Results 7,741-7,760 of 8,153 for speaker:James Browne

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Departmental Data (24 Jun 2025)

James Browne: I propose to take Questions Nos. 554 and 555 together. On 3 June, following a careful evaluation, my Department made the decision not to proceed with the contract award for Social Housing Bundle 3 under the Public Private Partnership (PPP) model. This decision was taken as the overall cost of the project was deemed to be too high. Despite this, my Department, together with the...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Departmental Funding (24 Jun 2025)

James Browne: My Department currently supports a programme of large-scale regeneration projects in Limerick, Dublin and Cork. These regeneration projects target the country’s most disadvantaged communities, and seek to address the causes of disadvantage in these communities through a holistic programme of physical, social and economic regeneration. The Limerick Regeneration Framework...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Rental Sector (26 Jun 2025)

James Browne: A review of the current Exempted Development Regulations is ongoing and a wider public consultation on exempted development regulations will be undertaken shortly. Members of the public, State bodies and other concerned parties will be able to make submissions in writing as part of the consultation process. The Government cannot pre-empt the outcome of any consultation and therefore no...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Departmental Data (26 Jun 2025)

James Browne: The Building Regulations set out the legal requirements in Ireland for the construction of new buildings (including houses), extensions to existing buildings as well as for material alterations and certain material changes of use to existing buildings. They set out minimum standards for the design and construction of buildings and works to ensure the health and safety of people in and around...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Marine Protected Areas (26 Jun 2025)

James Browne: The Marine Protected Areas Bill is at an advanced stage of drafting. It is intended to finalise this draft as soon as possible. However the Bill will need revision to reflect new Ministerial responsibilities and transfers of functions between Departments once these have taken place. It should be noted that, in the context of this forthcoming transfer of the marine environment function...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Provision (26 Jun 2025)

James Browne: A flagship element of Project Ireland 2040, the €2 billion Urban Regeneration and Development Fund (URDF) is supporting a programme of significant transformational capital projects that will contribute to the regeneration and rejuvenation of Ireland’s cities and other large towns, in line with the objectives of the National Planning Framework and the National Development Plan. ...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Provision (26 Jun 2025)

James Browne: The National Planning Framework recognises the strong link between our health and environment and includes a National Policy Objective to support the objectives of public health policy, including Healthy Ireland and the National Physical Activity Plan, through integrating such policies, where appropriate and at the applicable scale, with planning policy. The zoning of land for particular...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Provision (26 Jun 2025)

James Browne: The Government is acutely aware of the housing challenges faced by many sectors of society. Housing for All, Ireland's housing plan to 2030, contains a suite of actions that have, and continue to, increase the provision of housing through accelerating supply and increasing the affordability of homes. My Department is currently exploring options for the setting aside of certain Cost Rental...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Provision (26 Jun 2025)

James Browne: My Department is committed to continued investment in rural water infrastructure which is delivering improvements to water services in areas of rural Ireland where Uisce Éireann services are not currently available. As regards the funding being provided there are separate arrangements for capital and operational funding of the Group Water Sector. The Multi-annual Rural Water...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Provision (26 Jun 2025)

James Browne: My Department notes the commitment in the Programme for Government 2025 – Securing Ireland’s Future to introduce planning guidelines for solar energy developments. In light of this commitment, my Department has begun an initial scoping process to identify the component factors relevant to the preparation of planning guidelines for solar energy development, including any...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Provision (26 Jun 2025)

James Browne: Since the publication of the current Sustainable Rural Housing Guidelines in 2005 (which continue to have effect in addition to subsequent clarifications and national policy changes in the National Planning Framework) there have been important changes to our planning system. Most notably, obligations under European Directives and international agreements relating to the management and...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Provision (26 Jun 2025)

James Browne: The First Home Scheme, which launched in July 2022, is a shared equity scheme, designed to help bridge the gap for eligible first-time buyers, eligible homebuyers, and self-builders, between their deposit and mortgage, and the price of their new home (within price ceilings established across the country). Full details are available on the First Home Scheme website, www.firsthomescheme.ie/ ...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Night-time Economy (26 Jun 2025)

James Browne: My Department participates in the Night Time Economy (NTE) Implementation Group, which is led by the Department of Culture, Communications and Sport (DCCS), and is currently leading on Action 6 of the Night Time Economy Strategy to “examine the practical implications for planning and other legislative codes to enable the potential for vacant buildings to be used for meanwhile...

GPO and Moore Street Regeneration as a 1916 Cultural Quarter: Motion [Private Members] (1 Jul 2025)

James Browne: I want to start by thanking all Members for the contributions to this discussion. The Government is absolutely committed to the redevelopment of the GPO complex as an ambitious flagship project and plans are well under way for the refurbishment of the national monument at 14-17 Moore Street. It is our commitment to honour the men and women and indeed the children of 1916. It is our...

GPO and Moore Street Regeneration as a 1916 Cultural Quarter: Motion [Private Members] (1 Jul 2025)

James Browne: No part of the GPO has been sold off, no part is being desecrated and there is no secret deal. These are all myths, and worse, they are deliberate distractions from the real work of heritage preservation and essential urban renewal of a changing city. What we propose is a respectful, imaginative redevelopment of the wider GPO complex, including its cultural, the retail and office spaces...

GPO and Moore Street Regeneration as a 1916 Cultural Quarter: Motion [Private Members] (1 Jul 2025)

James Browne: We commissioned the 1916 exhibition in the GPO which is now visited by thousands each year. We funded heritage grants across every county and we engaged with young people, artists, veterans and communities in every corner of Ireland. We made sure these commemorations belong not to any one party or ideology but to the Irish people as a whole. That, I believe, is what real respect looks...

GPO and Moore Street Regeneration as a 1916 Cultural Quarter: Motion [Private Members] (1 Jul 2025)

James Browne: That was not the same-----

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Homeless Persons Supports (1 Jul 2025)

James Browne: I thank the Deputy very much for requesting an update on the review of the section 10 funding for homelessness services and the changes I intend to make to this funding stream. Supporting individuals and families facing homelessness is a priority for the Government. I recognise the vital work of the NGO sector and its valuable contribution to the lives of those experiencing or at risk of...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Homeless Persons Supports (1 Jul 2025)

James Browne: As the Deputy knows, efforts are ongoing to reduce the reliance on commercial hotels to accommodate families, with the preferred model being the provision of supported accommodation operated by NGO providers. The increasing numbers in emergency accommodation have led to increased pressures on housing authorities to provide sufficient accommodation. To increase provision, housing authorities...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Homeless Persons Supports (1 Jul 2025)

James Browne: I hear the Deputy saying he wants to trust the NGOs more but also to have more oversight of them. The NGOs here do phenomenally good work. We are providing record funding to address homelessness. What we want to do, though, is to prevent homelessness occurring in the first place and that is why we are making rapid decisions to significantly increase the supply of housing right across the...