Results 6,081-6,100 of 9,814 for speaker:Steven Matthews

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Dereliction and Vacancy: Discussion (15 Jun 2023)

Steven Matthews: The review of Part B and the fire certification should be completed and reported on to feed into that process.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Dereliction and Vacancy: Discussion (15 Jun 2023)

Steven Matthews: That is helpful. I want to ask a question on carbon accounting within the Department in terms of housing provision. Has any accounting been done? We know our figure of 33,000, on average, but if we were to apply a figure of how we much we can bring back in with regard to refurbishing and reusing buildings, has any carbon accounting been done on that? My colleague, Deputy Leddin, probably...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Dereliction and Vacancy: Discussion (15 Jun 2023)

Steven Matthews: I have one or two more questions. Have there been reports on the progress of the town centre pathfinder programme, which is probably only a year or so old? I know 26 towns were selected for town centre pathfinder projects.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Dereliction and Vacancy: Discussion (15 Jun 2023)

Steven Matthews: Of the 26, 24 have town centre first officers.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Dereliction and Vacancy: Discussion (15 Jun 2023)

Steven Matthews: Are they full-time like the vacant homes officers?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Dereliction and Vacancy: Discussion (15 Jun 2023)

Steven Matthews: It is separate but is it a full-time position?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Dereliction and Vacancy: Discussion (15 Jun 2023)

Steven Matthews: Perhaps I should be approaching the Department of Rural and Community Development for a report on progress rather than the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Dereliction and Vacancy: Discussion (15 Jun 2023)

Steven Matthews: My final question is on the ready to build scheme. It is not something I was particularly aware of. Is the scheme more aimed at sites local authorities own outside towns and villages? Is there a density level set for it? How is the separate development of sites managed? Is it plots or is it a site? How does the ready to build scheme work and what has the response been like? It sounds...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Dereliction and Vacancy: Discussion (15 Jun 2023)

Steven Matthews: It is about land that local authority owns, perhaps a couple of acres, within a settlement boundary such as one would see in a development plan. Is a certain density set for those areas?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Dereliction and Vacancy: Discussion (15 Jun 2023)

Steven Matthews: It could be a very valuable initiative. As a former county councillor, I know there is a constant argument that it is impossible to get permission for a one-off house. Despite this, we see that 25% of planning applications or more are for one-off houses. People want to live in rural Ireland and have a right to do so. However, if you can bring them into these serviced sites in the towns,...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Dereliction and Vacancy: Discussion (15 Jun 2023)

Steven Matthews: Is there a requirement on local authorities to identify sites for the ready to build scheme?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Dereliction and Vacancy: Discussion (15 Jun 2023)

Steven Matthews: That is great. I am out of questions.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Dereliction and Vacancy: Discussion (15 Jun 2023)

Steven Matthews: Unless there is anything the witnesses would like to add, I will thank them for their attendance and for their incredible work. As I said at the start, there has been a concerted effort such as we have never seen before across local government and in the Department. We have seen that over recent years. With regard to the comment on the voids, to me, it does not matter whether a local...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Health Services (20 Jun 2023)

Steven Matthews: 729. To ask the Minister for Health the position regarding a review of the community ophthalmic services medical treatment scheme; if he will request this process to be expedited in view of ongoing concerns related to reimbursement from medical professionals in this sector; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [29814/23]

Written Answers — Department of Health: Health Services (22 Jun 2023)

Steven Matthews: 384. To ask the Minister for Health if his attention has been drawn to the end of a national HSE contract (details supplied); the efforts he is making to ensure there is no reduction in service for the counties impacted; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [30411/23]

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Departmental Reviews (22 Jun 2023)

Steven Matthews: 399. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the position regarding the departmental review of PHDs; if he will provide a timeline for its publication; if his attention has been drawn to recent concerns raised by an organisation (details supplied) regarding the process; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [30413/23]

Environmental Protection Agency Water Quality Report 2022: Statements (28 Jun 2023)

Steven Matthews: Our fresh water is in limited supply and is complex to manage but it is critically important for our health and well-being. Out of all of the water supply in the world, only a couple of per cent is fresh water. Most of it is salty seawater. Of the 2% or 3% of the water on the planet that is fresh water, most of that is tied up in polar ice caps. As a result, we have a very small...

Written Answers — Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment: Consumer Protection (27 Jun 2023)

Steven Matthews: 273. To ask the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the actions his Department is undertaking to ensure that unregistered practitioners in a variety of trades are unable to advertise their services on websites (details supplied); if there has been any engagement with these websites on this issue; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [30501/23]

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Passport Services (28 Jun 2023)

Steven Matthews: 17. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if a passport application by a person (details supplied) will be reviewed and expedited; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31446/23]

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Departmental Schemes (28 Jun 2023)

Steven Matthews: 72. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if a school (details supplied) could be considered for inclusion in the energy retrofit pathfinder programme; if this programme will be expanded to allow access for more schools; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31480/23]