Results 4,541-4,560 of 32,572 for speaker:Paschal Donohoe

Written Answers — Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport: Road Traffic Legislation (19 Feb 2015)

Paschal Donohoe: The legislative basis for speed limits in this jurisdiction is in the Road Traffic Act 2004.  This Act sets out a number of default speed limits for certain classes of roads, and permits local authorities to apply special speed limits in particular circumstances. The default speed limit for built-up areas is 50 km/h. However, local authorities have the option of applying a 30...

Committee on Transport and Communications: Select Sub-Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Vehicle Clamping Bill 2014: Committee Stage (19 Feb 2015)

Paschal Donohoe: I apologise to the committee for being a few minutes late and keeping everybody waiting. I thank Deputies Murphy and Ellis for the amendments they have proposed. I will explain why I cannot accept the amendments, which seek to prohibit or place limits on clamping in hospitals and residential developments. When we debated this Bill on Second Stage last month, I explained in some detail that...

Committee on Transport and Communications: Select Sub-Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Vehicle Clamping Bill 2014: Committee Stage (19 Feb 2015)

Paschal Donohoe: Let us tease out that issue. Again, these are issues that deal with parking policy itself rather than the activity of clamping. It is beyond the scope of the Bill to legislate for practices within the property management sector. I understand that there are already two pieces of relatively recent legislation governing the sector - the Property Services (Regulation) Act 2011, which...

Committee on Transport and Communications: Select Sub-Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Vehicle Clamping Bill 2014: Committee Stage (19 Feb 2015)

Paschal Donohoe: I shall pose a question. Let us use Connolly Hospital Blanchardstown as an example. The National Sports Campus around the corner from it has a significant number of employers near it. It and a number of other bodies in the area are actively interested in the development of a bus rapid transit route which would connect it up with the city centre. Let us assume a person went to Connolly...

Committee on Transport and Communications: Select Sub-Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Vehicle Clamping Bill 2014: Committee Stage (19 Feb 2015)

Paschal Donohoe: At all?

Committee on Transport and Communications: Select Sub-Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Vehicle Clamping Bill 2014: Committee Stage (19 Feb 2015)

Paschal Donohoe: I am putting the question to the Deputy, because we are having a discussion here. I heard what the Deputy had to say and I am asking her whether she believes that under no circumstances should a hospital have the ability to clamp somebody's vehicle. What is to happen therefore if somebody's car is parked on a road and is blocking access into the car park?

Committee on Transport and Communications: Select Sub-Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Vehicle Clamping Bill 2014: Committee Stage (19 Feb 2015)

Paschal Donohoe: Is the Deputy saying there are no circumstances in which a hospital should clamp somebody's car?

Committee on Transport and Communications: Select Sub-Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Vehicle Clamping Bill 2014: Committee Stage (19 Feb 2015)

Paschal Donohoe: Is the Deputy saying therefore that there are no circumstances in which the management body should be permitted to clamp somebody's car?

Committee on Transport and Communications: Select Sub-Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Vehicle Clamping Bill 2014: Committee Stage (19 Feb 2015)

Paschal Donohoe: It should be clear. I do not like seeing people's cars being clamped at hospitals. I accept the Deputy's point. I have personal experience of visiting hospitals, thank God not as a patient, but I have had to visit people in unexpected circumstances. One arrives at the hospital mentioned, for example, and if one has not got change for the machine there is no place to get it without running...

Committee on Transport and Communications: Select Sub-Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Vehicle Clamping Bill 2014: Committee Stage (19 Feb 2015)

Paschal Donohoe: Section 14 provides the National Transport Authority with power to set maximum charges which may be imposed for the release of a clamp or in respect of vehicle relocation in non-statutory clamping places. This proposed amendment seeks to incentivise early payment of such charges, but it is not appropriate in these circumstances and I will therefore not be accepting this amendment. In the...

