Results 3,561-3,580 of 34,778 for speaker:Seán Fleming

Public Accounts Committee: National Transport Authority - Financial Statement 2011 (24 Jan 2013)

Seán Fleming: Can Mr. Murphy send us information on the number of licences operating on a county by county basis?

Public Accounts Committee: National Transport Authority - Financial Statement 2011 (24 Jan 2013)

Seán Fleming: As the Chairman knows I am not normally parochial but as a typical example, a taxi driver in Portlaoise complained to me that there are 194 licences in Portlaoise. There is no livelihood for half that number. Does the NTA just continue to issue the licences? Is there any ceiling? I am not talking about going back to the old system of a ceiling. Does the NTA have a role in deciding with...

Public Accounts Committee: National Transport Authority - Financial Statement 2011 (24 Jan 2013)

Seán Fleming: Can the NTA not process an application for an ordinary taxi?

Public Accounts Committee: National Transport Authority - Financial Statement 2011 (24 Jan 2013)

Seán Fleming: That is extraordinary. I know we probably created that rule here in the Oireachtas.

Public Accounts Committee: National Transport Authority - Financial Statement 2011 (24 Jan 2013)

Seán Fleming: I want to go back to my question about a town with a population of several thousand and no taxi. Who is responsible for deciding whether these people should have a taxi service? Must a local authority provide a taxi rank if a service is to be offered? How does the system work? Some towns are seeking taxi services and I do not know what is the nature of the delay in their obtaining them....

Public Accounts Committee: National Transport Authority - Financial Statement 2011 (24 Jan 2013)

Seán Fleming: Can they bypass the local authorities and go straight to the NTA?

Public Accounts Committee: National Transport Authority - Financial Statement 2011 (24 Jan 2013)

Seán Fleming: The NTA pays a public service obligation to the CIE group of companies, which also receives a subsidy in respect of travel passes from the Department of Social Protection. The amount of the latter is between €60 million and €70 million, which is significantly less than the NTA pays. What level of co-ordination exists between the NTA and the Department of Social Protection in...

Public Accounts Committee: National Transport Authority - Financial Statement 2011 (24 Jan 2013)

Seán Fleming: In the context of its financial statement, I was intrigued to discover that the NTA earned bank interest of €534,941. Its balance sheet indicates that on 31 December 2011 it had a bank balance of over €20 million.

Public Accounts Committee: National Transport Authority - Financial Statement 2011 (24 Jan 2013)

Seán Fleming: In light of the shortage of money in the country, it is fabulous that in 2011 the NTA had €20 million sitting in the bank earning interest. What rate of interest applies in respect of money the NTA has in the bank? I was also intrigued by the fact that the authority incurred bank charges of €67,692. I do not understand how an organisation with €20 million in the bank -...

Public Accounts Committee: National Transport Authority - Financial Statement 2011 (24 Jan 2013)

Seán Fleming: So the NTA had over €30 million at one point?

Public Accounts Committee: National Transport Authority - Financial Statement 2011 (24 Jan 2013)

Seán Fleming: I might help Mr. Murphy in respect of this matter by stating that the NTA's balance sheet indicates that it had €20 million cash in hand in the bank at the end of 2011. It also refers to €17 million in the authority's expenditure account and indicates that this was money from the Taxi Regulator. It appears to be an additional amount. So the NTA's balance sheet indicates it...

Public Accounts Committee: National Transport Authority - Financial Statement 2011 (24 Jan 2013)

Seán Fleming: That is additional.

Public Accounts Committee: National Transport Authority - Financial Statement 2011 (24 Jan 2013)

Seán Fleming: So the NTA is still a cash-rich organisation. In the past year, a number of third level institutions have come before the committee. Those institutions are always screaming out for money but it has emerged that they have tens of millions in their bank accounts. People complain about taxi fares, the cost of transport, etc., and it now emerges that the NTA, which is the regulatory authority,...

Public Accounts Committee: National Transport Authority - Financial Statement 2011 (24 Jan 2013)

Seán Fleming: The NTA spent €17.8 million on new buses for Bus Éireann during the year. How many buses were purchased?

Public Accounts Committee: National Transport Authority - Financial Statement 2011 (24 Jan 2013)

Seán Fleming: What was the cost of each?

Public Accounts Committee: National Transport Authority - Financial Statement 2011 (24 Jan 2013)

Seán Fleming: Were those double decker buses?

Public Accounts Committee: National Transport Authority - Financial Statement 2011 (24 Jan 2013)

Seán Fleming: How much does a double decker cost?

Public Accounts Committee: National Transport Authority - Financial Statement 2011 (24 Jan 2013)

Seán Fleming: Is the cost the same for the single decker vehicles used on the Expressway service?

Public Accounts Committee: National Transport Authority - Financial Statement 2011 (24 Jan 2013)

Seán Fleming: There is an unusual ratio used on page 46 of the NTA's accounts. The Comptroller and Auditor General's fee was very modest, at €17,613, but, as Deputy Ross stated, internal fees amounted to €84,742. This means the authority spent five times the amount on its internal audit function as it did on the external audit function. The ratio in this regard appears very high.

Public Accounts Committee: National Transport Authority - Financial Statement 2011 (24 Jan 2013)

Seán Fleming: I suggest that the NTA should recategorise the position in this regard because anybody examining the accounts would assume that the amount involved relates to the internal audit function. The accounts should indicate whether inspection, verification or consultancy fees were paid.