Results 1,121-1,140 of 2,189 for speaker:Richard O'Donoghue

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate: Hospital Investigations (28 Jun 2022)

Richard O'Donoghue: I understand that.

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate: Hospital Investigations (28 Jun 2022)

Richard O'Donoghue: I thank the Leas-Cheann Comhairle but I feel passionate about what has happened in the hospital. The first statement I made in the Dáil when I arrived here two and a half years ago was on the mismanagement of University Hospital Limerick. People have come to me in the meantime because of alleged incidents that have happened there. As a public representative, I want to protect the...

Emergency Budget: Motion (Resumed) [Private Members] (28 Jun 2022)

Richard O'Donoghue: I thank Sinn Féin for bringing this motion. History repeats itself once again. The Rural Independent Group was the first to call for a mini-budget. Since then, we have heard many commentators speak about, and many rumblings about, mini-budgets. Why does it take so long for the Government to realise people have already started to cut back considerably and cannot afford to live? We...

EirGrid, Electricity and Turf (Amendment) Bill 2022: Second Stage (28 Jun 2022)

Richard O'Donoghue: The Rural Independent Group asked for the opening of oil and gas exploration, against which the Minister of State voted here in this House, until we have an alternative. Central Statistics Office figures show that the data centres used 14% of our metered electricity last year, now rising to 30%. The European Commission in 2020 put data centres as using 2.7%. We are at 14% and we are...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Vehicle Registration Tax (28 Jun 2022)

Richard O'Donoghue: 212. To ask the Minister for Finance if discussions are expected to increase the VRT and VAT allowed on vehicles purchased by people with disabilities and organisations due to the increase of the cost of vehicles and the adaptations that are required; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [34418/22]

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Inflationary Costs in the Construction Industry: Discussion (28 Jun 2022)

Richard O'Donoghue: Mr. Doyle is saying there should be 0% VAT on social housing and 5% VAT on renovations.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Inflationary Costs in the Construction Industry: Discussion (28 Jun 2022)

Richard O'Donoghue: Okay. Regarding social housing in Limerick, such a policy would discriminate against many people. The reason is we cannot even build social housing because we have no infrastructure. The Land Development Agency, LDA, was referred to a few minutes ago. It is only looking at locations within a 15-minute proximity of Limerick city, which includes Croom, Adare and Patrickswell. Everything...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Inflationary Costs in the Construction Industry: Discussion (28 Jun 2022)

Richard O'Donoghue: Local authorities have told the people they do not want their housing. How can we have housing for all if we do not have infrastructure?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Inflationary Costs in the Construction Industry: Discussion (28 Jun 2022)

Richard O'Donoghue: That is no problem at all. Ms Donaghy said that Home Building Finance Ireland, HBFI, needs to be publicised more and there needs to be more engagement in it. I would be happy to look at that on behalf of people who approach me for housing and who went to local authorities who have said that they are not interested in the area. I would be interested in getting contact details for that....

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Inflationary Costs in the Construction Industry: Discussion (28 Jun 2022)

Richard O'Donoghue: Yes, I understand that.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Inflationary Costs in the Construction Industry: Discussion (28 Jun 2022)

Richard O'Donoghue: It would help us, because many people are coming to us at the moment. We were talking about it with the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Deputy Darragh O'Brien, in the Dáil last week. He said that never had as many applications gone through planning as have done so in the past 12 months. He is actually right but not even a quarter of them will be built. That is my...

Written Answers — Department of Public Expenditure and Reform: Covid-19 Pandemic (23 Jun 2022)

Richard O'Donoghue: 198. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform if discussions are expected in relation to the special leave for healthcare workers with long-Covid which they contracted through their work in a healthcare setting to be extended beyond the end of June 2022 given that many have the additional expense of travelling to Dublin for the necessary care; and if he will make a statement on...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Nursing Homes (23 Jun 2022)

Richard O'Donoghue: 430. To ask the Minister for Health if discussions are expected to address the impact of the extraordinary inflationary costs upon private and voluntary nursing homes; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33414/22]

Written Answers — Department of Health: Hospital Waiting Lists (23 Jun 2022)

Richard O'Donoghue: 431. To ask the Minister for Health his views on whether persons in the mid-west who need neurology services should have to wait for a number of years for this service to be developed and the number of nurses increased as indicated by the CEO of University Hospital Limerick; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33415/22]

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Remediation of Dwellings Damaged by the Use of Defective Concrete Blocks Bill 2022: Discussion (23 Jun 2022)

Richard O'Donoghue: I am an Independent Deputy for Limerick. My colleague in Dublin, Senator Boyhan, and I are together in this. I am a building contractor and a blocklayer. I understand everything the witnesses are saying, but I will tell them why the core testing has to go ahead. The Government is now pushing a retrofit grant that is going out throughout the country. The grant is to insulate one's house....

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Remediation of Dwellings Damaged by the Use of Defective Concrete Blocks Bill 2022: Discussion (23 Jun 2022)

Richard O'Donoghue: I am sorry to cut across Ms Murphy. There are a lot of houses in Limerick on which people have done remedial work because they had cracking. They have removed the plasterwork, put mesh onto those areas and got products that soak in to make the blocks harder. The problem now, however, is that when the winter comes again, the moisture will build up inside that and the whole lot will come off...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Remediation of Dwellings Damaged by the Use of Defective Concrete Blocks Bill 2022: Discussion (23 Jun 2022)

Richard O'Donoghue: Yes. My first question is for Mr. Houton on costings. Are all of the costings that Mr. Houton gave plus VAT?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Remediation of Dwellings Damaged by the Use of Defective Concrete Blocks Bill 2022: Discussion (23 Jun 2022)

Richard O'Donoghue: When dealing with quantity surveyors it is all plus VAT. In a 2,000 sq. ft house-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Remediation of Dwellings Damaged by the Use of Defective Concrete Blocks Bill 2022: Discussion (23 Jun 2022)

Richard O'Donoghue: I am basing the costs in our area at roughly around €180 per sq. ft. That is the cost, roughly, to build a house. So, a 2,000 sq. ft house would cost some €360,000 plus VAT. The VAT on that house would be €48,600. That VAT is the first thing the Government could waive, which might bring us back into a slight part of redress. The percentage rate that we are missing is...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Remediation of Dwellings Damaged by the Use of Defective Concrete Blocks Bill 2022: Discussion (23 Jun 2022)

Richard O'Donoghue: Has any of the witnesses put this into any of their submissions to the Government? Have the groups asked the Government to remove the 13.5% VAT for rebuilding costs on the houses with pyrite in order to bring them closer to getting the 100% redress they 100% need?