Results 15,061-15,080 of 21,588 for speaker:Denis Naughten

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Broadband Service Provision (31 May 2018)

Denis Naughten: That is why we are putting in the ducting on the motorways, where 100 km of ducting has been put in by Transport Infrastructure Ireland over the last 12 months. It is currently working with the telecoms companies on the siting of antennae along those motorways and on the national primary network. However, for me and for the Minister of State, Deputy Kyne, that is not good enough. We want...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Recycling Policy (31 May 2018)

Denis Naughten: Ireland has supported the adoption of a set of ambitious measures to make EU waste legislation fit for the future as part of the EU's wider circular economy policy. The new recycling and land-filling targets set a credible and ambitious path for better waste management in Europe. They include a new recycling rate of 55% for plastic packaging waste by 2035 which will help drive real progress...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Recycling Policy (31 May 2018)

Denis Naughten: I agree with everything Deputy Ryan said. As he knows, I fully support the principles behind the Bill he introduced. He might give me a copy of the response he received from the Ceann Comhairle which would help to facilitate the debate. As the Deputy knows, we discussed the issue in the committee in private session, disappointingly, at the last meeting. It would be extremely helpful to...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Recycling Policy (31 May 2018)

Denis Naughten: I am not afraid to push industry. I introduced the ban on flat rate bin charges last year. I am rolling out brown bins across the country, which the industry does not like. Many issues Deputy Ryan touched on are issues we are actively engaged with at the moment. As the Deputy knows, plastic does not go into incineration; the vast majority goes into other facilities across the country....

Other Questions: Energy Policy (31 May 2018)

Denis Naughten: Contingency planning for Brexit is advancing through the cross-departmental co-ordination structures chaired by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. This work is also informed by the ongoing stakeholder engagement. In addition, senior officials from the Department are engaged with the TF50 EU negotiating team in Brussels in mapping out particular North-South issues as part of the...

Other Questions: Energy Policy (31 May 2018)

Denis Naughten: On I-SEM.

Other Questions: Energy Policy (31 May 2018)

Denis Naughten: I have definitely met with them twice personally and I would have met some representatives of the British Government as well and this is one of the issues we discussed. I-SEM was the key priority issue discussed with Mr. Richard Harrington MP at both of those meetings. I met with my then Northern Ireland counterpart on this as well and I met with a number of companies operating in Northern...

Other Questions: Energy Policy (31 May 2018)

Denis Naughten: While there is a lot of focus on tariffs, regulatory impediments could be a bigger issue, not so much in relation to I-SEM but in terms of east-west developments.

Other Questions: Energy Policy (31 May 2018)

Denis Naughten: Not costs, regulatory issues can be a bigger issue. In fairness, the team within the Department is looking at the broad aspect of this, not just the political focus which is on tariffs. In my conversations with my British counterpart, I have made these specific points to them. It is not just the issue of tariffs, that is relatively minor. It is getting access to the energy that is of...

Other Questions: Electric Vehicles (31 May 2018)

Denis Naughten: I propose to take Questions Nos. 7 and 10 together. There are now approximately 5,400 electric vehicles on our roads.  As the electric car market matures, it is vital that the charging infrastructure develops alongside it and I recognise that a range of charging options is necessary to provide the convenience and reliability that electric vehicle drivers require....

Other Questions: Electric Vehicles (31 May 2018)

Denis Naughten: I do not disagree with Deputy Eamon Ryan. The Government has finite resources and we have to use the regulatory tools available to us. That is part of the work of the low-emission vehicle task force. I am frustrated, like Deputy Aindrias Moynihan, by the progress on this and by progress in Government in general. We are making significant progress, however, and once we have the output from...

Other Questions: Electric Vehicles (31 May 2018)

Denis Naughten: We have gone from a situation where, in terms of investment in the network, last year the ESB put in €1 million whereas this year €3.5 million is being put in, an increase of 250%, albeit from a small base. We need to put in more infrastructure, particularly now when we see a step change in the number of vehicles being purchased. Since the start of this year, 1,000 vehicles...

Other Questions: Electric Vehicles (31 May 2018)

Denis Naughten: Yes, it has.

Other Questions: Electric Vehicles (31 May 2018)

Denis Naughten: It is great that rural colleagues are raising this issue. Deputy Martin Kenny spoke about people from rural areas finding a car already at a charging point. Things are beginning to happen, but I accept that we need to do more. Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council is considering installing charging points on lamp posts. It has been done in other parts of the world and we need to...

Other Questions: Greenhouse Gas Emissions (31 May 2018)

Denis Naughten: The Fossil Fuels Divestment Bill seeks to amend the NTMA Acts to have the Ireland Strategic Investment Fund divest from fossil fuels. The Bill is a matter for the Minister for Finance and Public Expenditure and Reform. He informs me that to date there has been very constructive engagement with Deputy Thomas Pringle on the passage of the Private Members Bill. He has also informed me that it...

Other Questions: Greenhouse Gas Emissions (31 May 2018)

Denis Naughten: If the Business Committee could facilitate the taking of the Bill, I would like to see it expedited. Based on the current trajectory, we will have an enormous challenge to meet our 2030 targets. We will need to reconcile our ambitions in Food Wise 2025, the need for food security in the European Union, carbon leakage in food production and our climate change targets for 2030. When...

Other Questions: Greenhouse Gas Emissions (31 May 2018)

Denis Naughten: It would be unfair to say we are not doing things and there has not been a step change over the past two years. The proof of that is in the national development plan, where €1 in every €5 spent over the next decade on the public side will be on climate-related activity. We have made a definitive decision to take coal out of power generation by 2025 and we will be one of the...

Other Questions: Greenhouse Gas Emissions (31 May 2018)

Denis Naughten: We are ahead of the curve in that we are banning the sale of all new fossil fuel vehicles from 2030, which is way ahead of anyone else. Yesterday we announced the climate action fund, one of the biggest funds of its type anywhere in the world. We will have the carbon tax report in advance of the forthcoming budget. Even yesterday I was commended on the initiative we took in Ireland on...

Other Questions: Bioenergy Strategy (31 May 2018)

Denis Naughten: The draft bioenergy plan established the broader context for the development of Ireland's bioenergy sector. It recognises that meeting the demand for biomass from indigenous sources could deliver significant economic and employment benefits and contains measures to stimulate and support the supply of Irish biomass.  The bioenergy plan highlights a range of supply-side and...

Topical Issue Debate: Disposal of Hazardous Waste (31 May 2018)

Denis Naughten: It is important to point out that, as the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment, I have no role or remit in the decision made by An Bord Pleanála today, nor do I have any role in planning policy or planning legislation. I am advised by the Department of Housing, Planning and Local Government that An Bord Pleanála is independent in discharging its functions...