Results 6,821-6,840 of 11,114 for speaker:Damien English

Seanad: Rebuilding Ireland: Statements (21 Mar 2017)

Damien English: I would have not problem having a report on that but I am giving my commitment that this money will be spent and that local authorities will have to honour their responsibilities here across the board because some are not. That is not acceptable. It is an issue that has to be dealt with across the board. Increasing the funding was a key step to be able to say that there is increased...

Seanad: Rebuilding Ireland: Statements (21 Mar 2017)

Damien English: I will go faster if I can. I am probably going too fast as it is. Senator Davitt welcomed the panel commission changes. Again, these changes are designed to try to speed up activation of sites. It goes back to the carrot-and-stick approach. The vacant site levy will kick in in 2019. The work on the register for that will be done in 2017 and 2018, but the charge only will come into...

Seanad: Rebuilding Ireland: Statements (21 Mar 2017)

Damien English: That is fine. I believe a report is due the middle of this year and I will get that for the Senator. If he reads the report he will see that it refers to a number of houses and developments. We purposely did not set out anyone's specific conditions throughout this action plan for housing. It just deals with the overall numbers, but we are clear in our engagement with local authorities...

Seanad: Rebuilding Ireland: Statements (21 Mar 2017)

Damien English: That is something on which I will work with the Senator before the report is due in the autumn. To be clear, it is not that we have not mentioned any category; it is about the overall housing plan. Each local authority will have to tell us what it needs in each category. While we want to make that happen, the local authorities are being told clearly to cater for everyone in that regard....

Seanad: Rebuilding Ireland: Statements (21 Mar 2017)

Damien English: I will come back to the Senator with proper answers. I accept it is not happening fast enough but I am not sure where the fault lies. Generally, it comes back to money but I know it is not a financial issue. I will get an update on that and sit down with the Senator to discuss it because we are all committed to making sure that happens.

Seanad: Rebuilding Ireland: Statements (21 Mar 2017)

Damien English: Senator Colm Burke raised a couple of issues as well.

Seanad: Rebuilding Ireland: Statements (21 Mar 2017)

Damien English: That is the strangest thing I have ever seen but to be clear on the point of order, the issue was put to me that we are telling local authorities to sell off zoned land for social housing. I said that is not the case. The Senator has changed that to say zoned land in general.

Seanad: Rebuilding Ireland: Statements (21 Mar 2017)

Damien English: I am entitled to explain. What was said to me was that our Department has told local authorities to sell off zoned social housing land that they own. That is not true. I want to be clear that we have not done that. The last set of questions were about State-owned lands and increased rental properties. Senator Colm Burke should know that this is exactly what we are trying to do. We are...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Housing Provision (23 Mar 2017)

Damien English: The purpose of the Building Control Management System (BCMS) is to facilitate building control authorities, building owners, builders and construction professionals in discharging their separate responsibilities under the Building Control Act 1990. The system provides a common platform for clear and consistent administration of building control matters across the local authority sector. The...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Pyrite Resolution Board (23 Mar 2017)

Damien English: I propose to take Questions Nos. 106 and 109 together. In accordance with section 9(4) of the Pyrite Resolution Act 2013, the Pyrite Resolution Board, not later than 30 June in each year, shall prepare and submit to the Minister a report on the performance by it of its functions under the Act in the immediately preceding year, and the Minister shall, as soon as may be after receiving the...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Pyrite Resolution Board Membership (23 Mar 2017)

Damien English: The Pyrite Resolution Board, which was first established on an administrative basis in early 2013, was placed on a statutory footing on 10 January 2014 when the Pyrite Resolution Act 2013 came into effect. The Board is responsible for overseeing the implementation of the pyrite remediation scheme and is being assisted in this regard by the Housing Agency. The current membership of the Board...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Pyrite Resolution Board (23 Mar 2017)

Damien English: The Pyrite Resolution Board, where possible, has sought to recover from parties, with a liability, and capacity, all or part of the costs of remediating dwellings that are included in the scheme. Under Section 12 of the Pyrite Resolution Act 2013, such contributions can be accepted by the Board with the consent of the Minister and the Minster for Public Expenditure and Reform, as gifts. The...

Seanad: Commencement Matters: Tribunals of Inquiry Recommendations (28 Mar 2017)

Damien English: I apologise for being a little late but I was delayed by traffic.

Seanad: Commencement Matters: Tribunals of Inquiry Recommendations (28 Mar 2017)

Damien English: I think Senator Boyhan for raising this issue. The Tribunal of Inquiry into Certain Planning Matters and Payments, otherwise known as the Mahon tribunal, was established by order of the then Minister for the Environment and Local Government back in 1997 to inquire into and report on various planning matters as set out in resolutions passed by the Dáil and Seanad concerning the...

Seanad: Commencement Matters: Tribunals of Inquiry Recommendations (28 Mar 2017)

Damien English: The Bill to which I referred - it is on Committee Stage - will deal with the matter. In terms of timelines in regard to the independent planning regulator I do not want to second guess what will happen on Committee Stage. As the Senator knows, proceedings can go quite smoothly or take time. Either way, we are open to having a lengthy discussion with all Members of both Houses on Committee...

Seanad: Electoral (Amendment) (Voting at 16) Bill 2016: Second Stage (29 Mar 2017)

Damien English: Was it a winning campaign?

Seanad: Electoral (Amendment) (Voting at 16) Bill 2016: Second Stage (29 Mar 2017)

Damien English: I will speak for us. Senator Gavan does not have to.

Seanad: Electoral (Amendment) (Voting at 16) Bill 2016: Second Stage (29 Mar 2017)

Damien English: I welcome the chance to make a few comments on the Bill. I am conscious that Senator Fintan Warfield will wrap up the debate. We will split the remaining time between us as best we can. Perhaps we might take four or five minutes each. I am pleased to have an opportunity to participate in the Second Stage debate on the Electoral (Amendment) (Voting at 16) Bill 2016 on behalf of the...

Seanad: Electoral (Amendment) (Voting at 16) Bill 2016: Second Stage (29 Mar 2017)

Damien English: His message is that this Bill is premature. He thinks more time is needed for the debate and discussion and to recommend changes. He has a proven track record. When he asks this House for more time to do something, he acts on it. That is all I will say. I am conscious that I want to give Senator Fintan Warfield more time in which to reply. I am sorry that I missed his contribution at...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Departmental Investigations (4 Apr 2017)

Damien English: An expert panel on concrete blocks was established by my Department in April 2016 to investigate the problems that have emerged in the concrete blockwork of certain dwellings in Donegal and Mayo. The panel have the following terms of reference: (i) To identify, insofar as it is possible, the numbers of private dwellings which appear to be affected by defects in the blockwork in the...