Results 14,861-14,880 of 26,245 for speaker:Darragh O'Brien

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Data (21 Apr 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: Applications for social housing support are assessed by the relevant local authority, in accordance with the eligibility and need criteria set down in section 20 of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2009 and the associated Social Housing Assessment Regulations 2011, as amended. If a household meets the eligibility and need criteria, it qualifies for the suite of social housing...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Policy (21 Apr 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: The Programme for Government, ‘Our Shared Future’, clearly lays out our commitment to putting affordability at the heart of the housing system. Government approved priority drafting of the Affordable Housing Bill 2020 on 22 December 2020, the General Scheme of which I published on 20 January last. The Bill includes provisions to underpin three schemes delivering on the...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Mica Redress Scheme (21 Apr 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: I met earlier this year with members of the Donegal Mica Action Group and one of the issues raised was that of finance and the potential role which banks could play in assisting affected homeowners. As oversight of the financial institutions is outside the scope and remit of my Department, I wrote to the Minister for Finance on the matter. The Minister for Finance replied on 9 March and...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Fire Stations (21 Apr 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 Acts, 1981 and 2003. My Department supports the fire authorities through setting general policy, providing a central...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Departmental Funding (21 Apr 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: The social housing scheme referred to in the question was funded under my Department's Capital Loan and Subsidy Scheme (CLSS) and delivered 18 new homes at a cost of €973,191. The CLSS funding model involved local authorities accessing loan finance from the Housing Finance Agency to support approved housing bodies to deliver new social homes. The loan provided by the Housing...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Appointments to State Boards (21 Apr 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: In September 2020, the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform published an Annex on Gender Balance, Diversity and Inclusionto the Code of Practice for the Governance of State Bodies. This Annex seeks to promote the attainment of the long-standing target to achieve 40 per cent representation of women and of men on State Boards. The Annex was circulated to all the State bodies under the...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Social and Affordable Housing (21 Apr 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: Increasing the supply of public, social and affordable homes is a central commitment in the Programme for Government. In Budget 2021, we backed this objective with funding of €3.3 billion for the delivery of housing. Subject to the impact of COVID, this funding will support the delivery of 12,750 new social homes. A major focus of this investment is the delivery of new build homes,...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Policy (21 Apr 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: An Implementation Monitoring Group chaired by my Department and with membership from the Housing Agency, the Health Service Executive, the Department of Health, the National Disability Authority and a number of disability stakeholder organisations monitors the identified actions in the National Housing Strategy for People with Disability 2011-2016 which was extended to 2021. In accordance...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Local Authority Staff (21 Apr 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: I propose to take Questions Nos. 828 and 829 together. Under section 159 of the Local Government Act 2001, each Chief Executive is responsible for the staffing and organisational arrangements necessary for carrying out the functions of the local authority for which he or she is responsible. My Department oversees workforce planning for the local government sector, including the monitoring of...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Local Authority Housing (21 Apr 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: The Government set out its housing priorities in the Programme for Governmentacross numerous areas, including homelessness, affordable home ownership, public and social Housing, the Land Development Agency, rent reform and planning and my Department is focused on moving those priorities forward. The Programme for Government commits to the delivery of 50,000 new social homes, with a focus on...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Update on the Programme for Government: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (20 Apr 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: I am joined by my colleagues, the Minister of State with responsibility for planning and local government, Deputy Peter Burke, and Minister of State with responsibility for heritage and electoral reform, Deputy Noonan. I will ask them to make brief statements on their areas of responsibility.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Update on the Programme for Government: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (20 Apr 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: We will do that. I am conscious that this is the first opportunity we have had to go through elements and commitments in the programme for Government, but it will not be our last. I will cover my headline items first. Implementation of the Department's commitments in the Programme for Government, Our Shared Future, is well under way across all functional areas. While it will not be...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Update on the Programme for Government: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (20 Apr 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: If the Chairman wishes, I will leave the water element open to questions, if that is okay. The Minister of State, Deputy Noonan's area is heritage and electoral reform, and the Minister of State, Deputy Burke's area is local government, Traveller accommodation and planning. I ask that they would make a few brief remarks. We can then take some questions.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Update on the Programme for Government: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (20 Apr 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: On Deputy McAuliffe's last question-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Update on the Programme for Government: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (20 Apr 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: I thank Deputy Ó Broin. Details are still being worked through by the way, so I am not at liberty to give the Deputy the specifics right now. I will be bringing the Bill to Cabinet the week after next along with the regulations. What I can say is the scheme itself is different from the UK scheme. Some have been very-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Update on the Programme for Government: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (20 Apr 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: No, hold on. I can answer the questions. The rates will be substantially lower than a scheme the Deputy has regularly quoted. It is not a debt-based scheme; it is equity-based-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Update on the Programme for Government: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (20 Apr 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: I can tell the Deputy that the regulation and the rates will be published probably within the next two to three weeks. Everything will be there for everyone to go through. Even the Deputy may be pleasantly surprised.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Update on the Programme for Government: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (20 Apr 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: As I have said, the details are still being worked out. While the Deputy feels he may know the details, the agreement has not been finalised yet and still requires the approval of the Central Bank of Ireland, CBI.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Update on the Programme for Government: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (20 Apr 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: It is not the committee that would be the one to accept the scheme. It would be-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Update on the Programme for Government: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (20 Apr 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: With respect to Deputy Ó Broin, he was able to come out and criticise the scheme before he had even seen it, so I do not know whether the detail of the scheme really mattered to him, in real terms. The reality-----