Results 1,001-1,020 of 1,773 for speaker:Lynn Boylan

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Energy Prices: Discussion (4 Oct 2022)

Lynn Boylan: ESB Networks is off the hook so. I think my next question does fall into ESB Network's remit. It relates to us scaling up to the challenge to meet the renewable targets. It does create a significant opportunity for employment but, equally, we know we have skills shortages across the board and the CRU and EirGrid seem to have problems recruiting people. Is it a similar situation for ESB...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Energy Prices: Discussion (4 Oct 2022)

Lynn Boylan: But does Mr. Tarrant think the Ministers are aware of what we need to do either to encourage the recruitment of people to come into the country to take up those highly skilled roles, or to put in place third level courses? Are the dots joined up in terms of forecasting what we are going to need and investing in those skills and recruitment?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Energy Prices: Discussion (4 Oct 2022)

Lynn Boylan: So if Mr. Tarrant was the Minister, what would he do? What are the key things that need to happen given that he says more could be done?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Energy Prices: Discussion (4 Oct 2022)

Lynn Boylan: I thank Mr. Tarrant. I think I am out of time.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Energy Prices: Discussion (4 Oct 2022)

Lynn Boylan: I will bring this discussion back to a household level. The ESB Networks gave information to the Central Statistics Office saying that 10% of residential homes use less than 1,000 KW per hour, which is below the median of 3,658 KW per hour. The CSO has said that that is a good metric for looking at the number of vacant and holiday dwellings. Does Mr. Tarrant share the view of the CSO and...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Energy Prices: Discussion (4 Oct 2022)

Lynn Boylan: The CSO is an expert body and its view is that that metric would be good. For low users of electricity, there is a low usage charge, but 1,000 KW would be the line below which they would be classed as vacant or holiday homes. I will go back to the CSO if the witnesses will not take-----

Seanad: Road Traffic and Roads Bill 2021: Second Stage (6 Oct 2022)

Lynn Boylan: Tá áthas orm go bhfuil an deis agam labhairt sa díospóireacht seo. It is always good when we are all in agreement in the Chamber on what needs to be done and in welcoming legislation that will hopefully get us there. I welcome the measure that scramblers will be dealt with. Deputies Seán Crowe and Dessie Ellis were the first to table Private Members' Bills on that...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (11 Oct 2022)

Lynn Boylan: I want to put on record my condolences to the community of Creeslough. Everybody is heartsore looking at what happened over the weekend. I hope the community will be given all of the support they need in the years to come. They are in our thoughts. I will not get an opportunity to speak on the Private Members' motion on Iran tonight but I want to offer my support. It is very important...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Retrofitting Schemes: Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (11 Oct 2022)

Lynn Boylan: I want to pick up on a couple of issues previous speakers asked about. Deputy O'Rourke spoke about the attic insulation figures, and Deputies Bruton and Whitmore spoke about the idea of shallow retrofitting. Is it not true that attic insulation really fell off a cliff from 2011 to 2019? What was the rationale for that? Was it Government policy? Was it a change in the grants that were...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Retrofitting Schemes: Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (11 Oct 2022)

Lynn Boylan: I will ask one question before Mr. O'Mahony comes in. The SEAI noticed that this was happening and there was this drop-off in interest. Was anything being done at an SEAI level to ask whether we need to encourage people to continue to do this? If we had continued on the trajectory we were on in 2011, a significant number of emissions would have been saved had people continued to get their...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Retrofitting Schemes: Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (11 Oct 2022)

Lynn Boylan: The other issue I wish to raise concerns the changes to the energy efficiency obligation scheme. There is a move to these more complex, deep measures rather than looking at the more shallow measures. The hub controller is one measure that was brought to my attention. My understanding is that this is smart technology that actively integrates with the boiler. Two different analyses on the...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Retrofitting Schemes: Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (11 Oct 2022)

Lynn Boylan: I understand we want to get the deep retrofit but we are where we are, to use that awful phrase. People are really struggling to pay their bills. If there is a system that can reduce people's bills by 36% and it costs €300 or €400, and if we want to shift the energy efficiency obligation scheme away from that, are there short-term measures where we can ensure these households...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Retrofitting Schemes: Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (11 Oct 2022)

Lynn Boylan: I can give a bit of information, just to help Mr. Byrne. I understand it was a trial carried out by or run in association with the SEAI. It was one of the largest field trials ever conducted. That is the organisation that sells this product telling us that. However, it said the trial showed energy savings of 34.7%. That organisation got another economic evaluation which showed even...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Retrofitting Schemes: Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (11 Oct 2022)

Lynn Boylan: I will come back to attic insulation spending, the hub controller and pick up on the point that the SEAI does not collect data in respect of tenants. I know that in the spending review of the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform in 2020 and the social impact assessment, the Department flagged the fact that we are not collecting those types of data so we do not know whether we are...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Retrofitting Schemes: Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (11 Oct 2022)

Lynn Boylan: If we are shifting a considerable amount of public money to a demand-led scheme, we have information on those who are eligible. We are giving away public money in the form of grants. Are we collecting any data about the demographic of those households or their expenditure on energy?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Retrofitting Schemes: Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (11 Oct 2022)

Lynn Boylan: If we are giving public money to households surely we can ask them what the household income is and what their expenditure is on energy? We are giving them public money.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Retrofitting Schemes: Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (11 Oct 2022)

Lynn Boylan: Okay. The other question goes back to the attic insulation again. It is that same spending report. I think in 2011, €78.1 million was spent on energy efficiency and in 2015 it was €43 million, which is a 45% decrease based on my back-of-the-envelope figures. Mr. O'Mahony mentioned policy changes ten years ago. Was that a policy change to reduce the amount of expenditure on...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Retrofitting Schemes: Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (11 Oct 2022)

Lynn Boylan: We do not have a breakdown of what the authority spent the energy efficiency funds on. If the officials do have that, how much of the expenditure between 2011 and 2019 was on attic insulation? There was a 45% decrease and I am asking if it was a decrease in the allocation given to the authority by the Department or a decrease due to an underspend because people had shifted and gone in...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Retrofitting Schemes: Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (11 Oct 2022)

Lynn Boylan: Yes.