Results 61-80 of 216 for long speaker:Darren O'Rourke

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Driver Test (16 Sep 2021)

Darren O'Rourke: .... That is more than a year's backlog, based on last year. From what the Minister of State is saying, we hope to increase the number of tests that can be conducted. I hope it does not take that long. Can the Minister of State outline the timeline for the additional recruitment of the additional 40 extra testers? The RSA asked for those last October and we are one year on. When will...

Covid-19 (Transport, Tourism and Sport): Statements (3 Jun 2020)

Darren O'Rourke: ...considerable confusion. The Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport referred to the industry as well as travellers, including would-be holiday makers, looking to the summer and beyond. For how long will the 14-day self-isolation period be in place? If someone has a family holiday booked in mid-July, will they be expected to self-isolate for 14 days? Can the Minister give us a month,...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Energy Prices (24 Feb 2022)

Darren O'Rourke: One of the ways we can help people with their electricity and energy costs is to empower and enable them to generate their own energy. When will we have the long-awaited updated regulations to exempt schools from the planning conditions in terms of solar PV? We heard from the Taoiseach that the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage would have them ready in two or three weeks....

Ceisteanna (Atógáil) - Questions (Resumed) - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Renewable Energy Generation (22 Sep 2020)

Darren O'Rourke: ...? I am sure the latter would very much welcome an update on that. Regarding the community infrastructure, Templederry is a very good example and we welcome the other projects that have been long held up as exemplars but the opportunity is there to scale up those projects and increase the level of penetration relating to them far more than is currently the case. What plans does the...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: General Scheme of the Climate Action and Low Carbon Development (Amendment) Bill 2020: Discussion (Resumed) (29 Oct 2020)

Darren O'Rourke: ...carbon budget and which gases, if any, will not be included in the carbon budgets. The Climate Change Advisory Council has recommended a split national target for 2050, with net zero emissions of long-lived gases and a separate volume of biogenic methane. Will Dr. Glynn comment on which gases he thinks should or should not be included? Should they be explicitly outlined in the...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Transport Policy (17 Jun 2021)

Darren O'Rourke: ...and in the meantime, taxi drivers have experienced 15 months of no work and insufficient supports, whatever way it is cut up, and are losing money every day. The prospect of breaking even is a long way off, yet the decision about renewing their vehicles is imminent. That is what is hanging over them and they are frustrated with the Minister and his Government for not providing clarity...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Energy Prices (20 Sep 2022)

Darren O'Rourke: ...reforms. The Iberian countries of Portugal and Spain moved for the decoupling and a form of windfall tax on non-gas forms of electricity. Why has the Government resisted those changes for so long and does the Minister acknowledge it was a mistake to do so?

Select Committee on Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Climate Action and Low Carbon Development (Amendment) Bill 2021: Committee Stage (Resumed) (8 Jun 2021)

Darren O'Rourke: I move amendment No. 69: In page 10, between lines 21 and 22, to insert the following: "(6A) The national long term climate action strategy must also, with reference to the just transition principles— (a) explain how the proposals and policies set out in the plan are expected to affect different sectors, households, communities, and regions, including how they are expected to...

Climate Action and Low Carbon Development (Amendment) Bill 2021: From the Seanad (14 Jul 2021)

Darren O'Rourke: It relates to climate justice. We had a long discussion and debate on climate justice during pre-legislative scrutiny and on Committee Stage. There was progress and then we hit a wall in regard to it. It seems like there has been a sprint in recent days given the level and number of changes. It is very frustrating for those of us in the Opposition who have spent time on the Bill, who have...

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate: Wind Energy Generation (6 Dec 2023)

Darren O'Rourke: ...Government is further away from our renewable energy targets this year than last year. There is a serious problem with planning. No onshore projects have come out of the planning process for a long while. There are clear proposals here and I encourage the Government to look at them. There are positive proposals in the report, some of which are in line with what is intended and others...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Electricity Grid (15 Jun 2023)

Darren O'Rourke: The Minister has spoken about private wires, the storage policy framework and the hydrogen strategy. The private wires consultation has been a long time coming. It could not happen quickly enough. In his first supplementary response, will the Minister address the capacity and resourcing of EirGrid as a vehicle to deliver on this ambition in the first instance? I regularly meet...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Covid-19 Pandemic (19 May 2022)

Darren O'Rourke: ...with an eye to interests there and pharmaceutical interests in Ireland. That is what it has been about. There has been fudge and the use of language to kick the ball down the road. If we wait long enough, supply will not be an issue. What we wanted from the Government was urgent action and intervention. We wanted it to show leadership and be brave in this regard. These are the brave...

Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation (22 Feb 2024)

Darren O'Rourke: ...the first carbon budget will be met. Nowhere is this Government's failure clearer than in its national retrofitting plan. That plan is unfair and regressive. This week Irish Rural Link joined a long list of organisations, including St. Vincent de Paul, Social Justice Ireland, Friends of the Earth, the Irish Heart Foundation, and Sinn Féin, that have highlighted the need for a...

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate: Telecommunications Services (25 Nov 2020)

Darren O'Rourke: ...had to raise. As I said, I appreciate that Covid is a particular challenge but I do not accept that as an excuse from Eir or any other provider because some of these issues have been around since long before Covid-19. Eir came before the committee today and apologised for the service and promised a better future, but we have been listening to those promises for a long time and I, for...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Cost of Living Issues (2 Jun 2022)

Darren O'Rourke: There were price rises again yesterday and we can expect the future to look the same. The Minister knows better than most that the price of a therm of gas was approximately 40 cent for a long time but there is a new normal upon us now, and estimations are that it will level off somewhere in the region of €2.50. There is a huge difference between 40 cent and €2.50. While there...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport: Road Traffic and Roads Bill 2021, and Disability and Transport: Discussion (19 Jan 2022)

Darren O'Rourke: ...towards the need for enforcement. Other issues were the standing down of the board of the Disabled Drivers Medical Board of Appeal and the issue around primary medical certificates. This goes back a long time. There have been issues about definitions and criteria, as well as the exclusion of individuals from those schemes. Will each of our guests comment on their sense of those changes...

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate: Wind Energy Generation (6 Dec 2023)

Darren O'Rourke: This report is appropriately entitled Act Now. The Minister, Deputy Ryan, is at COP28, engaging in diplomatic efforts on climate change but there is a long way to go there, as we can see from the strength of the fossil fuel lobby. At home, the path is very clear on renewables, albeit not so much in other areas. It is very clear that we have the tools, the know how and the ability to...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Climate Action Plan 2023: Discussion (Resumed) (22 Feb 2024)

Darren O'Rourke: ..., which is appropriate, but it is a really important piece of infrastructure for safety reasons. I welcome the funding and commend those who have campaigned in relation to the project for so long. I merely make that point. The Minister references that he has instructed the Department to reassess policy pathways. A significant part of what we are here to do is to look at progress, but...

Financial Resolutions 2023 - Financial Resolution No. 1: Mineral Oil Tax (10 Oct 2023)

Darren O'Rourke: I support the Sinn Féin amendment. This hike in carbon tax is a deeply regressive move. The Government has played with words and spun very significantly about the carbon tax for far too long. We need to state clearly that it is just the increases and not all of the carbon taxes that are ring-fenced. Therefore, a very significant amount of carbon tax that is raised goes into the...