Results 2,261-2,280 of 6,816 for speaker:Darren O'Rourke

Written Answers — Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport: Electric Vehicles (15 Feb 2022)

Darren O'Rourke: 258. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport if he has examined the inclusion of an income cap for electric vehicle grants; if so, the income caps that were examined by his Department; the estimated number of persons that would be excluded under each income cap if it was introduced; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [8171/22]

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Customs and Excise (15 Feb 2022)

Darren O'Rourke: 274. To ask the Minister for Finance the amount the excise on motor diesel and petrol raised respectively in each of the years 2019, 2020 and 2021; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7430/22]

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Tax Code (15 Feb 2022)

Darren O'Rourke: 275. To ask the Minister for Finance the amount the carbon tax on motor diesel and petrol raised respectively in each of the years 2019, 2020 and 2021; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7431/22]

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Tax Yield (15 Feb 2022)

Darren O'Rourke: 302. To ask the Minister for Finance further to Parliamentary Question No. 261 of 8 February 2022, the breakdown of carbon tax income by year and categorised baseline, additional and total. [8356/22]

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Departmental Schemes (15 Feb 2022)

Darren O'Rourke: 340. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the measures he will put in place to ensure the new schemes under the National Retrofit Plan do not result in tenants being evicted by landlords citing said retrofitting schemes as an excuse for eviction; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [8165/22]

Mobility and Transport Supports for People with Disabilities: Motion [Private Members] (16 Feb 2022)

Darren O'Rourke: I welcome the opportunity to speak on this motion and I thank the Regional Group for bringing it forward. It is a motion about inclusion and ensuring the right to mobility and the associated independence for people with disabilities, and ensuring that people with disabilities can live full and active lives in our communities. The motion is welcome and necessary, and it should be supported....

Select Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 29 - Environment, Climate and Communications (Revised)
Vote 31 - Transport (Revised) (9 Feb 2022)

Darren O'Rourke: I thank the Minister for his update. I have just a couple of questions. Am I right in saying the overall Department budget is down by 6%? Is that a trend the Minister expects to continue? What is the headline figure in that regard?

Select Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 29 - Environment, Climate and Communications (Revised)
Vote 31 - Transport (Revised) (9 Feb 2022)

Darren O'Rourke: On a related point, will the Minister give me a sense of what he will do to encourage people back onto public transport? He said the Covid supports account for a significant part of that 6% budget decrease. We have provided €208 million to subsidise the public service obligation, PSO, routes on top of what would normally be given. It seems strange there would be such a massive...

Select Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 29 - Environment, Climate and Communications (Revised)
Vote 31 - Transport (Revised) (9 Feb 2022)

Darren O'Rourke: I will point the Minister towards the issue of fares. They are and remain a significant barrier. If we are already providing additional subsidies to the public transport network when they are running well below capacity, there is real opportunity to do something in that regard. The Minister pointed to the issue of hybrid working. Another issue that frustrates people is the lack of...

Select Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 29 - Environment, Climate and Communications (Revised)
Vote 31 - Transport (Revised) (9 Feb 2022)

Darren O'Rourke: There is an urgent need for it. I have experience of trying to be committed to public transport while working part-time. The minute one moves away from it and back into the car, one saves time and money. From a policy perspective, that is the wrong incentive and needs to be addressed. There is huge opportunity to encourage people onto public transport if we make it make sense for them....

Select Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 29 - Environment, Climate and Communications (Revised)
Vote 31 - Transport (Revised) (9 Feb 2022)

Darren O'Rourke: I will come back to a couple of issues. I have concerns about regional balance, how it will be achieved and how it is playing out in practice. I am looking at two issues in particular. The first is the trans-European transport network, TEN-T, review. As I understand it, DART+ and MetroLink are included in that review. My colleagues in the west of Ireland are concerned that the proposed...

Select Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 29 - Environment, Climate and Communications (Revised)
Vote 31 - Transport (Revised) (9 Feb 2022)

Darren O'Rourke: Therefore, there is an opportunity. The concern is that this TEN-T review closes the door for a considerable period. The Minister is saying that is not the case.

Select Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 29 - Environment, Climate and Communications (Revised)
Vote 31 - Transport (Revised) (9 Feb 2022)

Darren O'Rourke: We will be hearing about the western rail corridor and rail links to Navan and elsewhere as part of our considerations. On a related point, we asked specific questions about the NTA funding for active travel projects undertaken in 2021, broken down by local authorities and other bodies. We did the same for cycling and walking projects in 2021. The geographic spread of such projects is...

Select Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 29 - Environment, Climate and Communications (Revised)
Vote 31 - Transport (Revised) (9 Feb 2022)

Darren O'Rourke: That is my concern. I refer to this being a case of the survival of the fittest and of first up, best dressed. When it comes to local authorities competing to see who will be the best dressed, for me it is no coincidence that these schemes were launched in the Dublin suburbs. I say that with the greatest of respect for those areas; they are as entitled to fight their case as anybody else....

Select Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 29 - Environment, Climate and Communications (Revised)
Vote 31 - Transport (Revised) (9 Feb 2022)

Darren O'Rourke: From speaking to members of local authorities, some of the issue here concerns the nature of Ireland and the pool of potential staff. Having spoken to people in my region, they would say their local authority got additional staff, but they came from the local authority next door. In turn, that same local authority which got the extra staff might also have lost staff to its neighbouring...

Select Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 29 - Environment, Climate and Communications (Revised)
Vote 31 - Transport (Revised) (9 Feb 2022)

Darren O'Rourke: Regarding the NDP and the roads projects, there are useful interactive maps of which projects exist and what stage they are at in that context. We can be frustrated by projects not having reached particular stages, of course. Those interactive maps exist for the Twenty-six Counties. The Minister already has a long list of things to be done in this area, but I think we should map the...

Select Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 29 - Environment, Climate and Communications (Revised)
Vote 31 - Transport (Revised) (9 Feb 2022)

Darren O'Rourke: Turning to the subject of hauliers, there has been and is great frustration in the sector. It is under great pressure and hauliers took to the streets before Christmas. The Minister met with members of the representative bodies, and he indicated that some moves would be made after Christmas. What is he doing for that sector and what does he intend to do for it? Will anything be included...

Select Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 29 - Environment, Climate and Communications (Revised)
Vote 31 - Transport (Revised) (9 Feb 2022)

Darren O'Rourke: Time is of the essence here. The hauliers have protested on the streets twice now. The economic challenge posed to them has not got any easier. There are aspects that could be addressed, including, for example, the fuel rebate and the alternative fuels excluded from that measure. If one speaks to hauliers, they will point out the types of supports they require to move towards Euro...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Tax Code (16 Feb 2022)

Darren O'Rourke: 90. To ask the Minister for Finance his views on whether it is appropriate to apply VAT, a tax, to another tax, the carbon tax, on domestic gas bills; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [8660/22]

National Retrofitting Scheme: Statements (17 Feb 2022)

Darren O'Rourke: I welcome the opportunity to speak on the recently launched national retrofit plan. The plan restates the 2019 Climate Action Plan target of 500,000 deep retrofits and 400,000 heat pumps by 2030. It directs a majority of State supports to those with private means. Delivery since 2019 has been miserably slow. The Government's new, redesigned programme recognises something we have been...