Committee on Transport and Communications: Select Sub-Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Vehicle Clamping Bill 2014: Committee Stage (19 Feb 2015)

Paschal Donohoe: I did consider and examine this matter. One of the things that struck me is that the NTA will be setting regulations on this area. It will be using its power in the way it deems appropriate. It struck me as counterproductive to introduce this in primary legislation as that would exclude what the NTA may do. If we were to bring this in and say that the total charge payable shall be reduced...

Committee on Transport and Communications: Select Sub-Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Vehicle Clamping Bill 2014: Committee Stage (19 Feb 2015)

Paschal Donohoe: If we were to bring in via primary legislation a provision stating that a clamping operator must reduce by half the charge levied if payment happens within a certain number of days, it may lead to inflation and an increase in the initial parking charges. I therefore considered it was not right to provide for it in primary legislation. The NTA will be able to set the maximum clamp release...

Committee on Transport and Communications: Select Sub-Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Vehicle Clamping Bill 2014: Committee Stage (19 Feb 2015)

Paschal Donohoe: I move amendment No. 4:In page 16, line 15, to delete “and” where it secondly occurs. Amendment No. 5 arises out of points raised with me on Second Stage in the Dáil. Deputy Murphy, in the Dáil, raised the difficulty of getting through to a company for an answer. Deputy Daly made the point that she believes that the only time she can get to speak to someone in a...

Committee on Transport and Communications: Select Sub-Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Vehicle Clamping Bill 2014: Committee Stage (19 Feb 2015)

Paschal Donohoe: I move amendment No. 5:In page 16, between lines 15 and 16, to insert the following:“(c) unnecessary delay on the part of parking controllers or clamping operators in responding to complaints or other communication from members of the public, and”.

Committee on Transport and Communications: Select Sub-Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Vehicle Clamping Bill 2014: Committee Stage (19 Feb 2015)

Paschal Donohoe: I move amendment No. 6:In page 22, to delete lines 29 to 40, and in page 23, to delete lines 1 to 4 and substitute the following:“(e) a prosecution in respect of the alleged offence will not be instituted during the periods specified in the notice under paragraphs (b) and (c) and, if a payment specified in the notice is made during the appropriate period so specified in relation to the...

Committee on Transport and Communications: Select Sub-Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Vehicle Clamping Bill 2014: Committee Stage (19 Feb 2015)

Paschal Donohoe: I may be about to surprise Deputy Murphy with my response. I am not going to accept her amendment because we believe, having checked up on this matter, that the provision relating to the appeal or amendment of a set of regulations, either wholly or partially - this is the point Deputy Murphy was making - already exists. I take the Deputy's point. Let us suppose a local authority brings in...

Committee on Transport and Communications: Select Sub-Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Vehicle Clamping Bill 2014: Committee Stage (19 Feb 2015)

Paschal Donohoe: I will do that. One additional point struck me while getting ready for this. There may be a policy reason why it makes sense. We need to be careful about amending part of a by-law or regulation. I offer one example. Let us consider this purely in a transport setting. One of the things that we know about transport or parking policy is that if we change something in one area, it always...

Committee on Transport and Communications: Select Sub-Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Vehicle Clamping Bill 2014: Committee Stage (19 Feb 2015)

Paschal Donohoe: I would like to give notice that I propose to table an amendment inserting an additional section to the Bill to provide for the expenses of the NTA in carrying out the functions conferred on it by this Bill even though any expenditure incurred by the NTA in carrying out its regulatory functions under the Bill will be relatively modest and will be found in my Department's Vote. The...

Written Answers — Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport: Road Safety Strategy (24 Feb 2015)

Paschal Donohoe: In the examples cited by the Deputy, local authorities already have the necessary powers to provide for a 30 km/h Special Speed Limit if they deem such a limit to be appropriate and necessary. Special speed limits may also include periodic speed limits which can be designed to apply and operate at specified periods, for example when children are arriving at and...

Written Answers — Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport: Public Transport Provision (24 Feb 2015)

Paschal Donohoe: The competitive tendering process mentioned is a statutory function of the National Transport Authority (NTA) and I have referred the Deputy's question to the NTA for direct reply.  Please advise my private office if you do not receive a reply within ten working days.