Results 13,461-13,480 of 27,055 for speaker:Darragh O'Brien

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Provision (16 Dec 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: As Housing Minister, my priorities in relation to housing delivery are set out under Housing for All; they are to ramp up State building of social homes to help eliminate homelessness and address waiting lists, as well as supporting homeownership and increasing affordability. Under Housing for All there are unprecedented resources available to support public housing programmes. Implementation...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Energy Prices (16 Dec 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: Government policy in relation to electricity matters is led by the Minister for Environment, Climate and Communications and electricity connection charges and charging arrangements are subject to independent regulation by the Commission for the Regulation of Utilities (CRU). Since 1 January 2014, Irish Water has statutory responsibility for all aspects of water services planning and...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Provision (15 Dec 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: Under Housing for All, the Government will deliver 47,600 new build social homes and 3,500 social homes through long-term leasing in the period 2022-2026. In September, I issued social housing delivery targets to each local authority for the period 2022-2026. Under Housing for All, each local authority is required to prepare a Housing Delivery Action Plan, which should set out details...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Provision (15 Dec 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: A household applying for social housing support is assessed for eligibility and need by the relevant  local authority in accordance with criteria set down in section 20 of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2009 and the associated Social Housing Assessment Regulations 2011 (as amended).  The 2009 Act defines a household as a person living alone,...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Provision (15 Dec 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: Approved Housing Bodies (AHBs) are making an important contribution to social housing delivery, as envisaged under current Government policy. My Department operates a number of funding programmes that assist local authorities to work in partnership with AHBs to construct, purchase and lease new homes and make them available for social housing. One such programme that AHBs progress...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Vacant Properties (15 Dec 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: Local authorities will always have a level of vacancy in their housing stock. This will fluctuate over time, as tenancy surrender and re-letting of stock is an ongoing process. Therefore, ongoing data in relation to vacant local authority owned homes is not collated by my Department. However, statistics in relation to social housing stock, at a point in...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Homeless Persons Supports (15 Dec 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: My Department publishes a detailed monthly report on homelessness, based on data provided by housing authorities. The Report outlines details of individuals utilising State-funded emergency accommodation arrangements that are overseen by housing authorities. The Reports are available on my Department's website at the following link: www.gov.ie/en/collection/80ea8-homelessness-data/ and via...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Homeless Persons Supports (15 Dec 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: I propose to take Questions Nos. 89 to 91, inclusive, together. My Department’s role in relation to homelessness involves the provision of a national framework of policy, legislation and funding to underpin the role of housing authorities in addressing homelessness at the local level. Statutory responsibility in relation to the provision of accommodation and related services for...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Departmental Policies (15 Dec 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: My Department's website, www.gov.ie/en/organisation/department-of-housing-local-gover nment-and-heritage/ provides comprehensive information on our policy achievements and initiatives. Highlights during the course of 2021 would include: - Publication of Housing for All: A New Housing Plan for Ireland. This is a whole of Government plan and sets out a pathway to increase the supply of housing...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Homeless Accommodation (15 Dec 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: My Department publishes data on a monthly basis on the number of homeless persons accommodated in all forms of emergency accommodation funded and overseen by housing authorities. These reports are based on data provided by housing authorities and are produced through the Pathway Accommodation & Support System (PASS), the single integrated national data information system on...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Provision (15 Dec 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: The Housing for All Strategy delivers on the Programme for Government commitment to step up housing supply and put affordability at the heart of the housing system, with an ambitious target of 300,000 homes over the next decade for social, affordable and cost rental, private rental and private ownership housing. Measures to deliver this housing are supported by over €4 billion in...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Provision (15 Dec 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: Housing First enables homeless individuals with high levels of complex needs to obtain permanent secure accommodation with the provision of intensive housing and health supports to help them maintain their tenancies. The National Implementation Plan for Housing First, published in September 2018, which puts the programme on a national footing, is designed to provide this response, by...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Homeless Persons Supports (15 Dec 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: I propose to take Questions Nos. 97 to 99, inclusive, together. My Department's role in relation to homelessness involves the provision of a national framework of policy, legislation and funding to underpin the role of housing authorities in addressing homelessness at a local level. Statutory responsibility in relation to the provision of homeless services rests with individual...

Residential Tenancies (Amendment) (Extension of Notice Periods) Bill 2021: Second Stage [Private Members] (14 Dec 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: I thank the Deputies who put their names to the Bill. I particularly thank the Simon Communities of Ireland, who have put a huge amount of work into putting the legislation together. Earlier today, I spoke with Wayne Stanley and I commended him on the work he has done on the legislation and the tireless work the Simon Communities of Ireland do day in day out. In response to Deputy Gould,...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Departmental Schemes (14 Dec 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: The Housing Assistance Payment (HAP) is a flexible and immediate form of social housing support for people with a long-term housing need. Any household assessed by their local authority as eligible for social housing is immediately eligible for HAP. These households must find their own accommodation in the private rental sector. The HAP scheme started in 2014 and at the end of Q3 2021,...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Waste Management (14 Dec 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: The two main measures for removal of plastic from the seas surrounding Ireland are the Clean Coastsprogramme, operated by the Environmental Education Unit of An Taisce, and the Clean Oceans Initiative, incorporating the international Fishing for Litter programme, which is managed by Bord Iascaigh Mhara. Clean Coastsis funded and supported my Department and is incorporated into our national...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Electoral Process (14 Dec 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: As part of the work being done by my Department to implement the Programme for Government commitment in relation to considering the Institute of Public Administration (IPA) review of municipal districts, with a view to identifying local needs and the initiatives needed to strengthen and grow our communities, villages and towns in a sustainable manner, a local authority survey was carried out...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Fire Service (14 Dec 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: The provision of a fire service in its functional area, including the establishment and maintenance of a fire brigade, the assessment of fire cover needs and the provision of fire station premises, is a statutory function of individual fire authorities under the Fire Services Act, 1981. My Department supports fire authorities through setting general policy, providing a central training...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Hare Coursing (14 Dec 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: I issue licences to the Irish Coursing Club to facilitate the capture (under Section 34) and tagging of hares (under Section 32) for closed park meetings under the Wildlife Acts. I have no function in relation to the location of these meetings.

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Schemes (14 Dec 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: The Tenant (Incremental) Purchase Scheme came into operation on 1 January 2016. The scheme is open to eligible tenants, including joint tenants, of local authority houses that are available for sale under the Scheme. Eligible tenants are those with a minimum reckonable income of €15,000 per annum and who have been in receipt of social housing support for at least one year. The scheme...