Results 1,981-2,000 of 5,027 for speaker:Victor Boyhan

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Electoral Reform Bil 2020: Discussion (Resumed) (20 May 2021)

Victor Boyhan: I thank Mr. Carroll and look forward to the response of Ms McMahon on behalf of the Green Party.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Electoral Reform Bil 2020: Discussion (Resumed) (20 May 2021)

Victor Boyhan: We might get back to the remaining answers in the next round.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Electoral Reform Bil 2020: Discussion (Resumed) (20 May 2021)

Victor Boyhan: I will return to them in the next round.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Electoral Reform Bil 2020: Discussion (Resumed) (20 May 2021)

Victor Boyhan: Yes.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Electoral Reform Bil 2020: Discussion (Resumed) (20 May 2021)

Victor Boyhan: I am taking the second slot for the Independent Group. The question that needs to be answered by Sinn Féin and the Social Democrats is if they will explain the manner in which their parties use targeted advertising deliberately to show political advertisements to people on the basis of their gender, age and location. I am conscious of time. Do the witnesses favour the continuation or...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Electoral Reform Bil 2020: Discussion (Resumed) (20 May 2021)

Victor Boyhan: I ask the other witnesses their view on the marked registers, their retention and the practice of being able to pay a fee to receive them from the Clerk of Dáil Éireann.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Teagasc Education Courses and the Signpost Programme: Discussion (25 May 2021)

Victor Boyhan: I welcome the witnesses. I know that Mr. Pettit and his team head the educational sector in Teagasc. I studied horticulture under ACOT, the predecessor of Teagasc. That was a good while ago. I acknowledge the importance of Teagasc and its work on training. I will make a few comments and ask a few questions. On many occasions, we have discussed in this committee the question of what a...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine: Teagasc Education Courses and the Signpost Programme: Discussion (25 May 2021)

Victor Boyhan: I thank Mr. Pettit.

Seanad: Affordable Housing Bill 2021: Committee Stage (28 May 2021)

Victor Boyhan: I welcome the Minister of State to the House.Before proceeding to talk briefly about Senator Moynihan’s amendment, I wish to thank the Bills Office. What an enormous task it has and it is under enormous pressure. If one looks at the legislation coming through both Houses and, in particular, how we will have to turn this legislation around for next week, I wish to acknowledge the...

Seanad: Affordable Housing Bill 2021: Committee Stage (28 May 2021)

Victor Boyhan: I have some reservations about this because I think we need to use all options to secure homes. Hopefully, in time, we will have options to buy affordable homes in the private sector. It is not a matter of private versus public. Every option, angle and opportunity must be about enabling people to get a home. I do not even like the slogan "housing for all". I prefer a home for all as I...

Seanad: Affordable Housing Bill 2021: Committee Stage (28 May 2021)

Victor Boyhan: I am interested in what Senator Higgins said and look forward to that amendment because it would address some of the concerns that have been raised. To be clear, my understanding is that this amendment seeks to remove an open market dwelling as a category of affordable housing, leaving only houses made available by a housing authority and Part V houses. That is the issue. I ask the...

Seanad: Affordable Housing Bill 2021: Committee Stage (28 May 2021)

Victor Boyhan: I am very happy to support this amendment, which is a good one. It is important that in the spirit of working together we support this, and I hope the Minister of State will support it. We have seen traditionally smaller co-operatives and community housing trusts establish units. It has worked. I have been to see a few of them in the west. Some projects have run into difficulties, and...

Seanad: Affordable Housing Bill 2021: Committee Stage (28 May 2021)

Victor Boyhan: I have concerns about the amendment and do not support it. While I have major concerns about the LDA, we will have opportunities under the Land Development Agency Bill to examine some of those.As I said earlier, we must have mixed tenure and use every available resource, vehicle and opportunity to provide homes for people. There are some issues with the LDA. Some of the Senators who are...

Seanad: Affordable Housing Bill 2021: Committee Stage (28 May 2021)

Victor Boyhan: Again, I have some concerns about this amendment. Before I start, I am looking at amendment No. 7 tabled by Senators Higgins and Ruane. The effect of that amendment, if agreed to, is that any public private partnership arrangement must have 80% social and cost-rental housing. There is an acceptance in that amendment that the Senator is supportive of public private partnerships in certain...

Seanad: Affordable Housing Bill 2021: Committee Stage (28 May 2021)

Victor Boyhan: That is fair enough. That is part of the argument. The follow-on in the next amendment is that the Senator is suggesting she is not against public private partnership arrangements. It is important to clarify that. I am trying to be consistent with the argument the Senator is making with regard to amendment No. 6. We have had bad experiences with public private partnerships. There are...

Seanad: Affordable Housing Bill 2021: Committee Stage (28 May 2021)

Victor Boyhan: It has been an interesting debate and I note that issue about flexibility. I want to address some of the issues in what Senator Casey said. The Senator touched on the lack of available land within his own local authority, in this case Wicklow County Council, and the challenges there are. I note the Senator said that we have to reach out. We have to reach out to everybody. The Senator...

Seanad: Affordable Housing Bill 2021: Committee Stage (28 May 2021)

Victor Boyhan: I do not necessarily agree with what Senator Seery Kearney has said. In fact, I totally concur with Senator Warfield. It is very important that we are vigilant at all times. This is the place where we make legislation. Language is critical and we know this from the diverse views and situations in the politics of this island. Language means everything. It is how we communicate. It is...

Seanad: Affordable Housing Bill 2021: Committee Stage (28 May 2021)

Victor Boyhan: There is a great deal of merit in what Senator Fitzpatrick said. It is about tracking, tracing, targeting and holding people to account. There has been much talk today about empowering housing authorities and local authorities but it goes back to that thing about the executive and the reserve function. Most people here have been involved in local government at some level and we know the...

Seanad: Affordable Housing Bill 2021: Committee Stage (28 May 2021)

Victor Boyhan: I thank the Minister of State for his engagement today. I hope we will continue to have meaningful engagement and that we will not guillotine or close down this debate. There are some imaginative ways in which we can look at our schedule next week. I have some in mind already, which I will bring to the House on Monday so that we can prolong this debate. It is good we are having it because...

Seanad: Search and Rescue System: Motion (28 May 2021)

Victor Boyhan: I welcome the Minister of State to the House. I second the motion. First, I want to thank the members of the Irish search and rescue service who risk their lives to save the lives of many other people. Regardless of who they are or for which service they work, they face the same challenges and difficulties and they put themselves at risk for us. It is important that we never lose sight of...