Results 1,081-1,100 of 4,773 for speaker:Paudie Coffey

Seanad: Planning and Development (Amendment) Bill 2009 [Seanad Bill amended by the Dáil]: Report and Final Stages (14 Jul 2010)

Paudie Coffey: None of the one-off houses is empty.

Seanad: Planning and Development (Amendment) Bill 2009 [Seanad Bill amended by the Dáil]: Report and Final Stages (14 Jul 2010)

Paudie Coffey: They are not empty.

Seanad: Planning and Development (Amendment) Bill 2009 [Seanad Bill amended by the Dáil]: Report and Final Stages (14 Jul 2010)

Paudie Coffey: I thank the Minister of State for outlining a brief explanation of these amendments. On Second Stage and Committee Stage we had good engagement on this area, and the whole question of the making of development plans, variation of plans including local area plans etc. I can see the Minister of State's reasoning. He is trying to achieve a consistency across the whole of Ireland, but our...

Seanad: Planning and Development (Amendment) Bill 2009 [Seanad Bill amended by the Dáil]: Report and Final Stages (14 Jul 2010)

Paudie Coffey: Yes, it will just create a bland structure. The Minister of State should consider how the legislation's provisions will trickle down through the planning system. The regional plan for an area or county will limit the potential for any village in it to exploit its full agricultural, manufacturing or cultural history. While I agree with the Minister of State that we need to strike the right...

Seanad: Planning and Development (Amendment) Bill 2009 [Seanad Bill amended by the Dáil]: Report and Final Stages (14 Jul 2010)

Paudie Coffey: There was no planning in those days.

Seanad: Planning and Development (Amendment) Bill 2009 [Seanad Bill amended by the Dáil]: Report and Final Stages (14 Jul 2010)

Paudie Coffey: The Quakers planned it.

Seanad: Planning and Development (Amendment) Bill 2009 [Seanad Bill amended by the Dáil]: Report and Final Stages (14 Jul 2010)

Paudie Coffey: Subject to technical and environmental requirements.

Seanad: Planning and Development (Amendment) Bill 2009 [Seanad Bill amended by the Dáil]: Report and Final Stages (14 Jul 2010)

Paudie Coffey: That is welcome.

Seanad: Planning and Development (Amendment) Bill 2009 [Seanad Bill amended by the Dáil]: Report and Final Stages (14 Jul 2010)

Paudie Coffey: Is that a biased view?

Seanad: Planning and Development (Amendment) Bill 2009 [Seanad Bill amended by the Dáil]: Report and Final Stages (14 Jul 2010)

Paudie Coffey: I refer to amendment No. 75 which requires environmental impact assessments for developments in respect of the impact they might have on human beings, flora and fauna, soil, water, air, climate, the landscape, material assets and cultural heritage, and the interaction between the factors mentioned in section 171A of the principal Act. I am aware of several circumstances where air quality in...

Seanad: Planning and Development (Amendment) Bill 2009 [Seanad Bill amended by the Dáil]: Report and Final Stages (14 Jul 2010)

Paudie Coffey: These amendments have wide implications. The Minister of State may correct me if I am wrong but the thrust of this change in the law is due partly to the legacy of incomplete developments. It will afford some leeway to developers or NAMA to ensure over time that developments which have been commenced but not finished are given appropriate time for completion. A balanced view would suggest...

Seanad: Planning and Development (Amendment) Bill 2009 [Seanad Bill amended by the Dáil]: Report and Final Stages (14 Jul 2010)

Paudie Coffey: The Minister of State referred to county development plans currently being revised. Where dezoning of lands for which planning permission has been granted occurs, will local authority members be exposed to challenges in the court? He may be unable to reply to that question. However, this is a concern for local authorities. If county and city development plans are subject to revision, we...

Seanad: Planning and Development (Amendment) Bill 2009 [Seanad Bill amended by the Dáil]: Report and Final Stages (14 Jul 2010)

Paudie Coffey: I thank the Minister of State for that information. I referred to the taking in charge of estates earlier but the bonds local authorities have for developments cannot be drawn down until a permission expires. That has a serious impact on the taking in charge of estates. For example, if 80% of an estate is completed and residents are trying to put pressure on the local authority to enforce...

Seanad: Planning and Development (Amendment) Bill 2009 [Seanad Bill amended by the Dáil]: Report and Final Stages (14 Jul 2010)

Paudie Coffey: I acknowledge the efforts being made to make An Bord Pleanála more efficient. In the past there have been backlogs and delays, but that may have been due to the amount of development taking place. I have no problem with legislation that will improve efficiency and the decision making process within the board. However, we in the Fine Gael Party think it a retrograde step to reduce the...

Seanad: Planning and Development (Amendment) Bill 2009 [Seanad Bill amended by the Dáil]: Report and Final Stages (14 Jul 2010)

Paudie Coffey: Amendments Nos. 91 and 92, I presume.

Seanad: Order of Business. (29 Sep 2010)

Paudie Coffey: We will be in government soon.

Seanad: Order of Business. (29 Sep 2010)

Paudie Coffey: As we struggle on a daily basis to come to terms with the present banking and economic crisis, we see the real casualties, to whom Senator O'Reilly referred. They are the people who cannot pay day-to-day bills such as electricity and fuel bills while millions of euro are being spent on special advisors to the Government, on banking and on legal mechanisms - on advice that seems to be...

Seanad: End of Life Care: Motion (29 Sep 2010)

Paudie Coffey: I wish to share time with Senator Norris.

Seanad: End of Life Care: Motion (29 Sep 2010)

Paudie Coffey: I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Áine Brady, to the House for what is an important debate. I compliment Senator Mullen on proposing the motion and bringing the subject matter into the public arena for debate by parliamentarians and national representatives. As other speakers have said, end-of-life matters are very emotive, personal and sensitive. Many families have been devastated...

Seanad: Order of Business. (6 Oct 2010)

Paudie Coffey: The net result of the litany of waste relating to many State organisations such as the HSE is that services cannot be accessed by the most vulnerable who need them. An example of this is the fact that cystic fibrosis sufferers have been promised adequate facilities, on a national basis, to meet their needs. The Government and the HSE have consistently failed to meet those needs. It is a...