Results 2,001-2,020 of 5,629 for speaker:Thomas Gould

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate: Health Services (25 Apr 2023)

Thomas Gould: I thank the Minister of State.

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate: Health Services (25 Apr 2023)

Thomas Gould: I thank the Minister of State. I thank Dr. Gibson, who is retiring from St. Mary's campus, and Dr. O'Halloran, who retired at the start of the year. Unfortunately, the response provided by the Minister of State gives very little hope for the people of Blarney or for those who attend St. Mary's campus. There is a severe lack of GP services in my constituency. People regularly contact me...

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate: Health Services (25 Apr 2023)

Thomas Gould: Blarney GP service closed on 31 December when the GP retired. The service was closed and patients were sent to different areas. They were sent to Ballincollig, Blackpool and Ovens. There was a process under way to appoint a new GP. An announcement came last week and patients were told they would have to travel to Blackpool. There are vulnerable patients, including people with lifelong...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Departmental Schemes (25 Apr 2023)

Thomas Gould: I think there is time.

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Departmental Schemes (25 Apr 2023)

Thomas Gould: I have no problem waiting.

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Departmental Schemes (25 Apr 2023)

Thomas Gould: Deputy Durkan was ahead of me, so-----

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Departmental Schemes (25 Apr 2023)

Thomas Gould: Fair is fair.

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Community Development Projects (25 Apr 2023)

Thomas Gould: 65. To ask the Minister for Rural and Community Development the funding available to develop new community centres. [19280/23]

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Community Development Projects (25 Apr 2023)

Thomas Gould: I am looking to find out what funding is available to develop new community centres.

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Community Development Projects (25 Apr 2023)

Thomas Gould: As the Minister herself has just recognised, community centres are the heart of communities. They are a safe place, a great meeting place, a place where people can come together to build their community. A lot of places, however, do not have community centres and, as a result, suffer. In my constituency, the area of Ballyvolane does not have a community centre. It has hundreds of houses,...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Resumed) (25 Apr 2023)

Thomas Gould: I thank the Minister, his two Ministers of State and Department officials for coming here. It was stated that 4,000 affordable housing units would be delivered but fewer than 1,800 have been delivered. Sinn Féin felt that the figure of 4,000 units was too low and I believe that only delivering fewer than 1,800 units is a complete failure. I will give an example of what is happening...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Resumed) (25 Apr 2023)

Thomas Gould: There is Boherboy Road, Middle Glanmire Road and Tower in Blarney. There are three schemes at present.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Resumed) (25 Apr 2023)

Thomas Gould: The Boherboy Road houses in Mayfield have been built for nine months. They were announced 2019. Deputy Varadkar was also Taoiseach then and he was down there opening them. To be fair to Cork City Council it was the first local authority out of the blocks and it is delivering on numerous sites. People are contacting me because they will lose their homes.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Resumed) (25 Apr 2023)

Thomas Gould: Will the Minister give me or Cork City Council a commitment regarding anyone who is approved to buy one of these homes if the bank pulls mortgage approval? One family, comprising a husband, wife and two children, is living in a box bedroom. They were waiting to move into one of these in February. Another family is split between each of their parents. Another woman with children has...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Resumed) (25 Apr 2023)

Thomas Gould: The only reason the Minister is going there is because I have been down in Cork shouting and roaring-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Resumed) (25 Apr 2023)

Thomas Gould: I have been calling for these for months. This is the reason. It is the pressure that we have put on local authorities and the Department. I will move on because I am conscious of the time. This is all about the delivery of housing. We want to see houses delivered because we are dealing with unbelievable cases. The decision was made to lift the ban on evictions without supply. We know...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Resumed) (25 Apr 2023)

Thomas Gould: What about all of the people who are becoming homeless?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Resumed) (25 Apr 2023)

Thomas Gould: I disagree.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Resumed) (25 Apr 2023)

Thomas Gould: We have asked for data on this.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Resumed) (25 Apr 2023)

Thomas Gould: If the Minister has data for this will he release it so that we can see it? All we hear is the Minister and others making comments but there is no proof. What I am saying is all based on proof. My anecdotal evidence is that the lifting of the ban on evictions is a catastrophe and there is no proof to say otherwise.