Results 2,761-2,780 of 9,994 for speaker:John Gormley
- Local Authority Funding. (14 Oct 2009)
John Gormley: I have some extra information. Authorities are systematically pursuing outstanding development contributions. The action taken includes construction site visits by senior planning staff in order to determine an accurate picture of the moneys due. Failure to pay amounts due to the authority has resulted in enforcement proceedings being initiated under planning legislation and this will...
- Local Authority Funding. (14 Oct 2009)
John Gormley: I take Deputy Tuffy's point that much of this is associated with the housing bubble. We conducted a survey and the breakdown of development contribution money as applied across various programme headings of my Department. The survey, conducted in 2008, show that 41% of development contributions are for water and sewerage, 45% on roads and 14% on amenities. We continue with that...
- Other Questions (14 Oct 2009)
John Gormley: Heritage officers play an important role in ensuring support for heritage activities and organisations at local level. Since 1999, the Heritage Council, under the aegis of my Department, has developed a partnership programme with local authorities to facilitate the employment of heritage officers. To date, my Department has provided funding of â¬5.15 million, including this year's...
- Other Questions (14 Oct 2009)
John Gormley: Heritage officers can make a major contribution in promoting tourism activities in the local authority area. On every occasion that I launched a book when members of the Heritage Council were present I stated that it is my strongly held view that we should have heritage officers in each local authority area. That is not the case. However, where they are in place it has made a tremendous...
- Other Questions (14 Oct 2009)
John Gormley: It is already the case that if they wish local authorities can appoint heritage officers with the assistance of the Heritage Council. The Deputy is aware that because of budgetary constraints grants to the Heritage Council, which is based in his native city and which does a very fine job, have had to be cut somewhat although not as much as could otherwise have been the case. The points...
- Other Questions (14 Oct 2009)
John Gormley: No, we have not; the McCarthy report is still a list of recommendations. I made these points previously but Deputy Tuffy was not in the Chamber at the time. I made precisely the same point that Deputy Tuffy made, that people in planning departments have little enough to do compared to during the boom. The problem is with regard to public service unions and demarcation and that is a real...
- Water Quality. (14 Oct 2009)
John Gormley: I am glad to see Deputy Jim O'Keeffe here because I know this part of the country well.
- Water Quality. (14 Oct 2009)
John Gormley: I am aware that there have been recurrent problems with green algae on a number of beaches in County Cork. Various factors can contribute to the formation of green algae, which is due to excessive nutrients entering water, including from run-off from land due to intensive agricultural practices, septic tanks or discharges of untreated wastewater. The draft south-western river basin...
- Water Quality. (14 Oct 2009)
John Gormley: I know the area as I used to holiday in Timoleague and I know this problem has existed for years. When I was on holidays there more than ten years ago I could see the algae on the beach. If one went down to Dunworley one could see the green algae there and it was very clear. This is coming from run-off nutrients from farming practices and septic tanks. We must deal first with the point...
- Water Quality. (14 Oct 2009)
John Gormley: Yes, I will. While the Deputy is concerned about this, there are members of the Cabinet who go on holidays to the spots in question.
- Water Quality. (14 Oct 2009)
John Gormley: They also want this matter cleared up. I have been aware of this problem for some time.
- Water Quality. (14 Oct 2009)
John Gormley: There is no getting away from the fact that it must be dealt with at point source. We have some work to do in this country not to be in denial about the problems associated with agricultural run-off and septic tanks. There are too many parties which do not want to know about these problems because they are difficult issues with which to deal. Building water treatment plants is fine but we...
- Planning Issues. (14 Oct 2009)
John Gormley: The proper planning and sustainable development of urban and village centres is underpinned by the legislative and regulatory frameworks set out in planning legislation and supported by the extensive suite of statutory planning guidance already in place. New draft guidelines in preparation will provide further support in these regards. Building on the 2007 guidelines for planning authorities...
- Planning Issues. (14 Oct 2009)
John Gormley: Only last week, we introduced the Planning and Development (Amendment) Bill 2009 in the Seanad which will ensure the highest standards in planning and development. For the first time, a local authority's regional planning guidelines will have to have regard to and comply with the national spatial strategy. I have also introduced measures which ensure new residential developments will be...
- Proposed Legislation. (14 Oct 2009)
John Gormley: I propose to take Questions Nos. 113 and 156 together. On 12 May 2009 I announced the Government decided to introduce a directly elected mayor for the Dublin region in 2010. This decision arises from the commitment in the programme for Government to introduce a directly elected mayor of Dublin and from the considerations in the Green Paper on local government which I published in April 2008....
- Proposed Legislation. (14 Oct 2009)
John Gormley: I hope I will have a good relationship with the person elected, even if it is a Fine Gael person. Fine Gael has supported this proposal. One of Deputy McHugh's colleagues raised it on the Adjournment and I set out the responsibilities involved in a little more detail then. If the Deputy wishes, I can repeat them: setting the framework for the future; the physical development of Dublin city...
- Proposed Legislation. (14 Oct 2009)
John Gormley: Yes, that was the intention. We need to broaden our concept of local government. We are committed to a Dublin mayor. I did not know that the Labour Party pioneered the issue but that raises the question why it did not do anything about it.
- Proposed Legislation. (14 Oct 2009)
John Gormley: I do not know how long ago that was or the circumstances. We need, however, to rethink the structures of local government. What we have now is an inherited British model but is it suitable to our modern State and does it have the dynamism and flexibility to deal with the issues? The answer is probably "No". We must reinvent it. It may be a difficult transition but we need to be quite...
- Proposed Legislation. (14 Oct 2009)
John Gormley: Does it?
- Proposed Legislation. (14 Oct 2009)
John Gormley: I never detect great enthusiasm for creating a-----