Results 25,041-25,060 of 40,897 for speaker:Simon Coveney

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Water Services Provision (24 Jan 2017)

Simon Coveney: 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. The provision of water tankers is an operational matter for the utility and one in which I have no function. Irish Water has established a dedicated team to deal with representations and queries from public...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Planning Issues (24 Jan 2017)

Simon Coveney: The City Council approved the Dublin City Development Plan 2016-2022 in October 2016. The development plan includes a schedule of local area plans, which the Dublin City Councillors agreed should be prepared in the lifetime of the development plan. These are local area plans for: Ballymun; Harold's Cross; Moore Street and Environs; Park West/Cherry Orchard; Phibsborough; Poolbeg West; and...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Private Rented Accommodation Data (24 Jan 2017)

Simon Coveney: I propose to take Questions Nos. 272 and 273 together. The 2015 Annual Report of the Residential Tenancies Board (RTB) reported 319,609 registered tenancies with 170,282 landlords and 693,314 occupants in the private rental sector. The NESC Report, Ireland's Rental Sector: Pathways to Secure Occupancy and Affordable Supply, published in May 2015, estimates that over one-third of all...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: National Planning Framework (24 Jan 2017)

Simon Coveney: Significant progress has been made in recent years in addressing the issue of excessive zoning of lands within the planning process, particularly for housing, through the introduction of Core Strategies now required for all local authority development plans under Section 10(2A) of the Planning and Development Act 2000, as amended by the Planning and Development (Amendment) Act 2010. In 2011,...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Road Network (24 Jan 2017)

Simon Coveney: The aim of the Local Infrastructure Housing Activation Fund is to relieve critical infrastructural blockages to enable the accelerated delivery of housing on key development sites and to improve the economic viability of new housing projects in Dublin and in urban areas with high demand for housing. The €200 m Fund will be composed of an Exchequer allocation of €150 million,...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Freedom of Information (25 Jan 2017)

Simon Coveney: The regulation of dog breeding establishments is a matter for local authorities in accordance with the Dog Breeding Establishments Act 2010. Each local authority must maintain for public inspection a register of dog breeding establishments in its functional area, which must include the name and address of the applicant seeking entry onto the register, the address of the dog breeding...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Mortgage to Rent Scheme Data (25 Jan 2017)

Simon Coveney: Up to 31 December 2016, a total of 3,575 cases have been submitted under the Mortgage to Rent (MTR) Scheme, which was introduced in 2012 for borrowers of private commercial lending institutions. Of these, 2,723 were ineligible or terminated during the process, 217 have been completed and 635 are being actively progressed. The reasons why a case has not progressed are varied and can depend...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Wind Energy Guidelines (25 Jan 2017)

Simon Coveney: I propose to take Questions Nos. 127 and 146 together. In December 2013, my Department published proposed draft revisions to the noise, setback distance and shadow flicker aspects of the 2006 WindEnergy 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, - a mandatory...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Planning Issues (25 Jan 2017)

Simon Coveney: I refer to the reply to Question No 274 of 24 January 2017 which sets out the position on this matter.

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Planning Issues (25 Jan 2017)

Simon Coveney: I propose to take Questions Nos. 129 and 130 together. Planning statistics are submitted by planning authorities on an annual basis and are subsequently collated by my Department. Such statistics include information on the number of planning applications received and the number of applications which were granted or refused permission by each planning authority. However, the detailed...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Housing Issues (25 Jan 2017)

Simon Coveney: I propose to take Questions Nos. 131 to 135, inclusive, together. In publishing the Rebuilding Ireland Action Plan for Housing and Homelessness, the Government has set out a practical and readily implementable set of actions to create a functioning and sustainable housing system. The Plan is available at the website www.rebuildingireland.ie. The Plan is divided into five pillars, with each...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Library Services (25 Jan 2017)

Simon Coveney: My Department has no role in relation to the procurement of book-stock for public libraries. The provision of public library services, including the procurement of books, is a matter for each local authority in its capacity as a library authority under the Local Government Act 2001. In this regard, a national tender for book stock procurement was run recently by the Local Government...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Local Authority Housing (25 Jan 2017)

Simon Coveney: I propose to take Questions Nos. 137 to 139, inclusive, together. The making and amending of rent schemes is the responsibility of local authorities as an integral part of their housing management functions, subject to broad principles laid down by my Department in Circular letter HRT 3/2002 of 6 March 2002. The making or amending of such schemes is not a reserved function and does not...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Foreshore Licence Applications (25 Jan 2017)

Simon Coveney: The draft foreshore licence concerned issued to the Council’s legal services on 12 January 2017.

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Local Authority Housing Provision (25 Jan 2017)

Simon Coveney: My Department received a submission from Sligo County Council on 31 March 2016 seeking funding for the proposed extension referred to in the Question. Following assessment by my Department’s inspectorate, approval in principle to proceed was issued to the Council on 15 August 2016. I understand from the Council that the provision of the extension is being prioritised within their...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Ambulance Service (25 Jan 2017)

Simon Coveney: The provision of health services in Ireland, including the provision of ambulance services, is the responsibility of the Health Service Executive (HSE), operating under the remit of my colleague, the Minister for Health. Within my Ministerial remit, fire services in Ireland are provided by local authorities in accordance with the provisions of the Fire Services Acts, 1981 and 2003. Dublin...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Private Rented Accommodation (25 Jan 2017)

Simon Coveney: The Residential Tenancies Act 2004, as amended, regulates the tenant-landlord relationship in the private rented residential sector. The Residential Tenancies Board (RTB) was established as an independent statutory body under the Act to operate a national tenancy registration system and to facilitate the resolution of disputes between landlords and tenants. The Act applies to every dwelling...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Tenant Purchase Scheme (25 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: Housing Provision (25 Jan 2017)

Simon Coveney: Pillar 5 of the Government’s Action Plan for Housing and Homelessness – Rebuilding Irelandis specifically focussed on Utilising Existing Housing Stock, with a key objective of ensuring that the existing vacant housing stock throughout the country and across all forms of tenure, in both the public and private sectors, is used to the optimum degree possible. In this regard,...

Leaders' Questions (26 Jan 2017)

Simon Coveney: That is not true.