Results 24,861-24,880 of 40,897 for speaker:Simon Coveney

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Social and Affordable Housing Applications (17 Jan 2017)

Simon Coveney: The prescribed application form for social housing support is available from housing authorities in Irish and English, and in accordance with the Official Languages Act 2003, housing authorities are required to ensure the provision of services through Irish. The issue of communicating with applicants whose first language is not English, or Irish, is a matter for individual housing...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Tenant Purchase Scheme Eligibility (17 Jan 2017)

Simon Coveney: The Tenant (Incremental) Purchase Scheme came into operation on 1 January 2016. The Scheme is open to eligible tenants, including joint tenants, of local authority houses that are available for sale under the Scheme. To be eligible, tenants must meet certain criteria, including having a minimum reckonable income of €15,000 per annum and having been in receipt of social housing...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Planning Issues (17 Jan 2017)

Simon Coveney: I have no function in relation to the operation by local authorities of the Part 8 approval process for development which they themselves propose to undertake. I understand that Sligo County Council has completed the Part 8 process in relation to the case referred to.

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Social and Affordable Housing (17 Jan 2017)

Simon Coveney: Under the terms of the various funding schemes supporting the delivery of social housing by approved housing bodies (AHBs), AHBs are the de factoowners of the properties concerned and are required to make them available for social renting for the duration of the mortgage or, as the case may be, the availability agreement. My Department cannot unilaterally make provision for their sale to...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Social and Affordable Housing (17 Jan 2017)

Simon Coveney: I was very pleased to have been in a position to announce Stage 1 funding approval of €17,859,976 for Dublin City Council to progress the delivery of 56 Social Housing dwellings at the former O'Devaney Gardens. These dwellings benefit from an existing approval under the Planning Acts for 110 social and affordable units on a portion of the site. This is the first phase of a...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Traveller Accommodation (17 Jan 2017)

Simon Coveney: In accordance with the Housing (Traveller Accommodation) Act 1998, housing authorities have statutory responsibility for the assessment of the accommodation needs of Travellers and the preparation, adoption and implementation of multi-annual Traveller Accommodation Programmes (TAPs) in their areas. My Department's role is to ensure that there are adequate structures and supports in place to...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Capital Assistance Scheme Funding (17 Jan 2017)

Simon Coveney: The information sought is being compiled and will be forwarded to the Deputy in accordance with Standing Orders.

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Offshore Islands (17 Jan 2017)

Simon Coveney: Lead responsibility for the maintenance of sustainable communities on the off-shore islands rests with the Minister for Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs, whose Department works with other bodies, including my Department, in meeting its objectives in this area. The overall strategic objective of Government housing policy is to enable all households to access good quality...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Local Government Reform (17 Jan 2017)

Simon Coveney: An Expert Group was established recently to carry out further detailed examination and planning arising from the report of the Galway Local Government Committee in relation to future local government arrangements in Galway. That report recommended the establishment of such a Group to undertake a detailed technical review by way of follow up to its proposals. The Group has been asked to...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Ministerial Meetings (17 Jan 2017)

Simon Coveney: The information sought is being compiled and will be forwarded to the Deputy in accordance with Standing Orders.

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Departmental Agencies Funding (17 Jan 2017)

Simon Coveney: The information sought is being compiled and will be forwarded to the Deputy in accordance with Standing Orders.

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: National Planning Framework (17 Jan 2017)

Simon Coveney: The National Planning Framework will act as the strategic planning context for relevant Government policies and investment in housing, water services, transport, communications, energy, health and education infrastructure, as well as the preparation by the three new Regional Assemblies of their new regional spatial and economic strategies, and for planning authorities and An Bord...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: National Planning Framework (17 Jan 2017)

Simon Coveney: I intend to launch a preliminary public consultation process later this month, and running until mid-March, to inform the drafting of the new National Planning Framework, a full draft of which will then be published for public consultation before the Summer. No decision on the detailed content or approach to be contained within the Framework has been taken by me or the Government at this...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Social and Affordable Housing Eligibility (17 Jan 2017)

Simon Coveney: The Social Housing Assessment Regulations 2011 prescribe maximum net income limits for each housing authority, in different bands according to the area, with income being defined and assessed according to a standard Household Means Policy. The income bands and the authority area assigned to each band were based on an assessment of the income needed to provide for a household's basic needs...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Departmental Expenditure (17 Jan 2017)

Simon Coveney: My Department has an agreement with a commercial company for the storage of Departmental records, the costs of which are borne by the Office of Public Works. File delivery and retrieval costs to and from storage are paid for by my Department and amounted to €7,699.87, €3,845.47 and €10,086.25 for 2014, 2015 and 2016, respectively.

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Social and Affordable Housing Data (17 Jan 2017)

Simon Coveney: Funding is provided to local authorities under my Department’s Social Housing Capital Investment programme, to deliver additional social housing stock through new construction projects and through the acquisition of new and previously owned houses/apartments. There are also a wide range of funding and delivery mechanisms available to local authorities to deliver social housing either...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Private Rented Accommodation Evictions (17 Jan 2017)

Simon Coveney: The Planning and Development (Housing) and Residential Tenancies Act 201 6 was signed by the President on 23rd December 2016. It gives effect to a number of commitments related to tenant security contained in Rebuilding Ireland, the Government’s Action Plan for Housing and Homelessness, and in the Strategy for the Rental Sector, which was published in December 2016. The Act includes...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Social and Affordable Housing Data (17 Jan 2017)

Simon Coveney: Within the 47,000 social housing units to be delivered under Rebuilding Ireland: An Action Plan for Housing and Homelessness, it is estimated at this stage that approximately 26,000 will be delivered from construction activity while 11,000 will be acquired by local authorities and approved housing bodies (AHBs) directly from the market or from the Housing Agency, with a portion of these...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Social and Affordable Housing Data (17 Jan 2017)

Simon Coveney: Since the launch of the Social Housing Strategy 2020and continuing with the publication last year of Rebuilding Ireland: An Action Plan for Housing and Homelessness, a substantial pipeline of new social housing construction projects has now been created that has reversed the position of previous years, when local authorities and AHBs had seen much reduced activity in this area. All of these...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Departmental Staff Data (17 Jan 2017)

Simon Coveney: The numbers of full time equivalent (FTE) civil service workers in my Department for the start of each of the years 2007 to 2015, broken down by the income bands requested, are set out in the table below. There was a significant change in the staffing levels in the Department from 2011 to 2012; this is a result of structural changes that occurred in May 2011 with the transfer of the heritage...