Results 8,441-8,460 of 9,169 for speaker:Pádraig Mac Lochlainn

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Defective Concrete Blocks: Discussion (Resumed) (8 May 2024)

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn: Homeowners from Mayo, Clare and Donegal recently gave evidence to the housing committee and clearly articulated that, unfortunately, this scheme is going to fall short for most homeowners. We are facing an outcome whereby only those who have significant sums will be able to afford to access the scheme, because what they are doing is taking out the foundations and rebuilding their homes to...

Written Answers — Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Passport Services (8 May 2024)

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn: 67. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if a child's first-time passport (details supplied) will be processed in time for travel on 5 May 2024; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20270/24]

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Departmental Budgets (8 May 2024)

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn: 469. To ask the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth if he will make available the total budgeted amount allocated to each CDNT area in County Donegal (details supplied) from 1 January 2023 to 31 December 2023; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20685/24]

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Departmental Budgets (8 May 2024)

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn: 470. To ask the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth if he will make available the total expenditure of the allocated budget spent for each children's disability network team, CDNT, area in County Donegal (details supplied) from 1 January to 31 December 2023; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20686/24]

Written Answers — Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth: Disability Services (8 May 2024)

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn: 471. To ask the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the current staff vacancy rates in each of the CDNT areas in Donegal; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20687/24]

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Defective Building Materials (9 May 2024)

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn: 206. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government when the draft regulations pertaining to the defective concrete block scheme for social housing remediation works will be adopted and published (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21022/24]

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Ukraine War (9 May 2024)

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn: 230. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality if she and her Department will engage with the UK authorities to examine if an exemption could be allowed for Ukrainian refugee children based in Donegal and other Border counties to travel across the Border into Northern Ireland to avail of amenities such as swimming, cinemas and school tours. [21070/24]

Written Answers — Department of Justice and Equality: Health Services Staff (9 May 2024)

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn: 239. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality if she has engaged with her colleague the Minister for Foreign Affairs on what can be done to assist medical professionals working in our health service who have family back home in Sudan, by way of humanitarian assistance; and if she has received requests for humanitarian visas for family members of these medical...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Defective Concrete Blocks: Discussion (Resumed) (14 May 2024)

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn: We have plenty of time anyway, do we not? We have until 6 o'clock. My first question is to Michael McGarvey of Donegal County Council. As a TD for Donegal I have worked with Michael for years. I want to clarify a comment that was made earlier. I am getting messages and people are very angry. I do not think it is truly representative of Mr. McGarvey's view so I am going to put it again....

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Defective Concrete Blocks: Discussion (Resumed) (14 May 2024)

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn: Would Mr. McGarvey accept as a Donegal man who lives in the county and talks to people every day that the reality is that very large numbers, I would say the substantial majority of homeowners, cannot access the scheme because it will cost them tens of thousands of euro to do so. Would he accept there is a big discrepancy and that is why there were huge numbers at those public meetings?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Defective Concrete Blocks: Discussion (Resumed) (14 May 2024)

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn: With respect, the comment was made earlier about lifestyle reasons.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Defective Concrete Blocks: Discussion (Resumed) (14 May 2024)

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn: That is why I am asking Mr. McGarvey to clarify because I know him and have worked with him and I do not think that is his view. I think he and the officials from Donegal County Council I work with are implementing the scheme as it is. They are not defending the scheme and they are not saying people are excluded from the scheme for reasons of their own choice.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Defective Concrete Blocks: Discussion (Resumed) (14 May 2024)

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn: That is not my experience. I do not think it is Mr. McGarvey's either.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Defective Concrete Blocks: Discussion (Resumed) (14 May 2024)

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn: I appreciate that because I would not believe that to be Mr. McGarvey's view from conversations we have on a professional basis. I appreciate his clarifying that. I do not think it is the view of Donegal County Council. I think it is dealing with the reality on the ground of a Government scheme it has to implement. It is very important we hear people who are excluded from the scheme in...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Defective Concrete Blocks: Discussion (Resumed) (14 May 2024)

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn: Was it not November 2021? That is what is on the Dáil record.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Defective Concrete Blocks: Discussion (Resumed) (14 May 2024)

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn: In terms of the original standard the NSAI panel put forward, which is the existing standard IS 465, would Ms Larkin accept it was not based on internationally peer-researched scientific evidence but was essentially a desktop study?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Defective Concrete Blocks: Discussion (Resumed) (14 May 2024)

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn: Is Ms Larkin comfortable that this is, in the words of the Tánaiste, Deputy Micheál Martin, a multi-billion euro redress scheme, the biggest redress scheme in the history of the State, and yet it is based on a desktop study?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Defective Concrete Blocks: Discussion (Resumed) (14 May 2024)

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn: Does Ms Larkin think it is acceptable there are engineers affiliated to Engineers Ireland who work with the Housing Agency who are overruling other engineers affiliated to Engineers Ireland because they are working on a desktop study rather than internationally peer-researched evidence?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Defective Concrete Blocks: Discussion (Resumed) (14 May 2024)

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn: I will have more questions later on.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Defective Concrete Blocks: Discussion (Resumed) (14 May 2024)

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn: In July 2022, almost two years ago now, Dr. Andreas Leemann, a recognised international expert on concrete products, testified before this committee on his findings on testing of blocks. He talked about iron sulphate attacks and pyrrhotite as being the dominant cause. I would have put those questions to the witnesses at that time. Can the National Standards Authority of Ireland confirm...