Results 501-520 of 12,487 for speaker:John O'Donoghue

National Concert Hall. (10 May 2005)

John O'Donoghue: I have been doing everything I can to try to advance the cause of the National Concert Hall. The position is as I outlined. We have entered discussions with the Department of Education and Science, the Office of Public Works and UCD in regard to the Earlsfort Terrace site. Obviously this is contingent on UCD moving from the Earlsfort Terrace building to accommodation in Belfield. On the...

National Concert Hall. (10 May 2005)

John O'Donoghue: There is no lack of urgency. We have been having complex negotiations with the relevant parties. There are a number of issues involved, and when we have dealt with these, there is the whole question of the cost of the site and the cost of the reconstruction, both of which must be funded by the Exchequer. I hope we can reach a resolution in the talks, which are ongoing, and produce a...

Sport and Recreational Development. (10 May 2005)

John O'Donoghue: I propose to take Questions Nos. 61 and 63 together. In January 2004, the Government decided to proceed with the development of a sports campus on the State-owned lands at Abbotstown. Campus and Stadium Ireland Development Limited was requested to put forward proposals for the development of a sports campus. In the preparation of its proposals for the development of a sports campus, Campus...

Sport and Recreational Development. (10 May 2005)

John O'Donoghue: I have outlined the proposals in respect of phase one. The memorandum for Government will envisage the delivery of that phase of the sports campus over a period of four to five years. The cost involved will be approximately €120 million. Any such proposal must obtain the approval of Government, which I hope we are successful in obtaining. I envisage Governments continuing with the necklace...

Sport and Recreational Development. (10 May 2005)

John O'Donoghue: We have made enormous strides in the provision of facilities in recent years, not just in Dublin but throughout the country. For example, since 1998 we have spent in the order of €610 million on sport and the provision of sports facilities. Through the national lottery-funded sports capital programme, we have been involved in approximately 4,500 projects in every city, town, village and...

Sport and Recreational Development. (10 May 2005)

John O'Donoghue: The issue of running costs under phase 1 of the new campus at Abbotstown can only be addressed when the facility is open. It is not possible for me to envisage what they might be.

Sport and Recreational Development. (10 May 2005)

John O'Donoghue: I assure Deputy Wall that, with the assistance of the project managers and sports consultants, Campus and Stadium Ireland Development Limited consulted very widely with the major governing bodies of sport, including the international managers for rugby and soccer, stakeholders and interested groups to devise a development control plan for the campus. It is the plan to ensure that expertise is...

Sport and Recreational Development. (10 May 2005)

John O'Donoghue: The straight answer is that it was necessary to cut our cloth according to our measure. We had to start somewhere and it was decided to start with what I outlined. The training area that will be provided for both professional rugby and soccer, and amateur games such as Gaelic games and hockey, is presented in the plan as a shamrock concept providing dedicated nodes for rugby, soccer and...

Sport and Recreational Development. (10 May 2005)

John O'Donoghue: There is no proposal at present to have a 10,000-seater stadium under phase 1. However, there is a proposal to have an indoor sports centre where it would be hoped to accommodate up to 30 sports.

Tourism Industry. (10 May 2005)

John O'Donoghue: As I advised the House on 14 April 2005, there has been a major reform of tourism structures in recent years with the setting up of Tourism Ireland and Fáilte Ireland. Reform of the function, role and operational structure of regional tourism is the third and final leg of that reform process. I have no direct responsibility for the most appropriate regional structures for the discharge of...

Tourism Industry. (10 May 2005)

John O'Donoghue: Some Opposition Members — not Deputy Gogarty — were reported in the media as saying that this report heralds the end of Dublin Tourism. That is not the case. We are trying to ensure that we give the best service to the industry and that the industry gives the best service to the customer. There has been much fragmentation and duplication in the industry. I am not denigrating Dublin...

Tourism Industry. (10 May 2005)

John O'Donoghue: A small independent group chaired by Mr. Travers and including the economist Mr. Paul Tansey, and Mr. John Power of the Irish Hotels Federation is facilitating the engagement with Dublin Tourism, representatives of the industry, local authorities in the Dublin region, and my Department. It has already met PricewaterhouseCoopers, the chairman, chief executive officer and senior staff of...

Sport and Recreational Development. (10 May 2005)

John O'Donoghue: On 25 April I announced that the Lansdowne Road Stadium Development Company awarded the design and project management contracts for the stadium, moving the development plan for the new Lansdowne Road stadium to a new phase. The contracts were awarded following tender competitions, advertised internationally through the European Journal as well as in Ireland. The design contract has been...

Sport and Recreational Development. (10 May 2005)

John O'Donoghue: Deputy Wall asks if we are in the same boat. We are all aboard, and sailing. There is no doubt the project has the support of the Taoiseach and the Government. If it did not we could not proceed with it. It is sometimes forgotten that nobody mentioned a stadium until the Taoiseach said we required a stadium. I would like to acknowledge the pivotal role he has played. He expressed a view that...

Tourism Promotion. (10 May 2005)

John O'Donoghue: I propose to take Questions Nos. 65, 79, 90 and 93 together. I refer Deputies to my reply to Priority Question No. 62 earlier today.

Tourism Promotion. (10 May 2005)

John O'Donoghue: The tourism review group noted two key issues in the promotion and development of tourism at a sub-national level. The first relates to the role carried out by the RTAs on behalf of Fáilte Ireland and the appropriateness of the existing structures. The second relates to harnessing and making more coherent the role played by the plethora of bodies involved in the promotion and development of...

Tourism Promotion. (10 May 2005)

John O'Donoghue: This year the spend on tourism is the highest in the history of the State. It is approximately €125 million. There is a recognition of the difficulties faced by some regions. In their plans for 2005 Tourism Ireland and Fáilte Ireland will roll out a number of very important initiatives which will heighten the regional impact of Ireland's marketing activities nationally and overseas. All...

Tourism Promotion. (10 May 2005)

John O'Donoghue: As I have indicated on a number of occasions, the industry has become much more competitive. It is a difficult old world and one must ensure that one puts one's best foot forward at all times. On the question of family holidays, traditionally many of the families came from Britain. That is why, following on from a slight decrease of 1% in the numbers coming from Britain last year, we engaged...

National Conference Centre. (10 May 2005)

John O'Donoghue: I propose to take Questions Nos. 66, 81 and 87 together. On 22 March last, I informed the House that the national conference centre project team, headed by the Office of Public Works, was engaging in a process of consultation with the tenderers, intended, inter alia, to enable the OPW to provide clarification to the tenderers and, where appropriate, to take account of issues raised by them....

National Conference Centre. (10 May 2005)

John O'Donoghue: Originally the last date for the receipt of tenders was 18 March 2005. What happened subsequently was that the national conference centre project team, headed by the Office of Public Works, became engaged in detailed consultations with the relevant tenderers and had to reply to various questions. In any event, through various requests received from some of the tenderers, it was decided to...