Results 641-660 of 708 for speaker:Rory Hearne

Housing Finance Agency (Amendment) Bill 2025: Second Stage (14 Oct 2025)

Rory Hearne: The Social Democrats are happy to support this increase to the borrowing ceiling for the Housing Finance Agency. It is the correct thing to do, but it is limited. We would like it to be higher. We believe there needs to be a significant increase in the delivery of social and affordable housing beyond what is currently being delivered and financed. Many questions are being asked at the...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Local Government and Heritage: Multiple Unit Developments: Discussion (14 Oct 2025)

Rory Hearne: What Mr. Montague has set out is really stark. I do not think it is really understood properly by the public and it is certainly not being talked about enough. The reality is that 100,000 people are living in homes that do not have an acceptable level of fire safety.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Local Government and Heritage: Multiple Unit Developments: Discussion (14 Oct 2025)

Rory Hearne: Yes, Mr. Montague is saying the figure is up to 54,000 homes.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Local Government and Heritage: Multiple Unit Developments: Discussion (14 Oct 2025)

Rory Hearne: That number are currently in unsafe living situations in terms of fire safety.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Local Government and Heritage: Multiple Unit Developments: Discussion (14 Oct 2025)

Rory Hearne: I cannot get my head around that. The State knows this situation is there and that there is a potential risk to life. We have seen Grenfell. There is a lack of pace. Even if they start now, it will be two or three years before it is actually done.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Local Government and Heritage: Multiple Unit Developments: Discussion (14 Oct 2025)

Rory Hearne: The State should be intervening in some way, whether it is owned or not, to ensure people are safe. The most basic level is fire safety.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Local Government and Heritage: Multiple Unit Developments: Discussion (14 Oct 2025)

Rory Hearne: I appreciate that the witnesses have put this across. It is imperative that this is done on an emergency basis. We cannot leave people in that situation.

Reform of the Defective Concrete Redress Scheme: Motion [Private Members] (15 Oct 2025)

Rory Hearne: The Social Democrats are happy to strongly support this motion. I thank Deputy Ward and the Independent Technical Group for bringing it forward. It is absolutely one of the most important motions that will be brought forward in this Dáil term because the issue that faces people across the country who are affected by defective blocks is twofold. It is State and market failure. It is...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Local Government and Heritage: Multiple Unit Developments: Discussion (14 Oct 2025)

Rory Hearne: What comes to mind to me is that it is like a Grenfell sitting there. Are we talking about a potential Grenfell in Ireland?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Local Government and Heritage: Multiple Unit Developments: Discussion (14 Oct 2025)

Rory Hearne: Is Mr. Montague saying that some apartment blocks do not have proper smoke alarms?

Written Answers — Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport: Public Transport (14 Oct 2025)

Rory Hearne: 304. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport if he will respond on matters raised in correspondence regarding public transport issues in Dublin 5 and surrounding areas (details supplied); if there are plans to address these issues in the near future; if there are plans to provide new and additional public transport options in the referenced area; and if he will make a statement...

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Financial Services (14 Oct 2025)

Rory Hearne: 332. To ask the Minister for Finance the number of properties made available to the housing market through the 'over the shop' premises relief in each of the years and in each county, since the beginning of the relief, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [55172/25]

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Derelict Sites (14 Oct 2025)

Rory Hearne: 618. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the amount that has been recouped for the State through the derelict site levy since its introduction to date; whether this levy will remain in place until it is replaced by the newly announced derelict property tax; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [55173/25]

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Enterprise, Tourism and Employment: Briefing on Pre-Legislative Scrutiny of the General Scheme of a Short Term Letting and Tourism Bill 2025: Discussion (15 Oct 2025)

Rory Hearne: I thank the Chair for bringing me in. I am also not a member of the committee but as the witnesses may be aware, housing and the housing crisis is my perspective and approach to this. I have been following the progression of this legislation, or should I say the lack of it. I am very concerned, at the outset, as to whether this will address the issue of homes, particularly family homes,...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Enterprise, Tourism and Employment: Briefing on Pre-Legislative Scrutiny of the General Scheme of a Short Term Letting and Tourism Bill 2025: Discussion (15 Oct 2025)

Rory Hearne: My interpretation is that it is essentially saying, if this is the case, that if you are in an area with population of under 10,000, you are being advised to grant planning.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Enterprise, Tourism and Employment: Briefing on Pre-Legislative Scrutiny of the General Scheme of a Short Term Letting and Tourism Bill 2025: Discussion (15 Oct 2025)

Rory Hearne: Let us say, theoretically, that it is the case. We will have towns in Dublin like Newcastle, Kilcock in Meath and these sorts of places to which, potentially, the restrictions will not be applied.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Enterprise, Tourism and Employment: Briefing on Pre-Legislative Scrutiny of the General Scheme of a Short Term Letting and Tourism Bill 2025: Discussion (15 Oct 2025)

Rory Hearne: Okay. I am very concerned about that as being potentially limiting. The other issue is the planning requirements. If all of these short-term lets have to apply for planning, what sort of timeframe does Ms McGuire see all of those units being granted planning in, given the pressures in councils with regard to a lack of resources?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Enterprise, Tourism and Employment: Briefing on Pre-Legislative Scrutiny of the General Scheme of a Short Term Letting and Tourism Bill 2025: Discussion (15 Oct 2025)

Rory Hearne: Okay. Ms McGuire has no sense of what point. To me, it would seem like that is going to take a long time if all these operators have to apply for planning permission and get it.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Enterprise, Tourism and Employment: Briefing on Pre-Legislative Scrutiny of the General Scheme of a Short Term Letting and Tourism Bill 2025: Discussion (15 Oct 2025)

Rory Hearne: Has the Department done any estimation of how long it thinks that will take?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Enterprise, Tourism and Employment: Briefing on Pre-Legislative Scrutiny of the General Scheme of a Short Term Letting and Tourism Bill 2025: Discussion (15 Oct 2025)

Rory Hearne: It seems like it would be a core aspect of achieving this and implementing it. I would have thought the Department would have looked at that and was estimating it was going to take this long and, with regard to the measures having an impact, this is when they will start impacting from.