Results 61-80 of 425 for going forward speaker:Darragh O'Brien

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Legislative Measures (3 Oct 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: ...safety defects and ensure a consistent approach nationwide to remediation. It enables stakeholders such as Owners’ Management Companies (OMCs) and industry to align their work with its provisions. Going forward the Code of Practice will be a key document to support the operation of the remediation scheme and will be subject to periodic review. Importantly, it also provides guidance...

Affordable Housing: Motion [Private Members] (21 Sep 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: ...regard for Deputy O'Callaghan. If the motion he tabled is the first effort at Social Democrat housing policy and this is apparently the alternative to the most comprehensive housing plan brought forward by any government - it is the single biggest intervention by any government in the history of the State - it is a very poor alternative. Last year, we were able to deliver nearly 10,500...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Defective Building Materials (21 Sep 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: ...safety defects and ensure a consistent approach nationwide to remediation. It enables stakeholders such as Owners’ Management Companies (OMCs) and industry to align their work with its provisions. Going forward the Code of Practice will be a key document to support the operation of the remediation scheme and will be subject to periodic review. Importantly, it also provides guidance...

Housing and Homelessness: Motion [Private Members] (11 Jul 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: Some 238,000 tenants have availed of the renter's tax credit worth €1,000 that this Government brought forward in 2023. Some 40,000 individuals and families have availed of the help to buy grant which helps them to purchase their own home. These are very positive highlights, and leaving them aside we will never be complacent about the challenges that we face. I have and will never...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Water Services (6 Jul 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: Understood. To respond to Deputy O'Sullivan, he is correct that for whatever reason, the local authority did not apply for Shannon Vale to enter into the scheme I brought forward. Post Question Time, however, and with regard to Drinagh, I will follow up particularly with Shannon Vale. I will reach out again to the local authority. We need to get Uisce Éireann and the local...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Wastewater Treatment (6 Jul 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: The Deputy is looking for a pre-announcement, which we cannot do. All I will say is that if schemes are good, there is no restriction per county, like one or two per county. That is not the question. We received just over 20 applications across the country - not a lot, to be frank, but enough for us to be able, in my view, to start this pilot programme. Where the land is purchased, the...

Seanad: Seanad Electoral (University Members) (Amendment) Bill 2020: Committee Stage (5 Jul 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: .... Thankfully, it was retained. I believe in a bicameral system. The Seanad does important work. All Senators, be they from the university panels, elected from the other panels through local government or nominees of the Taoiseach, are Members of an important Chamber that I fully respect. I will get to the point on the register of electors in a moment. I reiterate that the Government...

Seanad: Seanad Electoral (University Members) (Amendment) Bill 2020: Committee Stage (5 Jul 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: I thank the Senator. I will go through them briefly. The Bill is useful, as I have mentioned. What I am about to say is not a criticism of the Bill itself, but it will show the types of things we need to address. There appears to be no clear definition in the Bill of what is meant by "institutions of Higher Education in the State", which is the term used in Article 18.4.2° of the...

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (15 Jun 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: Do you want to hear what I am going to say? We are engaged. It is a very serious matter. I have already explained to the Deputies who wanted to listen and did not want to engage in stunts here today that we have gone a long way down the road in the retained fire service review, which has been welcomed by SIPTU. The last piece is pay. I am committed to resolving that. Contacts are being...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan 2023: Discussion (Resumed) (15 Jun 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: ...Deputy’s last point first. Local authorities are moving well on retrofitting their stock. There is an opportunity in older estates where homes may have been purchased. Fingal County Council is going to run a pathway scheme in relation to making an offer to the whole estate while retrofitting social homes within it. It is something the local authorities are up for but there are...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan 2023: Discussion (Resumed) (15 Jun 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: ..., particularly in regard to building apartments and making sure that we are working towards 15-minute cities as well. We do not have enough people living in our cities. That is why we brought forward the Croí Cónaithe cities fund. I will make some announcements on that shortly to be able to get paused planning permissions for large-scale apartment developments in our five...

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (1 Jun 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: ...something we absolutely support. In my response to Deputy McAuliffe just now I mentioned the additional grant payment that is being paid out to 125,000 carers at a cost of €260 million. We are going to enhance pension provision for carers, which is a really important step forward. We will also look at other supports for carers in advance of the budget. The Minister for Social...

Home Ownership: Motion [Private Members] (31 May 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: ...what to do, with the exception of supporting an Ó Cualann-type model, which we do support. The delivery of Ó Cualann is supported through the State’s affordable housing fund, which was brought forward in the Affordable Housing Act, which the Social Democrats opposed and voted against in the Dáil. I would like to use the opportunity to outline what is available and...

Accommodation Needs for New Arrivals: Statements (23 May 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: ...and works under way that will provide just short of 3,000 additional bed spaces. Everyone here will agree that refurbishing and repurposing older buildings to today’s standards is not always straightforward. Work is under way at 16 sites, including surveying, procurement and building works. Again, everyone here will appreciate that this number is changeable. Owners of private...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Housing Policy (18 May 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: Specifically with regard to the tenant in situscheme, it has been a real success so far. To update the House, approximately 1,800 properties are going through the sales process right now. The targets that were set across local authorities were baseline targets and I have said that to everyone on numerous occasions. Additional funding will be required. If we can do more than 2,000 this...

Planning and Rural Housing: Motion [Private Members] (10 May 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: ...to the planning piece. Vacancy grants have been very effective. They have worked. More than 1,600 applications have come in, about 800 of which are actually approved already. The rest are going through the system. We made some significant changes to take effect from 1 May. Local authorities have been briefed and the circular is issuing today. The grant rate increases are...

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Culture Ireland (9 May 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: Gabhaim buíochas leis an gCathaoirleach agus go háirithe leis an Seanadóir Fitzpatrick as a ceist agus an tsuim atá aici in ionad na bPíobairí Uileann freisin. I thank the Cathaoirleach and the Senator for her question and for the interest she has shown in na Píobairí Uileann. As she has rightly said, I paid a visit there with her not so long ago,...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Valuation Office (3 May 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: ...and roll out of a new valuation operating system will assist in TÉ completing as many revision applications as is practically possible by year end, and in dealing with all revision applications within the statutory timeline going forward. TÉ may be contacted by Oireachtas members directly via email to reps@tailte.ie.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Resumed) (25 Apr 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: ...He has outlined the deficiencies and without question, we have €6 billion in capital being invested through Uisce Éireann throughout the country. In Athlone, €114 million is planned. I will go straight to Limerick now. I brought forward the €50 million unserved villages fund. We asked each local authority to submit to us schemes where they own the land and...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Resumed) (25 Apr 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: ...being produced now is more expensive. Fundamentally they are more expensive because of what we are delivering by way of a product. We have to understand that first. I see the measure we brought forward and got agreement on in government today as an activation measure. We are looking at a quick measure to take out a cost that we can actually control. Someone mentioned VAT earlier. If...