Results 9,321-9,340 of 11,861 for speaker:Brian Hayes

Seanad: Fiscal Responsibility Bill 2012: Committee and Remaining Stages (20 Nov 2012)

Brian Hayes: I thank the Senators for their very constructive engagement on the Bill. The Minister for Finance was in the House during the Second Stage debate. I thank Senators for allowing the Bill to progress this evening by agreeing to take all Stages. I thank all of the Senators who contributed and in particular those who tabled insightful amendments. We are entering a new era of fiscal...

Other Questions: National Lottery (21 Nov 2012)

Brian Hayes: Deputy Broughan might be leader of the Labour Party.

Other Questions: National Procurement Service (21 Nov 2012)

Brian Hayes: The National Procurement Service, NPS, was established in April 2009 on foot of a Government decision assigning responsibility for procurement to the Minister of State at the Department of Finance with special responsibility for the Office of Public Works. All functions of the former Government Supplies Agency were subsumed into this newly established unit. The NPS is tasked with...

Other Questions: National Procurement Service (21 Nov 2012)

Brian Hayes: The Deputy is correct, we have ambitious targets for procurement. If we are to reduce public expenditure, public sector procurement has a key role. A recent report from Accenture, which the Government accepted, shows that over a three year period between €250 million and €630 million can be saved by better public procurement. What has happened to date, and I believe I mentioned...

Other Questions: National Procurement Service (21 Nov 2012)

Brian Hayes: I will organise the meeting for the Deputy.

Other Questions: Departmental Expenditure (21 Nov 2012)

Brian Hayes: We will send Deputy McDonald a copy.

Topical Issue Debate: Mortgage Interest Relief (21 Nov 2012)

Brian Hayes: I thank the Deputy for raising this matter. This is a matter for the Revenue Commissioners, who are responsible for the administration of mortgage interest relief through the tax relief at source system. The Minister for Finance made a commitment in his budget speech of December 2011 concerning a new 30% rate of tax relief on interest paid that would apply to first-time buyers who took out...

Topical Issue Debate: Mortgage Interest Relief (21 Nov 2012)

Brian Hayes: This is a matter of genuine concern. The idea this House, through a financial statement by the Minister for Finance, would provide for additional mortgage interest relief for a group of people who bought at the height of the boom but that it would not be passed on to them because of some IT difficulties is an issue of concern. I spoke to the Minister for Finance about the matter and he will...

Written Answers — Department of Public Expenditure and Reform: State Properties (21 Nov 2012)

Brian Hayes: The Commissioners of Public Works have been pursuing a twin track approach to achieving cost savings and efficiencies in the Civil Service office accommodation portfolio since 2008, with particular focus on central Dublin properties where the greatest savings and efficiencies are achievable. Reduction of the annual rental bill and reduction in the overall property footprint occupied by the...

Written Answers — Department of Public Expenditure and Reform: Flood Prevention Measures (21 Nov 2012)

Brian Hayes: The River Shannon Catchment Flood Risk Assessment and Management (CFRAM) project is the core strategy for addressing flood risk in the Shannon Basin. The Shannon CFRAM involves an extensive surveying and modelling exercise which is underway at present and it will look at all options for dealing with areas of significant flood risk. The objective of this exercise is to ensure that all...

Topical Issue Debate: Vehicle Registration (22 Nov 2012)

Brian Hayes: I thank Deputy Hannigan for bringing this matter to the attention of the House and for rightly highlighting the importance of the motor industry to the economic recovery of this country and some of the difficulties it is going through. As the Deputy said, the Minister for Finance, Deputy Noonan, indicated in last year's budget that he would review all of the issues surrounding vehicle...

Topical Issue Debate: Vehicle Registration (22 Nov 2012)

Brian Hayes: The Minister for Finance is fully aware of the stress of the motor industry in Ireland. He also recognises, as he said in the Budget Statement last year, that the way motor tax is currently levied gives an enormous bias towards top end, low CO2 cars. That will have to be balanced out. His announcements in the budget concerning the way in which the tax issue will be resolved will not be a...

Written Answers — Department of Public Expenditure and Reform: State Property (22 Nov 2012)

Brian Hayes: The Office of Public Work's property portfolio consists of approximately 2,200 buildings, both owned and leased. Of these, some 60% are State owned. Currently there are approximately 100 vacant State owned buildings in the portfolio. Of these, 47 are former Garda stations and the rest comprise mainly former custom posts, coastguard stations and sundry other properties. A number of these...

Written Answers — Department of Public Expenditure and Reform: State Property (22 Nov 2012)

Brian Hayes: I refer to previous representations by the Deputy in relation to the proposal that this Garda station might be available for community use. The Office of Public Works (OPW) have requested, through the Deputy, that the Scouts Group would contact the relevant officer in the OPW with a view to identifying the potential use of this Garda station under licence. To-date, this office has not...

Written Answers — Department of Public Expenditure and Reform: Departmental Bodies (27 Nov 2012)

Brian Hayes: The upgrade to the eTenders website was launched on Monday 12 November. Even allowing for the trebling of the server capacity for the initial days following the launch, the volume of users accessing the system caused a delay in the server response times. Some incorrect server settings were also detected that day. These access and response issues were resolved that day and have not arisen...

Credit Union Bill 2012: Report Stage (Resumed) and Final Stages (28 Nov 2012)

Brian Hayes: I thank Deputy Doherty for his remarks. I have been following the very constructive debate that has been taking place in the House and I hope that my entrance onto the pitch does not stale matters at this late juncture. I am replying to amendments Nos. 6, 8, 9 and 10 and will go through the issues raised by the Deputies. Deputy Doherty moved amendment No. 6; Deputy Boyd Barrett tabled...

Credit Union Bill 2012: Report Stage (Resumed) and Final Stages (28 Nov 2012)

Brian Hayes: On the question of investment, the Government accepts that the credit union movement has always been a key component of local investment. It more than any other financial institution has its eyes and ears on the ground. It knows who needs funds and who needs to be supported and is in a perfect position to make the call on these needs. The model of prudential judgment shown by credit unions...

Credit Union Bill 2012: Report Stage (Resumed) and Final Stages (28 Nov 2012)

Brian Hayes: The Deputy is referring to State-guaranteed projects.

Credit Union Bill 2012: Report Stage (Resumed) and Final Stages (28 Nov 2012)

Brian Hayes: They are all being discussed together now.

Credit Union Bill 2012: Report Stage (Resumed) and Final Stages (28 Nov 2012)

Brian Hayes: I have nothing else to say. We will consider the matter in due course. If we are to put this into primary legislation, we will need the representative organisations to buy into it. That support is not there currently, but that is not to say it could not happen in the future. If the organisations express a unanimous view, or a near-unanimous view, the question of whether this should be...