Results 3,661-3,680 of 20,793 for speaker:Alan Kelly

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Departmental Functions (3 Mar 2015)

Alan Kelly: The Thirty-Fifth Amendment of the Constitution (Age of Eligibility for Election to the Office of President) Bill 2015 was published on 26 January 2015. The Bill is to be debated in the Houses of the Oireachtas in the coming weeks. Following the publication of the Bill, I established a Referendum Commission under section 2 of the Referendum Act 1998 on 27 January 2015. The role of the...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Water Charges Administration (3 Mar 2015)

Alan Kelly: I have not had any contact with the European Commission in relation to the Commission's second Post Programme Review for Ireland which was published by the Commission earlier this year and which contained commentary on the reform of the water sector in Ireland. A key component of the strategy to establish Irish Water is that Irish Water will be classified as a Market Corporation under...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: NAMA Social Housing Provision (3 Mar 2015)

Alan Kelly: My Department is working closely with NAMA, the Housing Agency, local authorities and approved housing bodies in relation to the delivery of social housing. Information in relation to the delivery of NAMA sourced units, including a full breakdown by county, of units delivered on a quarterly basis, is available on the Housing Agency's website at . Since the process began in December 2011 up...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Homelessness Strategy (3 Mar 2015)

Alan Kelly: Statutory responsibility in relation to the provision of accommodation and related services for homeless persons rests with individual housing authorities. My Department does not fund any service directly but provides funding to housing authorities towards the operational costs of such services. Housing authorities will also provide funding from their own resources. The purposes for which...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Homeless Persons Data (3 Mar 2015)

Alan Kelly: My Department's role in relation to homelessness involves the provision of a national framework of policy, legislation and funding to underpin the role of housing authorities in addressing homelessness at local level. Statutory responsibility in relation to the provision of accommodation and related services for homeless persons rests with individual housing authorities. Data on homeless...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Housing Assistance Payments Data (3 Mar 2015)

Alan Kelly: The implementation of the Housing Assistance Payment (HAP) scheme is a key Government priority and a major pillar of the Social Housing Strategy 2020, which I published on 26 November 2014. The HAP scheme will bring all social housing supports provided by the State under the aegis of local authorities. The scheme will remove a barrier to employment by allowing recipients to remain in the...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Local Government Reform (3 Mar 2015)

Alan Kelly: The independent reviews of local government arrangements in Cork and Galway which I announced in January 2015 form part on an ongoing assessment of potential reforms which may be warranted beyond those measures arising from the Action Programme for Effective Local Government (2012) and provided for in the Local Government Reform 2014 Act. The provisions of the 2014 Act, including those...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Local Authority Staff Data (3 Mar 2015)

Alan Kelly: I propose to take Questions Nos. 562 to 565, inclusive, together. The information requested in relation to the number of public sector workers employed in local authority maintenance sections is not held in my Department. In relation to the moratorium on recruitment, as announced in the recent Budget, it is proposed that with effect from 2015, the moratorium and the Employment Control...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Nitrates Action Programme Review (3 Mar 2015)

Alan Kelly: The Nitrates Directive and Ireland's third National Nitrates Action Programme are given legal effect by the European Union (Good Agricultural Practice for Protection of Waters) Regulations 2014, as amended. The objective of the Regulations is to protect ground and surface waters, including drinking water sources, primarily through the management of livestock manures and other fertilisers....

