Results 821-840 of 4,726 for speaker:Malcolm Noonan

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Local Authorities (16 Nov 2021)

Malcolm Noonan: At the current time there are five biodiversity officers employed in the following local authorities: - Fingal County Council - Wexford County Council - Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council - Dublin City Council - Kerry County Council Under section 159 of the Local Government Act 2001, each Chief Executive is responsible for the staffing and organisational arrangements necessary for...

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (17 Nov 2021)

Malcolm Noonan: I am happy to take that question from the Deputy. The report from the horticultural peat working group has been sent to me and I have sent it on to the relevant Ministers. A number of recommendations will go to Government for consideration. I will not get into the detail of these here today but I welcome the work that has been put into this and it does offer some possible solutions. As I...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Electoral Process (17 Nov 2021)

Malcolm Noonan: Electoral law provides that a person of unsound mind is disqualified from seeking election to the Dáil or European Parliament and from membership of Seanad Éireann. This provision was to have been repealed by the Disability (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2016. However, that Bill lapsed with the dissolution of the last Dáil. The Assisted Decision-Making (Capacity)...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: National Parks (18 Nov 2021)

Malcolm Noonan: I am pleased to inform the Deputy that there is absolutely no substance to the recent claims that married couples are not permitted to take their photos in Killarney National Park. There has been no change of policy introduced in respect of the treatment of commercial photography in the National Park. Photography by the general public and amateur wildlife photography is permitted within the...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Electoral Process (18 Nov 2021)

Malcolm Noonan: The Programme for Government - Our Shared Futurecommits to a broad range of electoral reforms including a commitment to the modernisation of voter registration. The modernisation includes the introduction of rolling registration; the simplification of forms and processes; the gradual roll-out of an online option for registration; a single, national database within which Local Authorities...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Horticulture Sector (18 Nov 2021)

Malcolm Noonan: My statutory remit and responsibility as Minister does not include regulation of the harvesting or supply of horticultural peat. However, to assist in addressing the important issues around horticultural peat for domestic purposes, I set up an Independent Working Group under the Chair of Dr. Munoo Prasad. The potential of alternatives to the use of peat moss in the horticultural industry was...

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate: Legislative Programme (24 Nov 2021)

Malcolm Noonan: Ba mhaith liom buíochas a ghabháil leis na Teachtaí as ucht an cheist seo. I thank the Deputies for raising this and I hope it will help expedite matters. However, there are some complexities which I will try to outline. The principal purpose of the Wildlife (Amendment) Bill, as initiated, was to provide for review of raised bog habitats, the making, amendment and...

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate: Legislative Programme (24 Nov 2021)

Malcolm Noonan: I would be more than happy to meet the Deputies to try to expedite this. As I said in my opening statement, it is our priority to try and get this through. We need to try to work through the complexities to resolve it. I believe we discussed it informally shortly after the Government was formed. I had a number of meetings with Senator Higgins to try and move it along. I assure the...

Seanad: Residential Tenancies (Amendment) (No. 2) Bill 2021: Committee Stage (Resumed) (24 Nov 2021)

Malcolm Noonan: No, it is okay.

Seanad: Residential Tenancies (Amendment) (No. 2) Bill 2021: Committee Stage (Resumed) (24 Nov 2021)

Malcolm Noonan: This amendment, if passed, will insert a new section 6 into the Bill to provide for consequential amendments to the Residential Tenancies Acts to reflect the provisions of section 5 of the Bill, as now amended. The proposed new section 6(1)(a) inserts a substitute section 29 of the principal Act to define a Part 4 tenancy. For the purposes of the Residential Tenancies Acts, each of the...

