Results 2,221-2,240 of 6,904 for speaker:Cian O'Callaghan

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (20 Feb 2024)

Cian O'Callaghan: For my own part, I think this is an excellent amendment and I am very supportive of it. The national planning framework is highly significant. The idea that it would not be debated, discussed and scrutinised thoroughly and then subject to a vote of the Oireachtas just does not make any sense to me on any level. As I said before, one of the really disturbing parts of this Bill is that there...

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (20 Feb 2024)

Cian O'Callaghan: I suggest that we deal first with amendment No. 129 from Deputy Matthews. This will allow him to resume the Chair and me to contribute to the debate on my amendments.

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (20 Feb 2024)

Cian O'Callaghan: Does the Minister of State want to respond specifically on amendment No. 129?

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (20 Feb 2024)

Cian O'Callaghan: To follow on from that, the development plan process at local government level is one of the most extensive parts of the democratic process. This applies in terms of the public consultation element of the development plans and, certainly, in terms of the meetings over many hours and weeks, and the multiple stages where councillors are involved, with thousands of amendments and a huge amount...

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (20 Feb 2024)

Cian O'Callaghan: I do not accept the view that has been genuinely put forward by the Minister of State that this is a very democratic process. A consultation process is no substitute for a democratic process.

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (20 Feb 2024)

Cian O'Callaghan: In the context of a development plan, a democratic process involves public consultation where everyone can put in their views, councillors tabling amendments, debates and votes on all of those amendments and full scrutiny of every aspect of the development plan. This would happen across multiple stages over the course of more than a year. Having a consultation process whereby the only...

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (20 Feb 2024)

Cian O'Callaghan: I move amendment No. 41: In page 38, to delete lines 25 to 31 and substitute the following: "(5) Where regulations or an order are proposed to be made under— (a) Part 3- Plans, Policies and related Matters, (b) Part 4- Development Consents, (c) Part 6- Environmental Assessment, (d) Part 7- Housing Strategy and Supply (e) Part 8- Miscellaneous powers of Planning Authorities...

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (20 Feb 2024)

Cian O'Callaghan: I move amendment No. 42: In page 38, to delete lines 32 to 40.

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (20 Feb 2024)

Cian O'Callaghan: I wish to speak in support of this amendment. I have also submitted amendments on some topics in the Bill, which will be dealt with later. I will also ask about two specific parts of the Bill. On the issue of land value sharing tax, when we engaged with the Department on this, we were told it might be incorporated into this Bill. Clearly, that did not happen. What are the plans and...

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (20 Feb 2024)

Cian O'Callaghan: On the issue of embodied carbon and the need to have whole-life carbon limits, the Minister of State said this is not directly related to the Bill and that it is highly complex. I would not take that view; I think this is a planning issue. What is happening now in the planning system is applicants are looking for planning permission, and not only is there no limit on the embodied carbon as...

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (20 Feb 2024)

Cian O'Callaghan: The expert report on Traveller accommodation was a cross-party report and there was consensus on it. It is a real missed opportunity not to incorporate those recommendations on the planning side into this Bill. It is five years later so you would expect the Government to incorporate them into this planning Bill, even at this late stage. It had five years to take them on board and work with...

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Planning and Development Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (20 Feb 2024)

Cian O'Callaghan: That would be helpful and would be a small step in the right direction but in my view what is required is much more than that. Some planning authorities might put in conditions around a requirement that in all construction projects the embodied carbon is measured, that there are carbon budgets and limits are set. We need to be moving towards that fast. The current plan is to have it...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Defective Building Materials (15 Feb 2024)

Cian O'Callaghan: I will ask about two aspects of this. First, what will happen in the case of management companies where there are serious and known fire safety defects but the management company is not engaging? That can be very unfair on the individual homeowners and residents. As the Minister knows, management companies are not properly regulated and they need to be. What will the Minister do about...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Defective Building Materials (15 Feb 2024)

Cian O'Callaghan: There should be a legal obligation to declare. When someone gets a survey the surveyors generally do not start opening up the walls to see whether there is fire stopping in place. They tend not to do those kinds of invasive survey works, so there are deficiencies in that process. Given that is unethical to knowingly sell a defective property, should there not be a legal change to give...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Defective Building Materials (15 Feb 2024)

Cian O'Callaghan: 89. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government if he will provide an update on the Government progress in implementing a fire safety defects scheme that will allow full remedial works to be carried out on defective buildings; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6702/24]

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Homeless Accommodation (15 Feb 2024)

Cian O'Callaghan: 142. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the immediate and urgent actions that will be taken to address the high levels of child homelessness; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6703/24]

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Rental Sector (15 Feb 2024)

Cian O'Callaghan: 140. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the action he will take to address the consistent increases in rents for existing tenancies; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6704/24]

Written Answers — Department of Health: Vaccination Programme (15 Feb 2024)

Cian O'Callaghan: 333. To ask the Minister for Health which vaccination centres are being used in CHO9 for the MMR vaccine programme; if alternative centres will be provided for those who are unable to travel to the offered centre; the uptake of the MMR vaccine in CHO9 over the past five years, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7206/24]