Results 23,181-23,200 of 40,897 for speaker:Simon Coveney

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Social and Affordable Housing Provision (20 Jul 2016)

Simon Coveney: The site in question, at Glin, County Limerick, was accepted into the Land Aggregation Scheme in 2011. Under that Scheme, the Housing Agency is responsible for engaging with local authorities, and approved housing bodies, regarding the appropriate development of the lands, prior to seeking the necessary approval from the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government. The...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Water Meters Data (20 Jul 2016)

Simon Coveney: I propose to take Questions Nos. 190 to 192, inclusive, together. My Department did not conduct research on the environmental cost of the domestic metering programme. Since 1 January 2014, Irish Water has statutory responsibility for all aspects of water services planning, delivery and operation at national, regional and local levels. This includes the domestic water metering programme....

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Motor Tax Rates (20 Jul 2016)

Simon Coveney: Section 1(2)(b) of the Finance (Excise Duties) (Vehicles) Act, 1952 provides a vehicle licence may be taken out for such periods of the year and on payment of such rates of duty as the Minister may by regulation prescribe. The rates for licences of less than a year shall be no less than the proportion that the licence bears to a full year and, in the case of quarterly licences, the duty...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Waste Disposal Charges (20 Jul 2016)

Simon Coveney: In an open market, it is a matter for a waste collector to set charges at the level they consider to be competitive, in compliance with the requirements of environmental and other applicable legislation. However, since the waste industry began releasing its proposed prices under pay-by-weight last month, the Government relayed its concern to the industry regarding the reported escalation of...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Local Authority Housing Data (20 Jul 2016)

Simon Coveney: The current programme to support local authorities to return vacant social housing units to productive use commenced in 2014 and in that year and in 2015, my Department provided €60 million to support local authorities in returning over 5,000 vacant units to productive use. The programme for 2016 will see in excess of €24 million being provided for the remediation of a further...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Local Authority Housing Data (20 Jul 2016)

Simon Coveney: The table available at the link below sets out the number of units acquired by local authorities in 2014, under Part V of the Planning and Development Act 2000, based on returns made to my Department. The 2015 data are being finalised and will be placed on my Department’s website shortly, while information in relation to 2016 will be available next year. . My Department provided...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Local Authority Funding (20 Jul 2016)

Simon Coveney: The Domestic Waste Water Treatment Systems (Financial Assistance) Regulations 2013, a copy of which is available in the Oireachtas library, brought into operation a grant scheme to assist with the cost of remediation of septic tanks and domestic waste water treatment systems which are deemed, following inspection under the Environmental Protection Agency’s National Inspection Plan, to...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Unfinished Housing Developments (20 Jul 2016)

Simon Coveney: Since 2010, an annual survey of unfinished housing developments has been conducted during the summer months to monitor progress. The detailed findings of the annual surveys, which provide a breakdown of unfinished housing developments in each local authority area, together with progress reports and other useful information in relation to Unfinished Housing Developments, are available on the...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Housing for People with Disabilities Provision (20 Jul 2016)

Simon Coveney: The funding allocation of €56.25m in 2016 for the Housing Adaptation Grants for Older People and People with a Disability comprises €45m Exchequer funding and €11.25m from local authorities’ own resources. Details of these 2016 allocations are available on my Department’s website at the following link: . The 2016 allocation represents a 10% increase on that...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Local Authority Housing (20 Jul 2016)

Simon Coveney: I propose to take Questions Nos. 200 and 201 together. The assessment of applications for social housing support is the responsibility of the relevant local authority in accordance with the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2009 and associated regulations. The prescribed application form for such support requires applicants to provide certain information on their current and previous...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Local Authority Housing (20 Jul 2016)

Simon Coveney: Targets in respect of social housing delivery via a combination of building, buying and leasing schemes, were set for each local authority out to 2017 and are available on my Department’s website, along with the associated provisional funding allocations, at the following link: . As part of these targets, almost €87 million has been allocated to Kildare County Council for the...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Local Authority Housing Maintenance (20 Jul 2016)

Simon Coveney: The management and maintenance of local authority housing stock is a matter for each relevant local authority to address in the first instance and it is open to each authority to address maintenance and improvements to their housing stock from within their own resources. In relation to the project referred to by the Deputy in the details supplied, my Department has received an application...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Local Authority Expenditure (20 Jul 2016)

Simon Coveney: This matter will be considered in the context of the Programme for a Partnership Government commitment to examine the possibility of extending the remit of the Comptroller and Auditor General (C and AG) and the Public Accounts Committee to include expenditure by local authorities. The range of legislative provisions in the Comptroller and Auditor General (Amendment) Act 1993 involve both the...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Waste Management (20 Jul 2016)

Simon Coveney: I propose to take Questions Nos. 205 and 222 together. In an open market, it is a matter for a waste collector to set charges at the level they consider to be competitive, in compliance with the requirements of environmental and other applicable legislation. However, since the waste industry began releasing its proposed prices under pay-by-weight last month, the Government relayed its...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Housing Estates (20 Jul 2016)

Simon Coveney: €10 million has been made available in 2016 to fund a new initiative to accelerate the taking-in-charge of estates, irrespective of the wider development context in which they are located. Of the €10 million, a provisional allocation of €3.5 million has been made available in relation to Housing Estates served by Developer Provided Infrastructure (Measure 2 referred to...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Wind Energy Guidelines (20 Jul 2016)

Simon Coveney: I propose to take Questions Nos. 207 and 208 together. In December 2013, my Department published proposed “draft” revisions to the noise, setback distance and shadow flicker aspects of the 2006 Wind Energy Development Guidelines. These draft revisions proposed: - the setting of a more stringent day and night-time noise limit of 40 decibels for future wind energy developments,...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Constituency Boundaries (20 Jul 2016)

Simon Coveney: In accordance with section 5 of the Electoral Act 1997 I established a Constituency Commission on 14 July 2016, following the publication by the Central Statistics Office of the preliminary results of Census 2016. The function of the Commission is to make a report on the constituencies for the election of members of Dáil Éireann and of the European Parliament having regard to...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Housing Data (20 Jul 2016)

Simon Coveney: As the Deputy may be aware, the Sustainable Urban Housing: Design Standards for New Apartments - Guidelines for Planning Authorities were only published in December 2015 and communicated to local authorities in January 2016. Accordingly, it is too early to expect to see any impact of the changes made to the standards for new apartments, including apartment minimum sizes specified in the...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Local Authority Housing Provision (20 Jul 2016)

Simon Coveney: In May 2015, the first major direct build social housing programme for some years was announced with over 100 separate housing projects. This was followed up by further approvals and announcements in July 2015 and January 2016. Between these three major announcements, almost €680 million has been allocated for over 3,900 social housing units, mainly via new construction projects and...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Social and Affordable Housing Data (20 Jul 2016)

Simon Coveney: Precise information on the number of weeks it takes from the granting of planning consent to commencement on site for a social housing construction project is not readily available. While ordinarily, local authorities, on securing planning approval, will move on to prepare tender proposals, followed by the tender process itself, the post-tender evaluation, contract negotiations and...