Seanad: Residential Tenancies (Amendment) (No. 2) Bill 2021: Committee Stage (Resumed) (24 Nov 2021)

Malcolm Noonan: Amendment No. 18 seeks to amend section 128 of the Act of 2004 to include the amount of rent payable under a tenancy in the published register. This proposal was debated previously during the passage of the Residential Tenancies (Amendment) Act 2019 and during Private Members' time. Section 29 of the 2019 Act amends section 151 of the principal Act to require the Minister to request the RTB...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: United Nations (23 Nov 2021)

Malcolm Noonan: The Tentative List is an inventory or list of properties which have potential to demonstrate Outstanding Universal Value (OUV) and therefore considered suitable for nomination to the World Heritage List. To have OUV a property must be so exceptional for present and future generations so as to transcend national boundaries. Ireland’s current Tentative List of World Heritage Properties...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Departmental Bodies (23 Nov 2021)

Malcolm Noonan: My statutory remit and responsibility as Minister does not include regulation of the harvesting or supply of horticultural peat. However, to assist in addressing the important issues around horticultural peat for domestic purposes, I set up an Independent Working Group under the Chair of Dr. Munoo Prasad. The potential of alternatives to the use of peat moss in the horticultural industry was...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Departmental Funding (23 Nov 2021)

Malcolm Noonan: The eligibility criteria for the Community Monuments Fund are clearly laid out in the explanatory memorandum for the fund. The Community Monuments Fund provides funding for projects in relation to: (i) Archaeological Monuments that are included in the Record of Monuments and Places (RMP) under the National Monuments Act 1930 (as amended); (ii) Archaeological Monuments that are identified in...

Mother and Baby Institutions: Statements (25 Nov 2021)

Malcolm Noonan: Like other colleagues I put on record my sympathy for the survivors of mother and baby homes and county home institutions. The Minister, Deputy O'Gorman, has engaged extensively and very often on a one-to-one basis with survivors of mother and baby homes and these county home institutions. He did this, listening with empathy and compassion, to ensure he and his officials could gain greater...

Seanad: Residential Tenancies (Amendment) (No. 2) Bill 2021: Report and Final Stages (25 Nov 2021)

Malcolm Noonan: I cannot accept amendments Nos. 1 or 2. I am aware that there are similar motivations behind both. Having listened to Senator Warfield yesterday and Senator Higgins today, there is probably a little confusion on the subject, so I will try to clarify matters. Section 19 of the Residential Tenancies Act provides for rent settings at the commencement and during a tenancy. The amendments...

Seanad: Residential Tenancies (Amendment) (No. 2) Bill 2021: Report and Final Stages (25 Nov 2021)

Malcolm Noonan: On a general point, as I have outlined there are significant protections there within the RPZ. The Senator will appreciate bringing a property up to a significant BER as required under regulations would offer a greater level of thermal comfort for tenants and represent a cost saving for them with respect to their energy bills. As I have outlined there are significant protections there.

Seanad: Residential Tenancies (Amendment) (No. 2) Bill 2021: Report and Final Stages (25 Nov 2021)

Malcolm Noonan: While acknowledging the intent of this amendment, I am not in a position to accept it. The established practice in the residential rental market, in accordance with section 19(1) of the principal Act, is for a landlord to set a rent that is no greater than the prevailing market rent for a particular tenancy. Section 24 of the principal Act defines market rent in terms of a tenancy of a...

Seanad: Residential Tenancies (Amendment) (No. 2) Bill 2021: Report and Final Stages (25 Nov 2021)

Malcolm Noonan: I recognise the points, which were well made by the Senator. It is difficult for the tenants. However, the RTB has powers to investigate and sanction landlords. The Minister’s intent in this Bill is to recalibrate the power imbalance the Senator is talking about between tenant and landlord. That is the intent here. The focus so far is on using their sanctioned power, rather than...

Seanad: Residential Tenancies (Amendment) (No. 2) Bill 2021: Report and Final Stages (25 Nov 2021)

Malcolm Noonan: Unfortunately, I cannot accept amendment No. 4. In addition to the new offences relating to unlawful rent setting in rent pressure zones, provided under the Residential Tenancies (Amendment) Act 2019, in respect of which the RTB can carry out prosecutions, the RTB was given additional functions in the form of its enhanced powers of investigation and sanctioning. Part 7A of the Residential...