the first recovery Budget. The era of tax rises affecting low and middle income earners and cuts in public services is now over. Budget 2015 will help secure employment and a sustainable economic and social recovery for Ireland and our people. Its reliefs are targeted at low and middle income earners, especially families who have borne such a heavy financial burden over the last number of years.
We said that austerity would not last forever and that our collective effort would not be in vain. It is a testament to the resilience of the Irish people and the sacrifices they have made, that we are now entering a period of progress and recovery.
Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources Alex White today (Wednesday) welcomed Budget 2015 as the “first recovery Budget” and said the era of public service cuts was over. Speaking in Dáil Éireann this evening, the Minister and Labour TD for Dublin South said it was a progressive budget with reliefs targeted at low and middle income earners who had shouldered a very considerable economic burden in recent years.
My main priority as Minister is to further advance the National Broadband Plan. Delivering high speed, high quality and future proofed broadband to all parts of Ireland will provide jobs and improve social inclusion, including in rural communities. It will create infrastructure that allows businesses and communities to thrive. To this end, we are in the process of ensuring that high speed broadband becomes available to every citizen and business in the country irrespective of their location.
