Results 241-260 of 9,462 for speaker:Jack Chambers

Written Answers — Department of Public Expenditure and Reform: Departmental Bodies (29 May 2025)

Jack Chambers: I propose to take Questions Nos. 131, 144 and 151 together. In line with the commitments made in the Programme for Government, I recently announced a series of actions to accelerate the delivery of strategic infrastructure in Ireland, including the creation of a new Infrastructure Division in my Department. This new Division will focus on accelerating infrastructure development,...

Written Answers — Department of Public Expenditure and Reform: National Lottery (29 May 2025)

Jack Chambers: The National Lottery was established by statute in 1987 and remains in State ownership to this day. It is currently operated by a private Operator, under a detailed Licence agreement with the State, and subject to robust oversight by the independent Regulator of the National Lottery since 2014. The Regulator’s goal is that the interests of participants and the long-term sustainability...

Written Answers — Department of Public Expenditure and Reform: Public Expenditure Policy (29 May 2025)

Jack Chambers: In line with the commitments made in the Programme for Government, I recently announced a series of actions to accelerate the delivery of strategic infrastructure in Ireland, including the creation of a new Infrastructure Division in my Department. This new Division will focus on accelerating infrastructure development, particularly in the electricity, water and transport sectors as this...

Written Answers — Department of Public Expenditure and Reform: Public Expenditure Policy (29 May 2025)

Jack Chambers: Budget 2025, announced by Government last October, set-out a planned gross expenditure envelope of €105.4bn. This funding has been provided to deliver on Government priorities and commitments, including continuing the delivery of a National Development Plan (NDP) which is providing the vital infrastructure we need to support our future economic and social progress. This funding is...

Written Answers — Department of Public Expenditure and Reform: Capital Expenditure Programme (29 May 2025)

Jack Chambers: The Review of the National Development Plan (NDP) will allocate funding to update capital expenditure ceilings out to 2035. The Review will encompass all public capital investment to 2035 and allocate the funds arising from the Apple Escrow account, the proceeds of bank share sales as well as funding from the Infrastructure, Climate and Nature Fund. In total, around €97 billion in...

Written Answers — Department of Public Expenditure and Reform: Artificial Intelligence (29 May 2025)

Jack Chambers: My department recently published the ‘Guidelines for the Responsible use of Artificial Intelligence in the Public Service’. These guidelines compliment and inform strategies regarding the adoption of innovative technology and ways of working already underway in the public service, and seek to set a high standard for public service transformation and innovation, while...

Written Answers — Department of Public Expenditure and Reform: Departmental Reviews (29 May 2025)

Jack Chambers: The Programme for Government includes a commitment to reviewing the public procurement process to make it more transparent and work to ensure greater participation from SMEs. Working towards this aim, and to set out the strategic direction of public procurement for the next five years, my department is developing a first National Public Procurement Strategy. Consultation and collaboration...

Written Answers — Department of Public Expenditure and Reform: National Development Plan (29 May 2025)

Jack Chambers: As Minister for Public Expenditure, NDP Delivery and Reform I am responsible for setting the overall capital allocations across Departments and for monitoring monthly expenditure at Departmental level. The responsibility for the management and delivery of individual investment projects or sectoral policy strategies, within the allocations agreed under the National Development Plan (NDP),...

Written Answers — Department of Public Expenditure and Reform: Public Expenditure Policy (29 May 2025)

Jack Chambers: In line with the commitment in the Programme for Government, Government has prioritised an early review of the National Development Plan, which will be published in July. The Review will allocate funding to update capital expenditure ceilings out to 2035 and will significantly increase investment in our national infrastructure. In total, around €97 billion in capital funding will...

Written Answers — Department of Public Expenditure and Reform: National Development Plan (29 May 2025)

Jack Chambers: The Programme for Government sets out the ambition to improve our infrastructure, especially housing, energy, water, transport and health digitalisation. Prioritisation of these critical priorities is necessary to deliver on the ambition of the Review to provide the supporting infrastructure to enable the delivery of 300,000 additional homes by 2030 and to boost our competitiveness. ...