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Irish Water Remit (3 Mar 2015)

Alan Kelly: I propose to take Questions Nos. 568 and 569 together. With effect from 1 January 2014, following the commencement of t he Water Services (No. 2) Act 2013, Irish Water is responsible for public water services. Section 8 of the Act which commenced on that date, provided Irish Water with the power to impose a water connection charge with effect from the 1 January 2014 on the same basis as...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Departmental Legal Costs (3 Mar 2015)

Alan Kelly: Information sought in relation to amounts paid by my Department to the firms of solicitors in question is set out in the table. The services concerned have been provided, as required, primarily in connection with my Department’s role in relation to foreshore licensing. Firm 2011 2012 2013 2014 Total Arthur Cox € 97,510 € 61,307 € 71,855 € 39,010...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Greenhouse Gas Emissions (3 Mar 2015)

Alan Kelly: Pursuant to the EU’s Effort Sharing Decision of 2009 (Decision No 406/2009/EC of 23 April 2009), Ireland has legally binding greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reduction targets in the period from 2013 to 2020, inclusive. Moreover, negotiations are currently in progress at an EU level to agree GHG mitigation targets for all Member States, including Ireland, for the period from 2021 to...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Register of Electors (3 Mar 2015)

Alan Kelly: In order to be able to vote at elections and referendums in Ireland, a person’s name must be entered in the register of electors for a constituency in the State in which the person ordinarily resides. With the exception of postal and special voters, all registered electors must attend in person at their local polling station in order to vote. There is no provision in electoral law to...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Motor Tax Collection (3 Mar 2015)

Alan Kelly: Motor tax legislation provides that, when taking out a tax disc, a vehicle owner is liable for arrears in respect of each month from the date of last taxing or from the date of purchase of the vehicle. There is no provision whereby motorists can come to individual payment arrangements with a licensing authority. Any such change to the basis of payment for motor tax would be required to be...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Local Authority Services (3 Mar 2015)

Alan Kelly: Prior to the issuing of Circular Letter PD 1/08 by my Department in February 2008, some planning authorities had granted planning permissions in respect of conventional housing developments on the basis that their future maintenance would be provided by means of private management companies. The circular letter advised planning authorities against adopting this practice into the future. ...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Irish Water Remit (3 Mar 2015)

Alan Kelly: Section 20 of the Water Services Act 2013 provides Irish Water with the authority to install water meters in dwellings connected to a public water supply. Section 7 of the Water Services (No. 2) Act 2013 provides for the transfer of all functions conferred on water services authorities by the Water Services Act 2007 to Irish Water. Accordingly, section 72 of the 2007 Act provides that Irish...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Housing Regeneration (3 Mar 2015)

Alan Kelly: I have no plans to introduce a new funding programme to support persons who are restoring and renovating a derelict or abandoned rural property as their principal private residence. In respect of houses with thatched roofs, my Department operates a grant scheme for the renewal or repair of such roofs, the details of which are at the following link: . The issue of tax relief in respect of...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Mortgage to Rent Scheme Eligibility (3 Mar 2015)

Alan Kelly: On foot of the recommendations of the Keane Report on mortgage arrears the Government launched the AHB Mortgage to Rent scheme ( AHB-mortgage-to-rent ) on a pilot basis in February 2012 and extended it nationally in June 2012. The scheme is currently in operation and continues to accept applications from lending institutions. To be eligible for the AHB-mortgage-to-rent scheme a household...

Committee on Environment, Culture and the Gaeltacht: Select Sub-Committee on the Environment, Community and Local Government: Estimates for Public Services 2015
Vote 34 - Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government (Revised) (3 Mar 2015)

Alan Kelly: I thank the Chairman and sub-committee members. I welcome the opportunity to discuss with the sub-committee my Department’s Revised Estimate for 2015. I am accompanied by the Ministers of State, Deputy Ann Phelan and Deputy Paudie Coffey. To assist in the work today, we have prepared briefing on the Department’s Vote for 2015 which sets out details of the Vote and related...

Committee on Environment, Culture and the Gaeltacht: Select Sub-Committee on the Environment, Community and Local Government: Estimates for Public Services 2015
Vote 34 - Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government (Revised) (3 Mar 2015)

Alan Kelly: I thank Deputy Cowen for his comprehensive list of questions. It is correct that 52% of the Vote is allocated to housing. That reflects the priority of Government, which I am sure he welcomes. We have an issue with the supply of housing because of the way that social housing was dealt with in the past 20 years. I am not blaming anybody. There was a failure to build sufficient social...