Eoghan Murphy TD, statement made during ‘Topical Issues’ in Dáil Eireann, 22^nd September 2011, Answered by Minister for European Affairs, Lucinda Creighton TD.

Deputy Eoghan Murphy:

As the Minister of State Deputy Creighton will be aware, yesterday, 21 September was the international day of peace, a day that has been recognised by the UN for the past 29 years. It was also the first day of the opening of the 66th session of the United Nations General Assembly, where leaders from around the world have come together to discuss their plans for progressing peace and human security for the coming year.

Our first endeavours in the United Nations in the 1950s were always in pursuit of peace, be it in sending peacekeepers around the world, as we have done for many decades and continue to do, or in the control of nuclear weapons and nuclear disarmament generally. Indeed, the first Minister sent to the United Nations in the 1950s, Mr. Frank Aiken, pursued a treaty on the non-dissemination of nuclear nations. In 1961, the Irish resolution adopted by the UN took a hold of that vision and in 1965 was converted into the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, NPT. We have continued to work in the pursuit of arms control and disarmament since then and, most recently, at the review conference for the NPT in 2010, we were successful in achieving some significant progress in the pursuit of a nuclear weapons-free zone in the Middle East. We will continue to work towards these endeavours. We have also worked very successfully in trying to abolish landmines and cluster munitions. In 2008, a declaration was signed in Dublin that brought into effect the Convention on Cluster Munitions.

Peace day is about more than one day, however. We must continue with these efforts on a constant basis until we have achieved a world that is free from the threat of nuclear weapons and other such threats. Tomorrow in New York, on the margins of the General Assembly, there will be a conference on facilitating the entry into force of the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty, also known as the Article 14 conference. This is a treaty that was opened for signature 15 years ago, in 1996, yet it still has not come into force. It is the next most important step in achieving a world free of nuclear weapons and the next most important piece of architecture in the nuclear non-proliferation regime. Yet it is still not in force.

There are nine countries involved that have held out from signing and ratifying the treaty. It is imperative that Ireland, given its position and its history of involvement in this area, pursues this goal, of a comprehensive nuclear test ban treaty, and that it gives dedicated effort to achieving finally the entry into force of that treaty sooner rather than later. This was the last major WMD arms control treaty to be negotiated by the Conference on Disarmament in Geneva a conference which has been in stalemate for the past 12 years, which is a disgrace. And we must also make efforts in this regard.

The Tánaiste is at the UN General Assembly at present. I wish him well in his endeavours and in the negotiations and bilateral meetings he will hold.

[Minister Creighton responds]

Deputy Eoghan Murphy:

I thank the Minister of State. It is very encouraging to hear that the Government is preparing for the 2015 NPT review conference process. It is particularly encouraging that the Middle East review will be going ahead in 2012, and I wish everyone the very best in that regard because it is very important to what we are trying to achieve in that region as well as in the wider world in regard to nuclear weapons disarmament.

With regard to the measures being pursued at present in relation to conventional weapons, it is commendable that we have a commitment in this area, both through the UN system and also through the NGO system. I wish the Government the very best on both these tracks.

The Tánaiste will become chairman of the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe next year. I am the head of the Oireachtas delegation to the parliamentary assembly for the OSCE and I offer him and his Department all my support in everything he hopes to achieve next year. The delegation will be interested in meeting the Minister to hear more about his plans while chairman of that organisation and I look forward to hearing from him in that regard.

[Minister Creighton responds]

To read this debate in full, please click on the following link:

http://debates.oireachtas.ie/dail/2011/09/22/00010.asp

To watch the proceedings click here

On Monday 19^th September a €6 million investment programme for Irish Rail was announced by Minister of State Alan Kelly. The funding will go to line speed improvements, further rollout of Wi-Fi on the train service and important fuel saving technology to reduce costs.

The funding is coming from reallocated capital within the Department of Transport, Tourism & Sport and is being spent on works that will be completed by years end. Under the initiative, an additional €1million will be spent on improving journey times between Portalington and Dublin, €1million on ticket validating machines and €300K for the additional roll-out of wifi on 63 rail cars and €600,000 for order point heaters to ensure depots are not unduly affected by a harsh winter.

A breakdown of the allocations for this programme is outlined in the table below:

To watch today’s proceedings click here.

