Results 7,541-7,560 of 20,099 for speaker:Brian Stanley

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (6 Jul 2021)

Brian Stanley: What does the Deputy propose?

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (6 Jul 2021)

Brian Stanley: The Deputy is proposing we write to the Secretary General of the Department, asking those questions.

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (6 Jul 2021)

Brian Stanley: There are two proposals. One is that a letter go to the Department, as outlined by Deputy Murphy. Is that agreed? Agreed. The other proposal is we write back to both councils, asking whether there are any tangible assets or physical assets of Galway 2020, and whether they are happy with how the project has proceeded so far. Is that agreed? Agreed. The next item of correspondence is...

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (6 Jul 2021)

Brian Stanley: I note that GSOC advised the committee in correspondence on 21 April that its investigation was in its final stages and would conclude shortly. I take on board the Deputy’s point that it has been dragging on for a long time. However, we also discussed the issues of the lack of resources of GSOC and we decided at a recent meeting to raise this issue and to try to highlight the fact it...

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (6 Jul 2021)

Brian Stanley: That is what we will decide. I suggest we take the time to read the correspondence. I have read the cover letter. As I said, it was circulated late yesterday and the first sight I had of it was this morning. As Chair of the committee, I want to read it first as there may be useful information in it. I also think, given it is a time-sensitive issue, that we should advise the correspondent...

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (6 Jul 2021)

Brian Stanley: I am sorry. Please go ahead.

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (6 Jul 2021)

Brian Stanley: Deputy Murphy is correct. The Committee of Public Accounts is not a disinterested party. We should be very interested in this. Good work has been done by the previous Committee of Public Accounts on this. Before any decision is made about anything I would like the opportunity to read the correspondence. I certainly want to read the detail in it. On flicking through, there appear to be a...

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (6 Jul 2021)

Brian Stanley: I thank Deputy Murphy. Deputy Carroll MacNeill is not in attendance as far as I can see from the screen. As referred to by Deputy Murphy, the project is expected to achieve a starting cost rental of €1,200 per month, which is a significant discount on rents of circa €2,000 per month for a comparable two-bedroom home in the same area, but it is still coming in fairly high....

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (6 Jul 2021)

Brian Stanley: My concern is we are facing a pensions time bomb, and with the housing situation we are facing a pensioner-renter time bomb. Pensioners are not going to be able to afford the rents that are demanded in the private sector. The rents for these cost rental schemes would be too high even for a couple where there are two pensions. Where one pensioner might end up living alone, it would be...

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (6 Jul 2021)

Brian Stanley: I thank the Deputy for that information. He might clarify something. Did I hear him correctly when he said that when people reach pension age, they can rent at a lower level or receive a subsidy?

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (6 Jul 2021)

Brian Stanley: I thank the Deputy for that clarification. I believe we are all agreed that moving into the cost rental model is a very important venture. Many of us have advocated for this for years. While this is a pilot project, I hope to see it rolled out in every county in the country. I represent Laois-Offaly, and while it is rural, it has large towns. There is a significant affordability issue in...

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (6 Jul 2021)

Brian Stanley: The next item of correspondence is No. 685B, from Mr. John Dollard, Chief Superintendent, An Garda Síochána, dated 23 June 2021, which we have addressed. Is it agreed to note and publish this item? Agreed. The next item is No. 689B, from Mr. Mark Griffin, Secretary General at the Department of Environment, Climate and Communications, dated 24 June 2021, providing information...

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (6 Jul 2021)

Brian Stanley: I will raise a couple of points around No. 689B. I was surprised to learn recently, when I raised this matter with the Minister of State at the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications, Deputy Ossian Smyth, that only 4,000 connections have been done so far this year. That would show we are barely chipping away at it and taking a small chip out of what needs to be done. We...

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (6 Jul 2021)

Brian Stanley: I know from the period that I was involved in this brief that it works out at €20 per pole per annum to rent poles from a private company that was a publicly owned company up to 1999 before it was privatised and is now owned by a French consortium. We can seek that information. Given that €2.7 billion or €2.8 billion of taxpayers' money is being dished out, I hope that...

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (6 Jul 2021)

Brian Stanley: That information is not readily available, but we will try to get it for the Deputy.

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (6 Jul 2021)

Brian Stanley: We can decide how to go from there. The Deputy is also asking about when Screen Ireland was last before the committee.

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (6 Jul 2021)

Brian Stanley: Does the Deputy believe it was before the committee previously?

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (6 Jul 2021)

Brian Stanley: We will get that information for the Deputy and discuss it in the context of the work plan.

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (6 Jul 2021)

Brian Stanley: Is Deputy Munster suggesting that we consider adding it to the work programme?

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (6 Jul 2021)

Brian Stanley: We can consider that, with the agreement of the committee. The next correspondence is No. 691B from Mr. Ken Spratt, Secretary General of the Department of Transport, dated 25 June, providing detailed information requested by the committee at our meeting with the Department on 27 May. It includes information on a range of issues, including driver theory tests, the DART interconnector...