Results 10,121-10,140 of 15,805 for speaker:Michael Ring

Select Committee on Regional Development, Rural Affairs, Arts and the Gaeltacht: Estimates for Public Services 2016
Vote 33 - Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht (Revised) (5 Jul 2016)

Michael Ring: The Minister will deal with broadband and Leader. On the WDC, €5.6 million in seed capital funding is available. I will listen to the commission's proposals next week. I have received a submission and I will not respond until I meet the representatives next week to discuss their proposals. The commission has played a major role in the development of the west and I will give serious...

Select Committee on Regional Development, Rural Affairs, Arts and the Gaeltacht: Estimates for Public Services 2016
Vote 33 - Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht (Revised) (5 Jul 2016)

Michael Ring: Last week I had a fruitful meeting with Mr. Bobby Kerr of the Post Office Network Business Development Group which recently produced an excellent report. He told us that the group intended to finish its work by October this year. A number of recommendations will be made to the Government soon. We are looking at network renewal, the basic payment and motor tax issues. These are measures...

Select Committee on Regional Development, Rural Affairs, Arts and the Gaeltacht: Estimates for Public Services 2016
Vote 33 - Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht (Revised) (5 Jul 2016)

Michael Ring: There were eight post office closures in 2011; four in 2012; five in 2013; seven in 2014 and five in 2015. There were 54 closures in 2004; 46 in 2005; 47 in 2006 and 76 in 2007. There has, therefore, been a reduction in the number of post offices closing.

Select Committee on Regional Development, Rural Affairs, Arts and the Gaeltacht: Estimates for Public Services 2016
Vote 33 - Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht (Revised) (5 Jul 2016)

Michael Ring: Yes.

Select Committee on Regional Development, Rural Affairs, Arts and the Gaeltacht: Estimates for Public Services 2016
Vote 33 - Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht (Revised) (5 Jul 2016)

Michael Ring: No, I would not say they are being withheld.

Select Committee on Regional Development, Rural Affairs, Arts and the Gaeltacht: Estimates for Public Services 2016
Vote 33 - Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht (Revised) (5 Jul 2016)

Michael Ring: They will be. The Chairman must appreciate that this is a new Department and that a great deal of work is coming across our desks. I will meet them next week. I have proposals from them that I will deal with very shortly.

Select Committee on Regional Development, Rural Affairs, Arts and the Gaeltacht: Estimates for Public Services 2016
Vote 33 - Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht (Revised) (5 Jul 2016)

Michael Ring: I will take Deputy's question on the greenways and the Minister will take his question on the Leader programme.

Select Committee on Regional Development, Rural Affairs, Arts and the Gaeltacht: Estimates for Public Services 2016
Vote 33 - Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht (Revised) (5 Jul 2016)

Michael Ring: We talked about greenways earlier. I hope that people such as the Deputy and community groups would work with the local farmers to try to encourage them to make their land available. I do not like the compulsory purchase option but in some cases it might be necessary. The Deputy is quite correct about the CLÁR programme. In the past, the class two and three roads and even the local...

Select Committee on Regional Development, Rural Affairs, Arts and the Gaeltacht: Estimates for Public Services 2016
Vote 33 - Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht (Revised) (5 Jul 2016)

Michael Ring: It has been cut. There is no question about that.

Select Committee on Regional Development, Rural Affairs, Arts and the Gaeltacht: Estimates for Public Services 2016
Vote 33 - Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht (Revised) (5 Jul 2016)

Michael Ring: That was before the election. I remember it well.

Select Committee on Regional Development, Rural Affairs, Arts and the Gaeltacht: Estimates for Public Services 2016
Vote 33 - Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht (Revised) (5 Jul 2016)

Michael Ring: On rural post offices, there is a compensation scheme in place in other jurisdictions. It is something we have under consideration, but if we were to apply it, we would have to introduce very serious safeguards. It is something we are looking at.

Select Committee on Regional Development, Rural Affairs, Arts and the Gaeltacht: Estimates for Public Services 2016
Vote 33 - Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht (Revised) (5 Jul 2016)

Michael Ring: I will take the smaller issues relating to my portfolio. The local improvement scheme was suspended by people who did not have an understanding of rural Ireland and at least I fought to get it reopened. I was delighted to that it was reopened by the Department. I know we could not put in the amount of money that was required, but at least the scheme was reopened and local authorities now...

Select Committee on Regional Development, Rural Affairs, Arts and the Gaeltacht: Estimates for Public Services 2016
Vote 33 - Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht (Revised) (5 Jul 2016)

Michael Ring: There were post offices closed in my area and many people were very concerned about that. The pity was that the locals were not using them. Perhaps this committee and the Department should examine, in the new year, ways of putting a campaign together to encourage people to use local post offices. If we do not use them, we lose them. We certainly need people to be able to use them.

Select Committee on Regional Development, Rural Affairs, Arts and the Gaeltacht: Estimates for Public Services 2016
Vote 33 - Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht (Revised) (5 Jul 2016)

Michael Ring: There is no doubt that they have the best network and are in every corner of the country. We are examining services - for example, in respect of motor tax - that could be included. They should be doing that as well. We have a crisis with passports and I will ask the Department to examine the matter. It might not be simple because of the legalities involved. It is crazy that somebody from...

Select Committee on Regional Development, Rural Affairs, Arts and the Gaeltacht: Estimates for Public Services 2016
Vote 33 - Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht (Revised) (5 Jul 2016)

Michael Ring: That is true. They would be very popular very quickly.

Written Answers — Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht: Post Office Network (6 Jul 2016)

Michael Ring: It is Government policy that An Post should remain a strong, viable company in a position to provide a high quality postal service and maintain a national network of customer-focused post offices in the community. The post office network plays an important role in serving the needs of business and domestic customers alike. However, the postal sector is undergoing significant change, with...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Western Development Commission (7 Jul 2016)

Michael Ring: The Western Development Commission was established in 1997 as a response to the severe population decline of the west and it was put on a statutory basis in 1999 under the Western Development Commission Act 1998. The aim of the Western Development Commission is to promote, foster and encourage economic and social development in the western region, which covers counties Donegal, Leitrim,...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Western Development Commission (7 Jul 2016)

Michael Ring: Deputy Cullinane is quite correct in the question he has raised and it is a very valid point. In fairness to the last Government, the jobs forum was one of the very good things it did. The forum was effective and up to recently some 135,000 extra jobs were created in the State. There are black spots that remain to be examined at Government level. There are other agencies that also need...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Western Development Commission (7 Jul 2016)

Michael Ring: At the moment, in my own Department, this is a new area being set up. Of course we will look at ways of creating jobs in every part of the regions. However, to be honest, there are a lot of agencies out there now including State agencies such as IDA Ireland and the local employment offices. This is not really within my portfolio, it is more the jobs arena, but there are many State agencies...

Other Questions: Rural Recreation Policy (7 Jul 2016)

Michael Ring: I certainly will be trying to do what the Deputy did in the earlier years. We were in more difficult times in 2010, as the Deputy knows. The Deputy knows what we inherited in 2011. My Department’s walks scheme is currently operating on 39 trails supported by 1,908 landowners and is being managed by 16 local development companies around the country. The programme for a...