Minister Varadkar has increased the allocation to  Local Authorities in respect of the Winter Maintenance Grant from €10 million to €11.25 million to assist local authorities with winter maintenance and to keep important roads clear.

The extra €1.25 million, along with the direct purchase of some 60,000 tonnes of salt, was possible through savings in the Department. It means that local authorities will have access to some 60,000 tonnes of salt, on top of the supplies purchased separately by the National Roads Authority. The funding will help to cover the cost of purchasing, transporting, storing and spreading salt, and other works associated with extreme weather conditions.

Hey folks,

We are again looking for an intern to give a hand in the constituency office, as well as help with research tasks for the committees that I sit on (Public Accounts and Transport, Sport, Tourism, Arts, Gaeltacht and Heritage Affairs) . If you know anyone who might be looking for 3 months of experience in a political environment, please let them know. Description and responsibilities below. As a note of encouragement, our previous intern is now in full time employment in Brussels (thanks to his own hard efforts of course).

Cheers,

Eoghan

Job Description
The position will involve supporting the existing team in the areas of research, administration and general support and back up. The position will be office based Tuesday to Thursday 9.30am to 5.30pm. This position is open immediately. The successful candidate will be based primarily in the Ranelagh constituency office.

The ideal candidate should have:

• Proven research skills
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills
• Good computer skills to include Excel, Word processing and internet.
• Knowledge of online social media outlets
• Ability to work on own initiative
• Excellent organisational and people skills

The ideal candidate should be:

• Interested in Politics and current affairs
• A team player
• Highly motivated

To Apply:

All CV’s with a cover letter to be sent to eoghan.murphy@oireachtas.ie .This is not a salaried position and the successful candidate will not be able to apply for this position under the Jobsbridge scheme. However lunch will be covered. While the position cannot be made permanent, it can be extended.

The successful candidate will need his/her own laptop.

Applications should be received on or before next Tuesday 17^th January 2012.

Statement to the Dáil during the Second and Subsequent Stages of the Bill, 15th July 2011

I should preface my remarks by stating that I am a smoker, so I have a particular interest in this important debate. I quit when the smoking ban came in. However, I then got a job abroad where it was permitted to smoke indoors and I started smoking again. I now smoke when taking a drink, as a lot of my peers do. If we could do something to break the link between alcohol and cigarettes it would go a long way towards solving the problems arising from the effects of smoking.

I very much welcome the Bill and thank the Minister of State for circulating the pictures. They are graphic and disturbing, and they will work. About eight years ago, when I was a student in Canada for the summer, they already had such images on cigarette packets. It was quite graphic and drove the message home. I always wondered why we did not have that system here, so it is great that we are finally starting to catch up with some of our international friends in this regard.

We should examine a number of other areas in this respect – not just what we are doing to discourage people from starting to smoke but also to help smokers to move away from the habit. Some good things are happening with new technological developments, including substitute cigarettes. I recently met with a group that had developed a battery-powered mechanical cigarette which provided a substitute effect without any of the harmful elements of smoking. If we can spend more time promoting such alternatives, including nicotine patches and substitute cigarettes, it would go a long way towards improving the situation. In addition, we should destigmatise such alternatives to smoking by making them more commonly available and more acceptable to use. We must also do what we can to aid research into the addictive nature of cigarettes.

Deputy Donohoe mentioned the dangers of smoking for pregnant women. I pass a hospital on my way home and it is shocking to see pregnant women smoking there. Surely we are not doing enough to educate people if such women think it is acceptable to smoke while pregnant. At the same time, one sees young mothers smoking. I understand that when one has such an addiction one will smoke, but there will be a negative affect on young children at home in their formative years who are subject to passive smoking. We should target particular groups, including young mothers, to help them stop smoking. The impact on people’s health and lives goes beyond the individual smoker.

I stopped smoking when the ban was introduced because one had to go outside and stand in the rain to have a cigarette. It was miserable. I started smoking again when I was abroad, but when I came back to Ireland I saw that there had been a proliferation of smoking areas in bars and restaurants. I understand the idea of erecting a canopy with a heater to help smokers but some of these smoking rooms are not outside. There seems to be no difference from being inside when one goes to the smoking areas. That needs to be examined and, although I understand that such businesses are suffering perhaps the law is being interpreted too loosely. They are able to build these rooms that might as well be inside, yet because there is a small hole in the wall for ventilation it is deemed appropriate to smoke there.

