Results 5,621-5,640 of 7,278 for speaker:Dick Roche

Register of Electors. (27 Feb 2007)

Dick Roche: To be fair to the local authority, it accepted that it had made a mistake. Let us not quibble about it. Voter registration is a challenging issue, as is the question of registration fraud. The Deputy said that some people will not know if they are on the register until polling day. I will examine the idea of having a further publicity campaign to ask people to check the register.

Register of Electors. (27 Feb 2007)

Dick Roche: We know the Deputy is under pressure.

Register of Electors. (27 Feb 2007)

Dick Roche: I do not disagree with anything the Deputy said. The whole point of introducing the supplementary register arrangements a few years ago was specifically to try to assist those people who had reached the age of majority to get on the voting register. We should examine anything that would make it easier for legitimate voters to register. The Minister of State, Deputy Batt O'Keeffe, has told...

Register of Electors. (27 Feb 2007)

Dick Roche: The Deputy is correct. The process should be made as informal as possible. I am not suggesting that all young people are frightened to go into a Garda station but the less formality one has the better. At the same time, we must protect the system against fraudulent registration.

Register of Electors. (27 Feb 2007)

Dick Roche: There may well be some merit in the Deputy's point but it would require primary legislation. The Deputy will recall the debate we had in this House on that subject. One of the extraordinary things we discovered was that when we tried to make a modest change to allow for an extension of dates, which was something everyone in the House supported, we had to do so by legislation. We discovered...

Register of Electors. (27 Feb 2007)

Dick Roche: Maybe not but that is a matter for the people to decide, rather than the Deputy or myself.

Register of Electors. (27 Feb 2007)

Dick Roche: I strongly believe that the electoral registration process is something we should take out of party politics. We should have cross-party agreement on it and do the job as soon as the election is over.

Register of Electors. (27 Feb 2007)

Dick Roche: I was open to any suggestion that would work.

Register of Electors. (27 Feb 2007)

Dick Roche: I made the point that it simply was not possible or appropriate to run the census-gathering exercise at the same time, as part of the registration process. The Deputy and I disagreed on that matter. The advice I received and international practice suggest that was not a practical solution. I was and still am very open to any means of further improving the matter and this will still be the...

Written Answers — Energy Conservation: Energy Conservation (27 Feb 2007)

Dick Roche: The Office of Public Works (OPW) has responsibility for the fitting out and provision of maintenance services, including light fittings, to Government Departments and certain other State Agencies. In accordance with its Environmental Policy Statement, my Department is fully committed to the effective management of our consumption of energy resources. This is a critical element of our ongoing...

Written Answers — Energy Conservation: Energy Conservation (27 Feb 2007)

Dick Roche: I propose to take Questions Nos. 90 and 167 together. Thermal performance and insulation standards under Part L of the Building Regulations (Conservation of Fuel and Energy) have been progressively increased since their introduction in 1992. I am committed to updating these standards on a continuous and regular basis in accordance with the requirements of the Energy Performance of Buildings...

Written Answers — Election Management System: Election Management System (27 Feb 2007)

Dick Roche: The Commission on Electronic Voting, in its Second Report on the Secrecy, Accuracy and Testing of the Chosen Electronic Voting System, (published on 4 July 2006), concluded that it can recommend the voting and counting equipment for use at elections in Ireland, subject to further work it has recommended. The Commission made it clear that many of its recommendations involve only relatively...

Written Answers — Local Authority Funding: Local Authority Funding (27 Feb 2007)

Dick Roche: I propose to take Questions Nos. 94, 109 and 190 together. The Review of Local Government Financing by Indecon Economic Consultants estimated, on the basis of different methods of projecting expenditure, that by 2010 local authority expenditure would increase by €1 billion to €2 billion in nominal terms over 2004 levels. Funding this expenditure will be met by a combination of the...

Written Answers — Local Authority Management: Local Authority Management (27 Feb 2007)

Dick Roche: Local authorities are independent, democratically elected bodies that are recognised by the Constitution and in law. They operate in accordance with local government and other legislation, as well as national policy, directions and guidelines as provided for in such legislation. In their day-to-day activities, local authorities are accountable on an on-going basis to their elected members,...

Written Answers — Nuclear Safety: Nuclear Safety (27 Feb 2007)

Dick Roche: I propose to take Questions Nos. 98 and 123 together. The Green Paper on European Energy Policy, published in March 2006 by the European Commission, recognised that the use of nuclear power was a matter for decision by each Member State. While it is a matter for the UK to decide on its energy mix, the issues for Ireland arising from decisions made by the UK on nuclear policy are well known...

Written Answers — Nuclear Safety: Nuclear Safety (27 Feb 2007)

Dick Roche: The Mixed Oxide (MOX) Plant at Sellafield utilises plutonium, separated during reprocessing of spent fuel for foreign customers at Sellafield, and returns it, predominantly by sea, to those customers in the form of MOX fuel for use in their nuclear reactors. Such shipments of radioactive material are subject to international maritime regulations including the right of innocent passage and to...

Written Answers — Greenhouse Gas Emissions: Greenhouse Gas Emissions (27 Feb 2007)

Dick Roche: I propose to take Questions Nos. 102, 147 and 183 together. At the EU Environment Council on 20 February 2007, my European colleagues and I considered the future development of the international climate regime in light of recent scientific and economic analyses and Europe's stated objective of limiting the increase in global mean temperature to 2 degrees Celsius above the pre-industrial...

Written Answers — Greenhouse Gas Emissions: Greenhouse Gas Emissions (27 Feb 2007)

Dick Roche: I propose to take Questions Nos. 103, 120, 132, 157 and 213 together. The Government has designated €270 million for the purchase of carbon allowances over the period 2007-2013. This sum is in addition to €20 million provided in my Department's Vote in 2006. According to Greenhouse gas emission trends and projections in Europe 2006, published by the European Environment Agency, ten EU...

Written Answers — Population Density: Population Density (27 Feb 2007)

Dick Roche: I propose to take Questions Nos. 104, 140, 159 and 178 together. A broad range of policies and measures is being implemented to address pressures in the urban environs of Dublin and promote balanced regional development across the country. A key policy response has been the National Spatial Strategy (NSS), which was published in November 2002. The NSS acknowledges that it is not sustainable...

Written Answers — Social Inclusion: Social Inclusion (27 Feb 2007)

Dick Roche: I propose to take Questions Nos. 105, 176, 181 and 202 together. The Combat Poverty Agency report on Poverty and Social Inclusion, Linking Local and National Structures, is currently being examined in my Department. The promotion of social inclusion is a key policy objective for my Department and is prioritised in our Statement of Strategy 2005-2007. Local authorities have a key role in...