Results 24,801-24,820 of 26,778 for speaker:Darragh O'Brien

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Regulatory Bodies (19 Mar 2025)

Darragh O'Brien: The Maritime Area Regulatory Authority (MARA) is an independent agency with responsibility under the Maritime Area Planning (MAP) Act for the performance of its functions, including assessment processes in respect of maritime area consents. Arrangements have been put in place by MARA to facilitate the provision of information directly to members of the Oireachtas. In that context, I would...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Pension Provisions (19 Mar 2025)

Darragh O'Brien: My Department delegated authority to An Post to implement pension increases on 26 May 1989. I have asked my officials to source a copy of the authorisation as requested by the Deputy and to revert directly to the Deputy in due course. I am advised that this delegated authority was withdrawn in January 2008 following legal advice received from the Attorney General. In accordance with...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: National Broadband Plan (19 Mar 2025)

Darragh O'Brien: The National Broadband Plan (NBP) is the Government's initiative to deliver high speed broadband services to all premises in Ireland. The Programme for Government – Securing Ireland’s Future published in January 2025 sets a number of targets which include the completion of the installation of high-speed fibre broadband to 1.1 million people, including homes, farms, and...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Postal Services (19 Mar 2025)

Darragh O'Brien: Capita Business Support Services Ireland, trading as Eircode, assigns Eircodes to new property addresses using a valid postal address and verified geo-locations. An Post collects information on all new and existing buildings, as well as changes to existing addresses and Tailte Éireann (formerly Ordnance Survey Ireland) provides the geo-locations for these buildings. An Post GeoDirectory...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Ministerial Staff (19 Mar 2025)

Darragh O'Brien: The information sought by the Deputy has been compiled by my officials and is set out in the table below. The information sought is in respect of the term of the last Government and relates to three advisors, whose claims were processed by my Department. The table below reflects the annual amount paid to advisors, by type of claims, made between 2020 and 2025 to date. YEAR...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Departmental Properties (19 Mar 2025)

Darragh O'Brien: The Office of Public Works (OPW) lease all buildings on behalf of my Department. My Department currently occupies one building in Crane Street, Dublin 8 owned by the OPW. I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Departmental Funding (19 Mar 2025)

Darragh O'Brien: The project in question sought funding under the Community Climate Action Programme's "Strand 1- Building Low Carbon Communities". The overall objective of this Programme is to support and empower communities, in partnership with their Local Authority, to shape and build low carbon, sustainable communities in a coherent way to contribute to national climate and energy targets. Approximately...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Waste Management (19 Mar 2025)

Darragh O'Brien: The Environmental Protection Agency is statutorily responsible for the collection and publication of waste statistics in Ireland. The most recent waste characterisation study published by the Agency in 2023, based on 2022 data, found that 10% of the residual waste bin, and 6% of overall household waste was nappies. However, the study does not differentiate between infant nappies and...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Emergency Planning (19 Mar 2025)

Darragh O'Brien: Ireland has a comprehensive National Plan for Nuclear and Radiological Emergency Exposures, which sets out steps for a national response to such an emergency exposure situation, and the subsequent transition to a managed existing exposure situation. The plan sets out the trigger points, which would require the National Emergency Coordination Group (NECG) to be convened and for the plan to be...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Energy Policy (19 Mar 2025)

Darragh O'Brien: Having received Government approval, on 4 July last year, my Department published a set of guiding principles for the development of a policy on private wires. Alongside the guiding principles, a summary report of the Private Wires Public Consultation and an appendix setting out all responses received was also published. The principles, while not making immediate changes, are to guide any...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Departmental Policies (19 Mar 2025)

Darragh O'Brien: I understand the Question refers to Hydrotreated Vegetable Oil (HVO), biomass boilers and solar PV. HVO is a bioliquid which can be used as a renewable energy and which, in a transport context, is classified as a biofuel. HVO is currently available for consumers to purchase for use for both transport and heating. In terms of using HVO as a bioliquid for heating purposes, the Climate...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Energy Conservation (19 Mar 2025)

Darragh O'Brien: The Climate Action Plan set ambitious targets to retrofit, by 2030, the equivalent of 500,000 homes to a Building Energy Rating (BER) of B2/cost optimal and install 400,000 heat pumps in existing homes to replace older, less efficient heating systems. The Government has put in place a range of improved supports as part of the delivery of Ireland’s residential retrofit programme....

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Broadband Infrastructure (19 Mar 2025)

Darragh O'Brien: The National Broadband Plan (NBP) is the Government's initiative to deliver high speed broadband services to all premises in Ireland. The premises in question is in the BLUE area on the broadband map which is available on my Department's website www.gov.ie/en/publication/5634d-national-broadband-plan-map/ . The BLUE area represents those areas where commercial providers are either...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Broadband Infrastructure (19 Mar 2025)

Darragh O'Brien: The National Broadband Plan (NBP) is the Government's initiative to deliver high speed broadband services to all premises in Ireland. The Programme for Government – Securing Ireland’s Future published in January 2025 sets a number of targets which include the completion of the installation the infrastructure to allow access to a high-speed fibre broadband to 1.1 million...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Regulatory Bodies (19 Mar 2025)

Darragh O'Brien: Gas Network's Ireland is a statutory body under the auspices of the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, as the majority-shareholding Minister. I, as Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications, have responsibility for gas policy. Gas Network's Ireland (GNI) is a “relevant body” under the Climate Action and Low Carbon Development Act 2015 (as...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Departmental Bodies (19 Mar 2025)

Darragh O'Brien: Questions relating to qualifications held by members of Boards of bodies under the aegis of my Department are a matter for each individual State body. Therefore, I will ask the bodies for the information requested to be compiled and forwarded directly to the Deputy.

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Departmental Bodies (19 Mar 2025)

Darragh O'Brien: In making appointments to State boards under my remit, my Department operates in accordance with the Department of Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform Guidelines for Appointments to State Boards, published in November 2014. These Guidelines align with the Code of Practice for the Governance of State Bodies. To be assured of compliance with both those Guidelines...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Departmental Bodies (19 Mar 2025)

Darragh O'Brien: Questions relating to the audit and risk committees of bodies under the aegis of my Department are a matter for each individual State body. Therefore, I will ask the bodies for the information requested to be compiled and forwarded directly to the Deputy.

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Departmental Bodies (19 Mar 2025)

Darragh O'Brien: Questions relating to the terms of reference for the Boards of bodies under the aegis of my Department are a matter for each individual State body. Therefore, I will ask the bodies for the information requested to be compiled and forwarded directly to the Deputy.

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Departmental Schemes (19 Mar 2025)

Darragh O'Brien: The Solar PV for the Medically Vulnerable Scheme is a targeted scheme for the installation of solar photovoltaic (PV) panels for customers/households who are registered on the life support category of the Priority Services Register. These homes have a dependence on electrically powered equipment, including medical equipment, life protecting devices and assistive technologies for example...