Results 29,461-29,480 of 32,961 for speaker:Paschal Donohoe

Written Answers — Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport: Regional Airports (16 Oct 2014)

Paschal Donohoe: The Exchequer currently provides financial support under the Regional Airports Programme to four regional airports, Donegal, Ireland West Airport Knock (IWAK), Kerry and Waterford. There are three schemes operated under this programme - Core Airport Management Operational Expenditure Subvention (OPEX) Scheme; Regional Airports Capital Expenditure Grant (CAPEX) Scheme and a Public Service...

Written Answers — Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport: Regional Airports (16 Oct 2014)

Paschal Donohoe: I refer the Deputy to my reply to Question 605 of 7th October regarding the 2014 EU Guidelines on State-aid to airports. Those Guidelines set out EU Policy on regional airports and reflect the decisions arising from a number of EU Court cases, in particular, the Altmark and Leipzig/Halle Airport cases. It is not open to any Member State to interpret these Guidelines, but all are required to...

Written Answers — Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport: Cycling Facilities Funding (16 Oct 2014)

Paschal Donohoe: The National Transport Authority (NTA) in conjunction with Galway City Council is responsible for the development of cycling and walking infrastructure in Galway City which includes the Merlin Woods Park area. Rinville, Oranmore, on the other hand, comes within the jurisdiction of Galway County Council. The Sustainable Transport Division of my...

Financial Resolutions 2015 - Financial Resolution No. 3: General (Resumed) (15 Oct 2014)

Paschal Donohoe: Budget 2015 has one objective - to secure our economic recovery. This recovery is under way because of the choices were made by the Government and the extraordinary resilience and stamina the people have displayed during the traumas of the past seven years. I have listened attentively to what Members have said and the particular points they have made about issues of concern about what the...

Seanad: Vehicle Clamping Bill 2014: Committee Stage (15 Oct 2014)

Paschal Donohoe: I thank all Senators for their contributions. I believe the Bill as first presented here was a good Bill due to the input that had taken place within the transport committee, and the opportunity for stakeholders to be consulted and for public consultation to take place. In terms of the points made by Senators on Second Stage, I reflected on them and responded. Senator Barrett tabled...

Seanad: Vehicle Clamping Bill 2014: Committee Stage (15 Oct 2014)

Paschal Donohoe: The Bill has not been passed yet.

Seanad: Vehicle Clamping Bill 2014: Committee Stage (15 Oct 2014)

Paschal Donohoe: Senator Barrett has pointed to an area in which this Bill can be improved. I will revert on Report Stage with a perhaps differently worded amendment to achieve a similar objective. If we are saying that someone who is clamped has rights in terms of unfair costs imposed on them, then the argument also goes the other way. This amendment recognises that fact, in that, if a process takes place...

Seanad: Vehicle Clamping Bill 2014: Committee Stage (15 Oct 2014)

Paschal Donohoe: This refers to the hearing of appeals by the clamping appeals officer. The rationale is that, in circumstances where proceedings have been brought against an appellant for an alleged offence of unlawful parking in respect of which the vehicle concerned was clamped or relocated and where these proceedings have been heard but are dismissed or unsuccessful, any clamp release or vehicle...

Seanad: Vehicle Clamping Bill 2014: Committee Stage (15 Oct 2014)

Paschal Donohoe: The proposed new section is on the operation of fixed payment notices. As Senators will be aware, the Bill provides that the National Transport Authority, NTA, may bring proceedings and prosecute summarily for offences committed under the Act. However, the only option in the Bill as drafted is for offences to be brought straight to the court system. My proposed amendment will allow the NTA...

Seanad: Vehicle Clamping Bill 2014: Committee Stage (15 Oct 2014)

Paschal Donohoe: Colleagues have the exact references for each of these amendments and, from a brief consideration, will see that they are technical amendments to subsections that were incorrectly numbered. By introducing these amendments, we will ensure that the numbering is correct.

