Results 1,881-1,900 of 4,700 for speaker:Noel Ahern
- Written Answers — Local Authority Housing: Local Authority Housing (8 Mar 2006)
Noel Ahern: An objective and comprehensive assessment of a person's or family's need is an essential first step in establishing a modern system of housing supports. The document Housing Policy Framework Building Sustainable Communities contains a commitment to develop new means of assessing housing need. Further details on the new arrangements will be announced later in the year.
- Written Answers — Social and Affordable Housing: Social and Affordable Housing (8 Mar 2006)
Noel Ahern: I propose to take Questions Nos. 84 and 99 together. The preparation of the National Development Plan 2007-13, NDP, is co-ordinated by the Department of Finance. A high-level steering group, chaired by that Department and comprising senior officials of other relevant Departments, has been established to oversee drafting. The housing material of the NDP will be drafted by my Department and,...
- Written Answers — Housing Statistics: Housing Statistics (8 Mar 2006)
Noel Ahern: Details of dwellings by number of rooms is available from the Central Statistics Office as part of the housing volume of the census of population, copies of which are available in the Oireachtas Library. My Department publishes data on the number of new dwellings completed by type of dwelling and the latest data indicate that apartments made up 22.4% of the 80,957 houses built in 2005, 53% of...
- Written Answers — Social and Affordable Housing: Social and Affordable Housing (8 Mar 2006)
Noel Ahern: Provisional figures supplied by local authorities to my Department indicate that some 1,370 social and affordable housing units had been acquired under Part V in 2005.
- Written Answers — Local Authority Housing: Local Authority Housing (8 Mar 2006)
Noel Ahern: Information on the number of houses constructed and acquired by local authorities to the end of September 2005 is available on my Department's website at www.environ.ie. Similar information for the full year 2005 will be published in due course in my Department's annual bulletin of housing statistics and on the Department's website. A breakdown of dwellings constructed or acquired by local...
- Written Answers — Dormant Accounts Fund: Dormant Accounts Fund (9 Mar 2006)
Noel Ahern: I refer the Deputy to my reply to Question No. 913 on 25 January 2006 relating to Exchequer funding for vulnerable Irish communities abroad. Under the Dormant Accounts Acts 2001 to 2005, information regarding those who opened accounts that have been deemed dormant accounts is maintained by the relevant financial institutions so that funds can be repatriated to these persons or their...
- Written Answers — Health Service Schemes: Health Service Schemes (9 Mar 2006)
Noel Ahern: The scheme referred to is operated by Health Service Executive and my Department has no function in the matter.
- Written Answers — Housing Grants: Housing Grants (9 Mar 2006)
Noel Ahern: Following the approval by Cork County Council of the comprehensive feasibility assessment carried out on this site, an amendment to the local area plan was advertised on 20 February 2006 and will remain on public display for inspection until 3 April 2006 in the two relevant divisional areas. In parallel with this process, the council is also engaging with consultants to draw up plans for the...
- Written Answers — Housing Grants: Housing Grants (9 Mar 2006)
Noel Ahern: The recommendations of the Indecon report regarding the disabled persons grant scheme have been noted and will be considered in the context of the review of the scheme being finalised in my Department at the moment.
- Proposed Legislation. (21 Mar 2006)
Noel Ahern: I have no plans to introduce further dormant accounts legislation. As I indicated in reply to Question No. 913 on this topic on 25 January 2006, the Government is fully committed to providing supports to vulnerable Irish communities living abroad. This commitment is clearly demonstrated by the allocation of significant funding directly from the Exchequer to support emigrant organisations. In...
- Proposed Legislation. (21 Mar 2006)
Noel Ahern: I do not agree the money collected from the dormant accounts of emigrants should be used for emigrant services. That is not the direction the Government is taking. We have agreed three categories for the disbursement of funds and these funds assist people in disadvantaged areas. We do not have data on the locations of accounts, for example, how many were in Ballymun, Ballyfermot or...
- Proposed Legislation. (21 Mar 2006)
Noel Ahern: I do not have the data on the locations of theââ
- Proposed Legislation. (21 Mar 2006)
Noel Ahern: I do not have it and do not know if I really want it. The Deputy may want to know whether it is possible some of the accounts were held by people abroad. I am sure some were. We are spending the money on social and economic disadvantage. What does the Deputy want? Does he want us to distribute the money in areas from which it came, probably wealthy areas because it was presumably the wealthy...
- Proposed Legislation. (21 Mar 2006)
Noel Ahern: It is not. Presumably, it was people with money who had these accounts. The Deputy appears to be trying to undermine what we are trying to do by suggesting we send the money back to wealthy areas.
- Proposed Legislation. (21 Mar 2006)
Noel Ahern: I will not take that direction.
- National Drugs Strategy. (21 Mar 2006)
Noel Ahern: As I indicated in a reply to the Deputy earlier this month, I am aware of the rehabilitation programme being provided by this project. It is in receipt of substantial core funding of approximately â¬80,000 per annum. In addition FÃS provides funding through its special category community employment scheme for the trainees and supervisor of the project. An application for additional...
- National Drugs Strategy. (21 Mar 2006)
Noel Ahern: Some of what the Deputy has said is over the top and I do not quite understand him. He says there is a very good project in the area rehabilitating people and that is fine. It was set up under the process and has a FÃS supervisor and â¬80,000 per annum of core funding which provides two extra staff. Therefore, there are currently three staff involved in the project. FÃS is an important...
- National Drugs Strategy. (21 Mar 2006)
Noel Ahern: I am answering the questions I was asked.
- National Drugs Strategy. (21 Mar 2006)
Noel Ahern: This matter has been recommended to me. In the Deputy's words and the words of others we have a project that is deemed very successful. It has three staff members and caters for 14 or 16 recovering drug users. The funding proposal put forward is for an extra â¬151,000 for three more staff. If the project is so successful, I am at a loss as to why it needs to double its staff. The proposal...
- National Drugs Strategy. (21 Mar 2006)
Noel Ahern: I cannot give the Deputy an overall figure now but under the mid-term review of the strategy we agreed to make rehabilitation the fifth pillar. Currently a working group is addressing rehabilitation in conjunction with all the relevant agencies. It is accepted by the Department that one of the weaknesses in the strategy concerned rehabilitation. The working group is operational and will...