Results 6,681-6,700 of 11,114 for speaker:Damien English

Planning and Development (Amendment) Bill 2016: Referral to Select Committee (19 Jan 2017)

Damien English: I move:That the Bill be referred to the Select Committee on Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government pursuant to Standing Orders 84A(3)(a) and 149(1).

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Homeless Persons Data (19 Jan 2017)

Damien English: We are ahead of time. We started early.

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Rural Resettlement Scheme (19 Jan 2017)

Damien English: I thank Deputy Harty for raising this issue. We agree that it is not just a rural resettlement programme that we need but that the focus should be on the revitalisation and rebuilding of rural areas. That is what we are trying to achieve. The aim is set out both in the programme for Government and in Rebuilding Ireland. We want to facilitate people who want to live in a rural area,...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Rural Resettlement Scheme (19 Jan 2017)

Damien English: That is exactly what we are doing. We want to give this very serious consideration. The Department has an urban renewal and regeneration working group that has been working with local authority chief executives over the past couple of months to devise new schemes and ideas. In addition, the Department works alongside the Department of Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs....

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Rural Resettlement Scheme (19 Jan 2017)

Damien English: The action plan for rural development that will be launched next week will facilitate that. Our Department is feeding into that and has already fed into that. We have had numerous meetings at official and ministerial level. The Minister and I, along with the Minister for Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs and the Minister of State for regional economic development,...

Other Questions: Pyrite Remediation Programme (19 Jan 2017)

Damien English: With regard to the funding, based on the figures of recent years, the €22 million allocated for this year's budget should be sufficient to deal with the applications going through the process where properties have sufficient damage to be fixed. Last year, more than 400 properties were completed and 553 properties have been completed in total. The €22 million should cover...

Other Questions: Pyrite Remediation Programme (19 Jan 2017)

Damien English: I do not have a date for when the new standard will apply. I hope the work will be completed very shortly because it is important to have it. It might change the situation for some people. At least when we have the new standard we can judge where it goes afterwards. The Deputy spoke about common sense. The criteria are very tight and clear with regard to how money will be spent. It...

Other Questions: Pyrite Remediation Programme (19 Jan 2017)

Damien English: It is not due to a lack of common sense. The criteria are very tight and rightly so because it is taxpayers' money. The priority is to fix the houses with considerable damage which are very badly affected. This is what we are trying to do. More than 1,400 applications have been made, 553 have been fixed and 500 are in play this year. We are trying to deal with those in bad need of...

Other Questions: Pyrite Remediation Programme (19 Jan 2017)

Damien English: I accept that. This is what I am saying, we must find a way to deal with it. This is why the new standard that will be announced shortly, I hope, might help us to achieve this in some cases. If not, we will have to go even further again. I am committed to trying to find a process to end this limbo. I accept that, but I ask the Deputy not to tell me there is a lack of common sense because...

Fossil Fuel Divestment Bill 2016: Second Stage [Private Members] (19 Jan 2017)

Damien English: I move amendment No. 1:That Dáil Éireann notes the Fossil Fuel Divestment Bill 2016 as introduced by Deputy Pringle and further notes that:- the Ireland Strategic Investment Fund, ISIF, operates a sustainable and responsible investment policy, published in July 2016, and that this policy specifically focuses on climate change; - ISIF has limited exposure to fossil fuels within its...

Fossil Fuel Divestment Bill 2016: Second Stage [Private Members] (19 Jan 2017)

Damien English: It is increasing.

Fossil Fuel Divestment Bill 2016: Second Stage [Private Members] (19 Jan 2017)

Damien English: There has been an 11% increase this year.

Fossil Fuel Divestment Bill 2016: Second Stage [Private Members] (19 Jan 2017)

Damien English: Use the facts.

Fossil Fuel Divestment Bill 2016: Second Stage [Private Members] (19 Jan 2017)

Damien English: People talk about the great depression. If they had listened to my contribution, they would have heard that I did not say the Government was against what they were trying to achieve. We actually complimented them on what they were trying to do. We actually agree with them. However, it would take away the flexibility of ISIF in investing money on behalf of the country. It has other...

Fossil Fuel Divestment Bill 2016: Second Stage [Private Members] (19 Jan 2017)

Damien English: I have given examples. The Deputy should not try to spin it.

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Housing Assistance Payments Data (19 Jan 2017)

Damien English: The Housing Assistance Payment (HAP) which has been rolled out to local authorities on a phased basis was commenced in the Galway County Council administrative area on 16 November 2015 and in the Galway City Council administrative area on 1 February 2016. As HAP is rolled out nationally and replaces Rent Supplement for households with a long- term housing need, the number of households...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Library Projects (19 Jan 2017)

Damien English: The provision of premises and facilities in the public library service is generally a matter for each local authority in its capacity as a library authority. Accordingly, the development of the proposed library in Ballivor is primarily a matter for Meath County Council. In January 2016, my Department announced a new Libraries Capital Investment Programme for the period 2016-2021 to...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Local Authority Housing Standards (24 Jan 2017)

Damien English: I propose to take Questions Nos. 239, 240 and 248 together. All new buildings, including social housing units, must comply with the legally enforceable minimum performance standards set out in the Building Regulations 1997-2014. In this context, the Building Regulations (Part M Amendment) Regulations 2010, and the accompanying Technical Guidance Document M - Access and Use (2010), which came...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Pyrite Remediation Programme (24 Jan 2017)

Damien English: The Pyrite Resolution Board, with the support of the Housing Agency, is responsible for the implementation of the pyrite remediation scheme. In accordance with the provisions of the Act, the Board is independent in the performance of its functions, and as Minister, I have no role in the operational matters pertaining to the implementation of the scheme. The Board may be contacted by phone...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Construction Sector Strategy (24 Jan 2017)

Damien English: I propose to take Questions Nos. 256 and 257 together. Under Rebuilding Ireland: Action Plan for Housing and Homelessness, the Government is committed to a broad range of measures to tackle, among other things, some of the costs associated with the provision of housing in the interests of reducing construction overheads. This includes undertaking a detailed analysis, in conjunction with...