Results 1,201-1,220 of 4,037 for speaker:Jennifer Whitmore

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Engagement with the Commission for Regulation of Utilities (9 May 2023)

Jennifer Whitmore: I know the issue of higher prices has been raised quite often in the meeting today. On a number of occasions, the witnesses specified the rationale behind the reason those prices were increasing. They spoke about the fact that Ireland is an isolated country and how we have a high gas dependency, low interconnection and a dispersed population. That was repeated a couple of times. The one...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Engagement with the Commission for Regulation of Utilities (9 May 2023)

Jennifer Whitmore: The CRU has not done an analysis on exactly what proportion of electricity prices are being derived from which energy generation or demand issues. The CRU has not done that modelling itself.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Engagement with the Commission for Regulation of Utilities (9 May 2023)

Jennifer Whitmore: I am asking about supply and demand. In every open market, there is supply and demand. The more demand, the higher the price. That is just a fundamental economic principle.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Engagement with the Commission for Regulation of Utilities (9 May 2023)

Jennifer Whitmore: I will move on because I am conscious that others wish to come in. The CRU representatives will look into it and examine whether that is a potential. There was a paper out this week by a couple of the economists from the Economic and Social Research Institute, ESRI, about data centres and how the biggest issue is not just the location of the data centres but their magnitude and their...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Engagement with the Commission for Regulation of Utilities (9 May 2023)

Jennifer Whitmore: Would Ms MacEvilly welcome a revisit of the data centre policy and guidelines from the Government to specify that it needs to be economically and carbon sustainable? Would that make the CRU’s job easier? The CRU is looking at it just from the connections perspective but there is this broader thing. At the moment, Government policy is very much that we welcome data centres. Would Ms...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Engagement with the Commission for Regulation of Utilities (9 May 2023)

Jennifer Whitmore: I find it interesting that when had Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland, SEAI, representatives in here at one stage about district heating and the potential of data centres to input into that, they did not know how many data centres there were or the capacity or energy demand of the data centres. They could not find any of that information. They actually pulled from a lobby...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Engagement with the Commission for Regulation of Utilities (9 May 2023)

Jennifer Whitmore: I do not believe this information is collected centrally. The Departments of Enterprise, Trade and Employment and the Environment, Climate and Communications do not have it and I do not believe any other entity knows exactly how many data centres there are, where they are, what their energy usage is and what the demand is. I had assumed the CRU would have that information because data...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Engagement with the Commission for Regulation of Utilities (9 May 2023)

Jennifer Whitmore: Water consumption is also an issue. There needs to be a centralised entity.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Engagement with the Commission for Regulation of Utilities (9 May 2023)

Jennifer Whitmore: Somebody should have it, and I think that should be the CRU.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Engagement with the Commission for Regulation of Utilities (9 May 2023)

Jennifer Whitmore: Exactly. It is how can we regulate unless we know. It probably should be the CRU because it covers energy, electricity, gas and water and has that central role. Certainly, someone needs to have oversight because there are lots of pieces of the jigsaw but no one is making the picture.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Engagement with the Commission for Regulation of Utilities (9 May 2023)

Jennifer Whitmore: We should make that decision while we are here.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Engagement with the Commission for Regulation of Utilities (9 May 2023)

Jennifer Whitmore: Is that something that would be worthwhile to do? We are going from a point where data centres are using 15% to potentially, in a number of years, where they would using 30%. Surely, as part of the monitoring and the forecast monitoring, we should have some idea of the impact that will have on prices for consumers.

Joint Committee On Children, Equality, Disability, Integration And Youth: General Scheme of the Child Care (Amendment) Bill 2023: Discussion (9 May 2023)

Jennifer Whitmore: I thank the witnesses for their presentations. They have put a huge amount of work into them, which will be very useful as we go through this process. My first question relates to proposals for taking greater account of the voice of the child. It is really welcome that this provision is to be strengthened. What protections and supports will need to be put in place in this regard? We...

Joint Committee On Children, Equality, Disability, Integration And Youth: General Scheme of the Child Care (Amendment) Bill 2023: Discussion (9 May 2023)

Jennifer Whitmore: I am just substituting for today's meeting. It seems that this has been a major conversation anyway.

Joint Committee On Children, Equality, Disability, Integration And Youth: General Scheme of the Child Care (Amendment) Bill 2023: Discussion (9 May 2023)

Jennifer Whitmore: Will there also be a transitional inspectorate facility or does the transitional arrangement only relate to obtaining funding under the schemes? Once a childminder signs up to the scheme, does that also mean there is a potential that they will be inspected?

Joint Committee On Children, Equality, Disability, Integration And Youth: General Scheme of the Child Care (Amendment) Bill 2023: Discussion (9 May 2023)

Jennifer Whitmore: I thank Mr. Wolfe.

Joint Committee On Children, Equality, Disability, Integration And Youth: General Scheme of the Child Care (Amendment) Bill 2023: Discussion (9 May 2023)

Jennifer Whitmore: I thank the witnesses. I have another brief question for Ms Connolly. She mentioned that the maximum term for a voluntary arrangement should be applied. What would she consider the term to be?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Engagement with the Commission for Regulation of Utilities (9 May 2023)

Jennifer Whitmore: Was that €100 million?

Transport Support Schemes for People with Disabilities: Motion [Private Members] (4 May 2023)

Jennifer Whitmore: I welcome this motion from the Regional Group. It is a very important issue for us to be talking about. We cannot understate the importance of transport for those with a disability. If people do not have easy access to transport, it essentially keeps them prisoners in their own homes. They cannot get out to meet friends, socialise, work or go to education. It has wide-ranging impacts. ...

Transport Support Schemes for People with Disabilities: Motion [Private Members] (4 May 2023)

Jennifer Whitmore: I will send that to the Minister of State. This is a very serious issue and I appreciate the opportunity to discuss it.