Results 921-940 of 950 for speaker:Johnny Guirke
- Joint Committee on Social Protection, Rural and Community Development: Embracing Ireland's Outdoors - National Outdoor Recreation Strategy 2023-2027: Discussion (24 Sep 2025)
Johnny Guirke: I have a quick question. First, are the witnesses involved in RRDF funding?
- Joint Committee on Social Protection, Rural and Community Development: Embracing Ireland's Outdoors - National Outdoor Recreation Strategy 2023-2027: Discussion (24 Sep 2025)
Johnny Guirke: The rural regeneration and development programme.
- Joint Committee on Social Protection, Rural and Community Development: Embracing Ireland's Outdoors - National Outdoor Recreation Strategy 2023-2027: Discussion (24 Sep 2025)
Johnny Guirke: In the last round of the RRDF funding, the then Minister, Heather Humphreys, announced €164 million. She gave her own constituency of Cavan-Monaghan €32 million. I am talking about an imbalance in funding. County Meath, with a population of more than Cavan and Monaghan combined, got zero out of the €164 million. It had three projects in, totalling less than €10...
- Joint Committee on Social Protection, Rural and Community Development: Embracing Ireland's Outdoors - National Outdoor Recreation Strategy 2023-2027: Discussion (24 Sep 2025)
Johnny Guirke: Well, there they are.
- Joint Committee on Social Protection, Rural and Community Development: Embracing Ireland's Outdoors - National Outdoor Recreation Strategy 2023-2027: Discussion (24 Sep 2025)
Johnny Guirke: I will give them to the witness if he wants. I will tell him the three projects.
- Joint Committee on Social Protection, Rural and Community Development: Embracing Ireland's Outdoors - National Outdoor Recreation Strategy 2023-2027: Discussion (24 Sep 2025)
Johnny Guirke: When is the next round of major funding and how much money is going to be allocated this year to the capital projects, that is, the major projects?
- Joint Committee on Social Protection, Rural and Community Development: Embracing Ireland's Outdoors - National Outdoor Recreation Strategy 2023-2027: Discussion (24 Sep 2025)
Johnny Guirke: This is outdoor. The rural recreation and development fund-----
- Joint Committee on Social Protection, Rural and Community Development: Embracing Ireland's Outdoors - National Outdoor Recreation Strategy 2023-2027: Discussion (24 Sep 2025)
Johnny Guirke: Well, this man said he represented-----
- Joint Committee on Social Protection, Rural and Community Development: Embracing Ireland's Outdoors - National Outdoor Recreation Strategy 2023-2027: Discussion (24 Sep 2025)
Johnny Guirke: I am not here to try to catch anyone out. I am here about the imbalance of funding to the people I represent. To be honest, I thought it was shocking. County Meath was one of only two counties out of a €164 million and I will leave it at that. It had three projects which were shovel-ready and ready to go and not one of them was funded. Mr. O'Brien said there are strict criteria....
- Joint Committee on Social Protection, Rural and Community Development: Embracing Ireland's Outdoors - National Outdoor Recreation Strategy 2023-2027: Discussion (24 Sep 2025)
Johnny Guirke: Towns and villages across Ireland that would benefit from walking trails and new footpaths that would create loop walks for people to use are currently disadvantaged due to the strict criteria. Do all applications go through the local authority or do some of them go through the community groups? I will give an example. One town I represent in Meath West was refused measure 1 of the outdoor...
- Joint Committee on Social Protection, Rural and Community Development: Embracing Ireland's Outdoors - National Outdoor Recreation Strategy 2023-2027: Discussion (24 Sep 2025)
Johnny Guirke: No, that is grand thank you.
- Joint Committee on Social Protection, Rural and Community Development: Special Reports and Reviews on Social Protection and Rural Development Issues: European Court of Auditors (1 Oct 2025)
Johnny Guirke: I thank the witnesses for coming before the committee and giving us a report. I have a lot to learn and if I go off track I ask the witnesses to bring me back. All European countries are speaking about military spending at present. Mr. Murphy said we have to contribute to the European Union. Do we have any idea what we are contributing at present or what we will have to contribute in...
- Joint Committee on Social Protection, Rural and Community Development: Special Reports and Reviews on Social Protection and Rural Development Issues: European Court of Auditors (1 Oct 2025)
Johnny Guirke: If countries invest in military spending would the agricultural sector be the first to be hit with regard to funding coming from Europe? Farmers tell us they depend on it. Somebody will pay for it.
- Joint Committee on Social Protection, Rural and Community Development: Special Reports and Reviews on Social Protection and Rural Development Issues: European Court of Auditors (1 Oct 2025)
Johnny Guirke: No.
- Joint Committee on Social Protection, Rural and Community Development: Special Reports and Reviews on Social Protection and Rural Development Issues: European Court of Auditors (1 Oct 2025)
Johnny Guirke: It would not necessarily hurt services in a particular country if this money can be borrowed. Countries are using their own money to build up these defences. Is this what Mr. Murphy is saying?
- Joint Committee on Social Protection, Rural and Community Development: Special Reports and Reviews on Social Protection and Rural Development Issues: European Court of Auditors (1 Oct 2025)
Johnny Guirke: Which would hurt services in that country.
- Joint Committee on Social Protection, Rural and Community Development: Special Reports and Reviews on Social Protection and Rural Development Issues: European Court of Auditors (1 Oct 2025)
Johnny Guirke: What evidence does the report present on the real impact on older people and people in poverty? Mr. Murphy touched on it earlier with regard to the population getting older. Would he recommend that budgets should spend more on taking people out of poverty then on super junior Ministers?
- Joint Committee on Social Protection, Rural and Community Development: Special Reports and Reviews on Social Protection and Rural Development Issues: European Court of Auditors (1 Oct 2025)
Johnny Guirke: I agree with Senator Rabbitte that the paperwork turns a lot of people off applying for schemes, especially LEADER and stuff like that. When they do get the funding, for example, someone building a community centre, it falls way short. An awful lot of this money is not even used. If there were more money for a particular project, we would see an awful lot more of it being drawn down. I...
- Joint Committee on Social Protection, Rural and Community Development: Special Reports and Reviews on Social Protection and Rural Development Issues: European Court of Auditors (1 Oct 2025)
Johnny Guirke: Of the €2.2 billion Ireland drew down, Mr. Murphy said €1 billion was for farming. Is that right?
- Joint Committee on Social Protection, Rural and Community Development: Special Reports and Reviews on Social Protection and Rural Development Issues: European Court of Auditors (1 Oct 2025)
Johnny Guirke: It was €1.5 billion for farming, so only €700 million was left. Where did that go?