Written Answers — Department of Public Expenditure and Reform: EU Meetings (29 May 2025)

Jack Chambers: Cohesion Policy is the European Union's strategy to promote and support the development of its Member States and regions by reinforcing economic, social and territorial dimensions. It aims to mitigate disparities in development levels among regions, promote equitable growth and integration throughout the EU. Cohesion funding is used across the country to support a range of initiatives...

Written Answers — Department of Public Expenditure and Reform: EU Programmes (29 May 2025)

Jack Chambers: Cohesion Policy is the European Union's strategy to promote and support the development of its Member States and regions. Ireland will receive a total of €1.3bn in Cohesion Policy Funds for the 2021– 2027 period and when the requirement for national matching funding is included the full value is almost €3.5 billion. Cohesion funding is used across the country to...

Written Answers — Department of Public Expenditure and Reform: Public Expenditure Policy (29 May 2025)

Jack Chambers: There is substantial information made available on capital infrastructure projects to both Dáil Éireann and to the wider public through a number of formal reporting frameworks. There is currently extensive reporting of capital projects in the financial statements of Government Departments and Offices as well as the annual reports and financial statements of bodies under their...

Written Answers — Department of Public Expenditure and Reform: Capital Expenditure Programme (29 May 2025)

Jack Chambers: Public procurement is governed by EU legislation and national rules and guidelines with the aim of promoting an open, competitive and non-discriminatory public procurement regime, which delivers best value for money. The procurement regulations impose a duty on contracting authorities to require economic operators to explain the price or cost proposed where the tenders seem abnormally low in...

Written Answers — Department of Public Expenditure and Reform: Public Procurement Contracts (29 May 2025)

Jack Chambers: I thank the deputy for his question and will answer it as I can within my remit. The Programme for Government includes a commitment to reviewing the public procurement process to make it more transparent and encourage greater participation from SMEs. Working towards this aim, and to set out the strategic direction of public procurement for the next five years I am developing a first...

Written Answers — Department of Public Expenditure and Reform: Pension Provisions (29 May 2025)

Jack Chambers: On the 13th of May 2025 the Department for the Environment, Climate and Communications wrote to my Department requesting my consent for a 1.4% pension increase effective from 1 January 2025 for pensions in payment and deferred pensions under the An Post Main Superannuation scheme. The rules of the scheme allow for the payment of discretionary pension increases subject to Ministerial...

Written Answers — Department of Public Expenditure and Reform: Civil Service (29 May 2025)

Jack Chambers: As the Deputy may be aware, public service staffing is largely managed through a policy of delegated sanction, which has been in place since 2015. Under this delegated sanction framework, Departments are permitted to fill vacancies through recruitment and/or promotion where they hold a recruitment license subject to remaining within the overall pay bill ceiling. As a consequence, vacancies at...

Written Answers — Department of Public Expenditure and Reform: Departmental Functions (29 May 2025)

Jack Chambers: I thank the Deputy for her question. The Irish Government Economic and Evaluation service (IGEES), is an integrated, cross Government service that aims to support better policy formulation and implementation in the civil service through policy analysis and evaluation. Since its establishment in 2012, IGEES has expanded significantly, with over 300 economists and analysts now working...

Written Answers — Department of Public Expenditure and Reform: Civil Service (28 May 2025)

Jack Chambers: The Civil Service is committed to ensuring public access to services supported by efficient public service delivery. In this context, ongoing reviews of the impact of blended working on organisations, the workforce and the public are essential. The Blended Working Policy Framework for Civil Service Organisations, launched in March 2022, provides strategic guidance to Civil Service...

Written Answers — Department of Public Expenditure and Reform: Office of the Ombudsman (28 May 2025)

Jack Chambers: The Ombudsman's role is to examine complaints from members of the public who believe that they have been unfairly treated by certain public service providers such as government departments, local authorities, the HSE, public hospitals, public funded third level education bodies and public and private nursing homes. The Office does not have a specific role in respect of public procurement. It...