Results 15,561-15,580 of 21,489 for speaker:Alan Kelly

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Motor Tax Rates (19 Jan 2016)

Alan Kelly: Motor tax for goods vehicles is based on the unladen weight of the vehicle. Reductions in motor tax for goods vehicles announced in Budget 2016 took effect for licences taken out with a commencement date on or after 1 January 2016. While the top band was reduced from €5,195 to €900, tapering reductions applied to the lower weight bands, with the exception of the two lowest...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Legislative Process (19 Jan 2016)

Alan Kelly: I refer to the reply to Question No. 1514 of 22 September 2015 which sets out the position in this matter.

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Motor Tax Collection (19 Jan 2016)

Alan Kelly: All Motor Tax income accrues to the Local Government Fund. The Minister for Finance also pays an amount equivalent to the Local Property Tax that was collected in the particular year, from the Central Fund to the Local Government Fund. Local Property Tax (LPT) was introduced in 2013 to provide an alternative, stable and sustainable funding base for local authorities, providing greater levels...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Water Conservation Grant Applications (19 Jan 2016)

Alan Kelly: Current levels of registration with Irish Water is a matter for the utility and one in which I have no function. Irish Water has established a dedicated team to deal with representations and queries from public representatives. They may be contacted via email at or by telephone on 1890 578 578. The legislative basis for the Water Conservation Grant scheme is set out in Section 5 of the Water...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Dublin Docklands Development Authority (19 Jan 2016)

Alan Kelly: The Docklands Oversight and Consultative Forum is being established under Part 5 of the Dublin Docklands Development Authority (Dissolution) Act 2015 and the associated schedule to the Act. Under the 1997 Act establishing the DDDA, input from interested parties in Docklands was previously channelled via the Docklands Council to the Authority, and the advice and feedback from that Council,...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Social and Affordable Housing Provision (19 Jan 2016)

Alan Kelly: Information on social housing units constructed and acquired in respect of all local authorities and approved housing bodies and funded by direct capital investment by my Department, is published on my Department’s website at the following link: . Data up to Quarter 3 of 2015 are currently available, including a breakdown across the different categories of delivery for all local...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Electoral Reform (19 Jan 2016)

Alan Kelly: In order to be able to vote at elections and referendums, a person's name must be entered in the register of electors for a constituency in the State in which the person ordinarily resides. Provision is made in the Electoral Act 1992 for persons to be deemed to be ordinarily resident if they intend to resume residence within eighteen months after giving it up. I have no current plans to amend...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Local Authority Staff (19 Jan 2016)

Alan Kelly: I propose to take Questions Nos. 458 and 459 together. Under current Local Government Superannuation Scheme rules, most employees appointed prior to 1 April 2004 must retire by the age of 65. There are no plans to extend this retirement age. The minimum retirement age for employees appointed between 1 April 2004 and 31 December 2012 is 65 but they may work beyond that date. Employees...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Social and Affordable Housing Provision (19 Jan 2016)

Alan Kelly: Offers of social housing support are made by individual housing authorities in accordance with their allocation schemes and I, as Minister, am precluded by law from intervening in individual housing cases. I am aware of the level of refusals of offers of social housing across the local authority system and of the various reasons put forward for such refusals. I am concerned with the high...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Homeless Persons Data (19 Jan 2016)

Alan Kelly: My Department has just concluded the compilation of details from housing authority reports for November 2015 and is in the process of collecting reports for December 2015. Homelessness has been a standing agenda item at meetings of the Cabinet Committee on Social Policy and Public Sector Reform since January 2015; the normal procedure within my Department is to publish the monthly figures on...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Drainage Schemes (19 Jan 2016)

Alan Kelly: Responsibility for the maintenance of our rivers and waterways is shared between a range of statutory bodies and local riparian landowners. Under the Arterial Drainage Acts 1945 and 1995, the Office of Public Works (OPW) has statutory responsibility for the maintenance of rivers on which it has executed works since the 1945 Act. These arterial drainage schemes had as their primary purpose...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Departmental Staff Promotions (19 Jan 2016)

Alan Kelly: My Department has completed one round of internal competitions for various administrative grades since the change in rules governing eligibility. There have been no instances of Clerical Officers being promoted to Higher Executive Officer or Executive Officers being promoted to Assistant Principal Officer resulting from these competitions.

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Water Conservation Grant (14 Jan 2016)

Alan Kelly: The Water Conservation Grant is a key element of the Government's drive to promote conservation and more sustainable use of water services in the home. Regulations will be made in due course under Section 5 of the Water Services Act 2014 to set down the particulars of the 2016 grant scheme including the application process and eligibility criteria. It is intended that payment of the grant to...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Ambulance Service Provision (14 Jan 2016)

Alan Kelly: In December 2014, the Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA) published a report on Pre-Hospital Emergency Care Services, which highlighted the need for greater cooperation at all levels between the National Ambulance Service (NAS) and Dublin Fire Brigade (DFB). The report proposed changes to call-taking and ambulance dispatch, as well as overall clinical governance in order to...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Property Tax Exemptions (14 Jan 2016)

Alan Kelly: I propose to take Questions Nos. 232 and 236 together. The Local Government (Household Charge) Act 2011 provided the legislative basis for the Household Charge. Under the Act, an owner of a residential property on the liability date is liable to pay the Household Charge, unless otherwise exempted or entitled to claim a waiver. The Charge has operated on a self-assessment basis with an owner...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Irish Water Funding (14 Jan 2016)

Alan Kelly: The classification of public sector bodies is reviewed by the Central Statistics Office (CSO) on an on-going basis in line with relevant European System of Accounts regulations. Following receipt of the Eurostat decision last year, the CSO indicated that the classification of Irish Water involved complex technical decisions and the CSO would be engaging with Eurostat through the appropriate...

Flooding: Statements (13 Jan 2016)

Alan Kelly: During December and early January, many parts of the country were beset by severe flooding which caused widespread disruption and damage to homes and property nationally, as well as a great deal of hardship. I visited many of the affected areas and spent a significant amount of time across the country where I saw distraught people whose homes were uninhabitable. I saw people who were...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Motor Tax Exemptions (13 Jan 2016)

Alan Kelly: I propose to take Questions Nos. 828 and 829 together. I refer to the reply to Question No. 209 of 26 November, 2015, which sets out the position in the matter.

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Water Conservation Grant (13 Jan 2016)

Alan Kelly: The Water Services Act 2014 (Water Conservation Grant) Regulations 2015 governed the operation of the 2015 Water Conservation Grant scheme. Under regulation 5(1) a person who registered with Irish Water, as required under section 5(2)(a) of the Water Services Act 2014, on or before 30 June 2015 was eligible to receive the grant in 2015 if they were normally resident at the principal private...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Overseas Development Aid Expenditure (13 Jan 2016)

Alan Kelly: As I announced on Budget Day, Ireland will make an initial contribution of €2 million to the Green Climate Fund in 2016. This contribution will be Ireland’s first contribution to that Fund and will be in addition to Ireland’s broader and on-going support for mitigation and adaptation action by developing countries. Despite difficult recent economic circumstances, Ireland...