Results 2,201-2,220 of 2,990 for speaker:Ossian Smyth

Ceisteanna - Questions - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Electricity Grid (4 Nov 2021)

Ossian Smyth: The Commission for Regulation of Utilities, CRU, has statutory responsibility to monitor and take measures necessary to ensure the security of electricity supply in Ireland. The CRU has advised it has identified specific challenges to ensuring continued security of electricity supply. These challenges include lower than expected availability of some existing power stations, anticipated new...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Electricity Grid (4 Nov 2021)

Ossian Smyth: A number of actions were recommended by the CRU, and each of those has been accepted by the Government and addressed. Providing emergency generation is just one of them, but more important than that was getting two other gas-fired power stations back online and ensuring everything recommended by the CRU was done. I met with the CRU during the summer and its position was this was a serious...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Electricity Grid (4 Nov 2021)

Ossian Smyth: If Deputy O'Rourke has specific allegations or information given to him which he believes shows some kind of wrongdoing on the part of the ESB or EirGrid, I am happy to investigate that. However, if it just a vague feeling, suggestion or rumour that something untoward happened, there is not much I can do to advance that. Yesterday, Deputy Cowen presented and said he felt something that was...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: National Broadband Plan (4 Nov 2021)

Ossian Smyth: There are over 84,000 premises in County Mayo of which over 36,000 are within the National Broadband Plan Intervention Area and will receive access to high speed broadband under the State led intervention to be delivered by National Broadband Ireland. Government investment in County Mayo under the NBP will be in the order of €145 million. I am advised by National Broadband...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Data Centres (4 Nov 2021)

Ossian Smyth: I propose to take Questions Nos. 55, 57 and 71 together. The Climate Action and Low Carbon Development (Amendment) Act provides, inter alia,for a maximum amount of emissions to be permitted in different sectors of the economy during a carbon budget period, referred to as ‘sectoral emissions ceilings’. All sectors of the economy will have sectoral emissions ceilings and emissions...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: National Broadband Plan (4 Nov 2021)

Ossian Smyth: The Question refers to areas located in the AMBER area on the National Broadband Plan (NBP) High Speed Broadband Map which is available on my Department's website www.broadband.gov.ie. The AMBER area represents the area to be served by the network to be deployed under the NBP State led intervention. I appreciate people's frustration when they are living so close to a fibre network but...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Regulatory Bodies (4 Nov 2021)

Ossian Smyth: ComReg currently has a suite of enforcement and sanctioning powers available to it in regulating the telecommunications sector. As committed to in the Programme for Government 2020, my Department, in collaboration with ComReg, is currently developing proposals to further strengthen ComReg's enforcement regime in primary legislation and to provide for an administrative sanctioning regime for...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Illegal Dumping (4 Nov 2021)

Ossian Smyth: My Department published the General Scheme of the Circular Economy Bill 2021 on 15 June 2021. It is my intention under the Bill to facilitate not only the use of CCTV, but also the use of a broad range of Audio Visual Recording (AVR) equipment in order to assist local authorities in their efforts to combat illegal dumping. Drafting of the Bill is well advanced, as is, I understand, the...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: National Broadband Plan (4 Nov 2021)

Ossian Smyth: The National Broadband Plan (NBP) State led Intervention will be delivered by National Broadband Ireland (NBI) under a contract to roll out a high speed and future proofed broadband network within the Intervention Area which covers 1.1 million people living and working in the over 544,000 premises, including almost 100,000 businesses and farms along some 699 schools. My Department as the...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: National Broadband Plan (4 Nov 2021)

Ossian Smyth: There are over 16,000 premises in County Cavan and over 15,000 premises in County Monaghan in the National Broadband Plan (NBP) Intervention Area that will receive access to high speed broadband under the State led intervention to be delivered by National Broadband Ireland (NBI). I appreciate people's frustration when they are living so close to a fibre network but cannot get a...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Broadband Infrastructure (4 Nov 2021)

Ossian Smyth: Despite the unprecedented challenges presented by the Covid-19 pandemic, National Broadband Ireland has made steady progress on delivery of the new high speed fibre broadband network under the National Broadband Plan with over 272,000 premises surveyed across 26 counties and retail service providers actively selling on the NBI network with over 30,000 premises available to order and pre-order...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Legislative Measures (4 Nov 2021)

Ossian Smyth: I propose to take Questions Nos. 198 to 200, inclusive, together. The Circular Economy Bill 2021, which was approved by Government for priority drafting in June this year, aims to support Ireland’s transition to a circular economy by providing the necessary legislative basis for several key measures including the Circular Economy Strategy; the Circular Economy Programme; the...

Credit Union (Amendment) Bill 2021: Second Stage [Private Members] (3 Nov 2021)

Ossian Smyth: On behalf of the Government, I thank all Deputies for an engaging discussion on the issue of strengthening the credit union sector. It is clear that there is agreement on the importance of the credit union sector and the vital role it plays in providing much-needed funding to local communities. The role is even more important given the impending withdrawal of Ulster Bank and KBC Ireland...

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate: Energy Policy (3 Nov 2021)

Ossian Smyth: I thank the Deputy. As he rightly stated, I have not previously heard the statements he put forward today and they are not in documents I received before this, but I will try to address them. On procurement, the Deputy raises a question about whether additional energy generation capacity was correctly procured. There is the possibility under European and Irish law to procure things in...

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate: Climate Change Negotiations (3 Nov 2021)

Ossian Smyth: I agree that casting this as a rural versus urban narrative is not helpful. This is something that we can only solve by working together and being constructive in our approach. I thank Sinn Féin for dropping its Private Members' wind farm Bill, seeing that the Bill was the wrong thing to do and having the humility to change course.

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate: Climate Change Negotiations (3 Nov 2021)

Ossian Smyth: I agree that lobbyists seeking exemptions has been counterproductive. Sectoral lobbyists have come in looking for procrastination, but that has not served their members. Instead, it has led to more pain. We cannot make progress on climate action without a just transition. It would not be feasible or viable to get people to change unless they feel that the changes are fair. Clonakilty is a...

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate: Energy Policy (3 Nov 2021)

Ossian Smyth: The position of successive Governments for almost 20 years has been that competitive energy markets result in greater choice for consumers and businesses in terms of suppliers, products and prices, support competition and drive down prices. Operating within an overall EU framework, responsibility for the regulation of electricity and gas markets is solely a matter for the Commission for...

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate: Climate Change Negotiations (3 Nov 2021)

Ossian Smyth: Ireland is committed to concerted global action to address the climate crisis and Ireland engages in negotiations under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, UNFCC, and the Paris Agreement through its membership of the EU. Ireland has actively engaged with EU partners in preparation for the 26th conference, namely, COP26 in Glasgow, which commenced on 31 October and will...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: National Broadband Plan (3 Nov 2021)

Ossian Smyth: The Question refers to a premises located in the AMBER area on the National Broadband Plan (NBP) High Speed Broadband Map which is available on www.broadband.gov.ie. The AMBER area represents the area to be served by the network to be deployed under the NBP State led intervention. I appreciate people's frustration when they are living so close to a fibre network but cannot get a...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: National Broadband Plan (3 Nov 2021)

Ossian Smyth: The National Broadband Plan (NBP) State led Intervention will be delivered by National Broadband Ireland (NBI) under a contract to roll out a high speed and future proofed broadband network within the Intervention Area which covers 1.1 million people living and working in the over 544,000 premises, including almost 100,000 businesses and farms along some 699 schools. There are over...