Results 13,941-13,960 of 21,588 for speaker:Denis Naughten

Other Questions: Broadband Service Provision (21 Nov 2017)

Denis Naughten: I assume from the question the Deputy is referring to premises that are adjacent to, but not included in, eir's ongoing rural deployment of broadband to 300,000 premises between now and the end of 2018. This roll-out by eir is an example of the ramping up of commercial investment by industry which has been stimulated by the Government's national...

Other Questions: Broadband Service Provision (21 Nov 2017)

Denis Naughten: First, I understand the frustration to which the Deputy refers. There are thousands of my own constituents who are in the exact same situation, whereby they are struggling with little or no coverage. Some of them are also quite close to fibre that has been already built out or that is planned to be built out. eir has decided to look at its build out plan to see if there are commercial...

Other Questions: Broadband Service Provision (21 Nov 2017)

Denis Naughten: I assure the Deputy that they are not being ignored and isolated. I am very conscious of each and every one of the 542,000 premises across the country. This is not just about sustaining existing jobs. There are also huge opportunities for new businesses to be created, not just with the provision of broadband. Broadband will only facilitate that. The new An Post parcel delivery and...

Other Questions: Broadband Service Provision (21 Nov 2017)

Denis Naughten: I have no objection either.

Other Questions: Electric Vehicles (21 Nov 2017)

Denis Naughten: Does the grouping of the questions mean that I have double the time to respond?

Other Questions: Electric Vehicles (21 Nov 2017)

Denis Naughten: I propose to take Questions Nos. 45 and 54 together. The ESB, through its eCars programme, has rolled out an extensive public network of charging points across Ireland with approximately 900 electric vehicle charge points. We have one of the more comprehensive charge point networks in Europe for a country of our size. The maintenance and repair of these points is an operational...

Other Questions: Electric Vehicles (21 Nov 2017)

Denis Naughten: To correct the record, the benefit-in-kind zero rate is for a minimum of three years, not one. The Deputy is right that this needs to be a minimum, and the hope and intention is to extend that timeframe. In the budget we have maintained the grant relief, which is among the best in Europe, and we are also committing to bringing in a grant for the installation of home charges, not just for...

Other Questions: Electric Vehicles (21 Nov 2017)

Denis Naughten: First, we have one charge point for every four cars in the country.

Other Questions: Electric Vehicles (21 Nov 2017)

Denis Naughten: We have 900 electric vehicle charge points across the country. I compliment the initiative by the Cathaoirleach of Roscommon County Council, Orla Leyden, and Roscommon County Council, which has put in place proper signage in regard to electric vehicles and parking spaces. I hope other local authorities will follow the example of Roscommon County Council. Of those 900 electric vehicle...

Other Questions: Electric Vehicles (21 Nov 2017)

Denis Naughten: With regard to home charging points, from 1 January a new grant scheme will be brought in. If someone buys a new car or second-hand car, he or she will get a grant for a home charging point. Every new car that has been purchased to date in this country has been able to avail of a home charging point but, from now on, it will be available not just for new purchases but for the purchase of a...

Other Questions: Electric Vehicles (21 Nov 2017)

Denis Naughten: To address an issue raised by Deputies Dooley and Stanley, next year we will support the public sector and commercial fleet trials of electric vehicles and car sharing. Turning to Deputy Dooley's point, technology has moved on. For the majority of people, the daily commute is far shorter than the car's charge. Among Nordic countries, for example, Nissan is discussing using excess...

Other Questions: Electric Vehicles (21 Nov 2017)

Denis Naughten: While we need to roll out infrastructure, we also need to upgrade existing infrastructure. This is all part of the process started by budget 2018. Range anxiety is beginning to disappear. For many people, a 200 km range is adequate to meet their daily commuting needs. Any household that has two cars should, on the purchase of a new car, convert one of them into an electric vehicle. We...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Energy Infrastructure (21 Nov 2017)

Denis Naughten: I can confirm that neither myself nor officials from my Department have had discussions with executives from Apple regarding the proposed data centre, or its energy supply source, in Athenry.  However my officials occasionally meet with IDA representatives and their client companies as part of routine engagement on wider energy policy developments. The level of interest from energy...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Waste Disposal Charges (21 Nov 2017)

Denis Naughten: The Government gave a commitment to consumers to carefully monitor the transition in the sector when introducing the measure to phase out flat fees for household waste collection. Accordingly, I established a Household Waste Collection Price Monitoring Group. Its role is to track the rates charged by waste collectors across the country as flat rate fees are being phased out. The...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Electricity Transmission Network (21 Nov 2017)

Denis Naughten: On 19 December 2016 An Bord Pleanála granted planning permission for the North-South Interconnector project in Ireland. The decision concluded a lengthy planning process which included an Oral Hearing completed over eleven weeks from March to May last year. The planning process for the section of the project in Northern Ireland is on-going following the conclusion of an oral...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Climate Change Policy (21 Nov 2017)

Denis Naughten: The  contributions by the members of the Citizens’ Assembly to this critical and urgent issue, which included consideration of a range of detailed presentations by technical experts in meetings over the course of two full weekends, have been welcomed by me and by the Government as a whole. I understand that the Citizens' Assembly must now communicate its report and...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Climate Change Policy (21 Nov 2017)

Denis Naughten: The 2014 National Policy Position on Climate Change and 2015 Energy White Paper include ambitious long-term commitments, respectively, to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 80% compared to 1990 levels and to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from the sector by between 80% and 95%  by 2050. As energy use and greenhouse gas emissions are inextricably linked, meeting this objective will...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: National Broadband Plan Implementation (21 Nov 2017)

Denis Naughten: I provided an outline on the current status of the National Broadband Plan in my response to earlier questions on today's order paper.  The Deputy will be aware the aim of the NBP is to ensure high speed broadband access to all premises in Ireland, regardless of location.  The NBP has been a catalyst in encouraging investment by the telecoms sector so...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: National Broadband Plan (21 Nov 2017)

Denis Naughten: As I have outlined to the Deputy in previous questions on this topic, since the publication of the National Broadband Plan in 2012 by former Minister Pat Rabbitte, there have been a number of updates provided in respect of its progress. In April 2014, the Government decided that it needed to scale up the ambition of the plan and allocated significant resources to it. The...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Telecommunications Services Provision (21 Nov 2017)

Denis Naughten: I propose to take Questions Nos. 53 and 61 together. Providing telecommunications services, including mobile phone services, is a matter for the relevant service providers operating in a fully liberalised market regulated by the Commission for Communications Regulation (ComReg), as independent Regulator. I do not have statutory authority to require commercial companies to rollout...