Seanad: Vehicle Clamping Bill 2014: Committee Stage (15 Oct 2014)

Paschal Donohoe: I thank the Senator for not tabling this amendment. As I have said, the main reason I am not in a position to accept it is that its acceptance would have consequences for other important legislation. I would like to respond briefly to the point he made about road safety legislation. Before I came to the Seanad this morning, I attended a meeting of the Joint Committee on Transport and...

Seanad: Vehicle Clamping Bill 2014: Committee Stage (15 Oct 2014)

Paschal Donohoe: This amendment relates to section 20(3), which provides that "a clamping appeals officer shall, subject to section 21(2) and (3), be independent in the performance of his or her functions under this section." I am proposing to remove the words "subject to section 21(2) and (3)" because I believe the requirement for the appeals officer to be independent in the performance of his or her...

Seanad: Vehicle Clamping Bill 2014: Committee Stage (15 Oct 2014)

Paschal Donohoe: Senator Barrett has made a good point, and I will come back on Report Stage with an amendment to reflect it. Section 16(1) of the Bill refers to the release period. It states, "as soon as reasonably practicable", but there is a provision in subsection (2) regarding the release time for a vehicle that has been relocated. Senator Barrett has identified an omission in the Bill. In describing...

Seanad: Vehicle Clamping Bill 2014: Committee Stage (15 Oct 2014)

Paschal Donohoe: This is a very interesting amendment which was considered carefully by me and my officials because it goes to the heart of an important point regarding road safety legislation. The Senator is focusing on section 16(4) which states that if a vehicle is stolen, the person who owns the vehicle is not subject to the clamping fee if he or she can state that their vehicle was stolen. As currently...

Seanad: Vehicle Clamping Bill 2014: Committee Stage (15 Oct 2014)

Paschal Donohoe: I certainly believe it would be in order for the Senator to give her view, once the body is set up, on the power that it would be able to use. I would go further and say that given that this Bill very much reflects the input of the Oireachtas transport committee, it would be a good morning's work, on enactment of the Bill which will give the NTA such powers, to invite the representatives of...

Seanad: Vehicle Clamping Bill 2014: Committee Stage (15 Oct 2014)

Paschal Donohoe: I agree with the Senator's first point. Greater clarity needs to be brought to the practice that is allowed in the non-statutory areas and how it should work. Speaking as someone who has been clamped on two occasions, as I said on Second Stage, a particular area that should be examined is the appeals process in respect of the non-statutory areas. The Senator gave the example of a person...

Seanad: Vehicle Clamping Bill 2014: Committee Stage (15 Oct 2014)

Paschal Donohoe: I will respond to the Senator's point. A university campus would be a non-statutory area. It is part of the amendment we are discussing and therefore it is a relevant point. It sounds as if it was a counterproductive day for those people who went along to the university to check it out and then to had that experience. The reason I cannot prescribe such a provision in the Bill is that if I...

Seanad: Vehicle Clamping Bill 2014: Committee Stage (15 Oct 2014)

Paschal Donohoe: Senator Barrett’s description of the operation of this Bill is correct. His amendments refer to the clamp release and relocation charges would be in non-statutory areas. If he went on to say in those areas where the NTA does not exercise its power to put in place a fee a foundation of this Bill is that it would lead to the introduction of default charges. In the absence of the NTA...

Seanad: Vehicle Clamping Bill 2014: Committee Stage (15 Oct 2014)

Paschal Donohoe: I thank the Senator for the amendments he has tabled. To give some context, as the Senator is aware, he has tabled nine amendments to this Bill in total. I believe three later amendments in particular contain proposals and thinking that will improve the Bill. I will revert to those particular three amendments on Report Stage, with the Senator's consent, to ascertain how they can be...

Seanad: Vehicle Clamping Bill 2014: Committee Stage (15 Oct 2014)

Paschal Donohoe: This is a technical amendment which corrects an incorrect reference to a subsection. It specifically proposes, on page 7, line 26, to delete section 35(a) and replace it with section 33(a).