It used to be just the smokers who would go outside to have a cigarette and then come back inside but now everyone is going out to these smoking rooms and staying there for the evening. They are thus subject to the secondary effects of passive smoking, which is completely undermining the smoking ban. I urge the Minister of State and her officials to revisit the legislation to see if it is too liberal and whether we are allowing too many variations of the smoking section, which are undermining the purpose of the ban itself.

I welcome the Bill, which is a great initiative. I hope we can get the pictures on to cigarette packets as soon as possible.

Statement made to the Dáil during the Report and Final Stages of the Bill, 19th July 2011

I support the sentiments expressed in amendment No. 8. We all met people on the campaign trail who, for one reason or another, could not be present in the country or their constituencies at the time of the election. For example, they might have been working in Dublin while being registered at home because that was where they wanted to vote, which is acceptable. The issue needs to be examined. Simultaneously, we need to consider the case for giving a vote to people who are forced to move abroad because of the country’s circumstances. If they are forced by a Government’s actions to leave their country, they should have a right to vote that Government out of office from abroad in favour of another which they hope will one day make things right and allow them to return. However, this Bill is not the place for that amendment; it should be included in more appropriate legislation. The proposal should be considered. Therefore, I urge the Minister to take the idea on board to determine whether the proposal could be incorporated further down the line.

Statement to the Dáil during Report and Final stages of the Bill, 21st July 2011

I endorse much of what Deputy Kevin Humphreys has already said, particularly with regard to the levy on excess packaging which is important. We can be quite progressive in that regard if we so choose. I will confine my remarks to the possibility of a levy on incineration. I have spoken before, as many others did, about the importance of having that levy. If we want to avoid over-reliance on incineration and have a proper balance in the waste management matrix, there must be levies on incineration. I take the Minister’s point that at the moment such levies may be premature because the market has not established itself. We may need to wait for that to happen before we can bring in levies, which are essential. I would welcome any commitment from the Minister to examine the possibility of introducing levies at a future date. The Minister should have such powers in his armoury as we consider how to improve waste management. The Minister must have the ability to impose a levy at some future date when he feels the market is established and it is then necessary to move waste management mechanisms further up the hierarchy.

I welcome the Bill and support the Minister in his endeavours.

445 new jobs to be created in government-supported start-up companies – Bruton

Quarter two results for Enterprise Ireland backed companies show continued strong flow of entrepreneurial activity

Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation Richard Bruton today announced that 445 jobs will be created in 24 new high potential start-up companies which have been supported by government through Enterprise Ireland in the second quarter of 2011. The announcement follows on the 310 new jobs announced earlier this year as part of the Q1 results of Enterprise Ireland’s High Potential Start Ups programme.

Making the announcement, Minister Bruton said

“If we are to rebuild the economy and create the jobs of the future here, we must not only continue to attract high-end multinational companies, but we must also crucially ensure that more high potential small businesses can establish and expand here. Only an indigenous engine of economic growth can create the successful future we all want for Ireland.

“In order to achieve this, we must focus on three things:

• reducing costs and red tape;
• improving access to finance; and
• encouraging innovation in every way we can, including through government supports and ensuring that start-ups can benefit from the vast experience of our multinationals.

“Today’s announcement that over 440 jobs will be created in indigenous companies supported by Government in the second quarter of the year is very good news. Many of these companies are operating in precisely the innovative sectors that the Government is targeting for growth: clean tech, life sciences, ICT and financial services. This comes on the back of Ireland’s continued improvement in the global innovation rankings – 13^th in the 2011 Global Innovation Index, up from 19^th in 2010.

“My plan to create an indigenous engine of economic growth will ensure that Government actions are directed towards ensuring that more companies like these can establish and grow and provide the basis for Ireland’s economic recovery”.

Commenting on the announcement, Greg Treston, Head of High Potential Start Ups and Scaling at Enterprise Ireland said: ‘These 24 companies come from a broad range of sectors, confirming that there are significant opportunities for new export-focussed business start ups, particularly in life sciences, bio-tech and medical technology, cleantech, food, telecommunications, internet services and other niche areas.  Enterprise Ireland is working closely with these companies in building their business and their international market presence.  These are ambitious companies, with highly innovative products and business development strategies that will enable them to carve out a place in global markets, driving jobs and export sales growth at home’.

Examples of some of the new projects include: