Results 29,521-29,540 of 31,374 for speaker:Eamon Ryan

Estimates for Public Services 2007 (17 Oct 2007)

Eamon Ryan: Yes but there is an ongoing audit. We do not just wait for someone to audit the system, we keep in touch with what is happening and where the budget is going and we manage it. I made a political decision that in circumstances where there are difficulties, it makes sense to manage them internally at a time when other Departments might have their own difficulties. I said I would not ask the...

Estimates for Public Services 2007 (17 Oct 2007)

Eamon Ryan: We will continue to cover the house of tomorrow schemes and, at the same time, continue the national broadband scheme because the majority of the expenditure will occur in 2008 rather than 2007 and that allows us to prudently manage our affairs to meet budget lines. Deputy Coveney asked why the situation was changing. It is because we are dealing with the Irish public. These were...

Estimates for Public Services 2007 (17 Oct 2007)

Eamon Ryan: This is a crucial area of public policy. Although Deputy Barrett does not believe in the schemes, I am not going to say Fine Gael, as a whole, does not. Fine Gael dealt with the issue well enough but Deputy Barrett seems to doubt the benefits of the house of tomorrow scheme and others. These schemes are beneficial because they turn our economy to a new energy future. One of the reasons...

Estimates for Public Services 2007 (17 Oct 2007)

Eamon Ryan: I am answering the Deputy's key question, which was on why I could not have predicted this a year ago. One cannot predict demand exactly.

Estimates for Public Services 2007 (17 Oct 2007)

Eamon Ryan: One of the reasons demand for other schemes increased is that the house of tomorrow schemes, a significant commitment, were multi-annual programmes but one is often dealing with builders. The scheme does support the building industry and that may be something for which one could criticise it but construction accounts for one quarter of our economy.

Estimates for Public Services 2007 (17 Oct 2007)

Eamon Ryan: To make the necessary reductions in energy use, we need the construction industry to change dramatically. That is why we went into Government and fundamentally changed the building regulations. It will not be easy to bring about change as it requires every single builder in this country to change the way they build.

Estimates for Public Services 2007 (17 Oct 2007)

Eamon Ryan: It requires examples of best practice and that was achieved under the house of tomorrow scheme. Fine Gael may not agree with that scheme and may disagree with turning the building industry towards a clean energy future but that is what we are doing.

Estimates for Public Services 2007 (17 Oct 2007)

Eamon Ryan: Deputy Barrett disagrees. Fine Gael should get its party line straight.

Estimates for Public Services 2007 (17 Oct 2007)

Eamon Ryan: There are various choices and Deputy McManus will have been faced with similar choices. She could have stopped the scheme.

Estimates for Public Services 2007 (17 Oct 2007)

Eamon Ryan: Not in every case.

Estimates for Public Services 2007 (17 Oct 2007)

Eamon Ryan: There are many cases, such as the lower income housing scheme and the reheat scheme, which goes towards school and other community projects, where there was a choice as to whether to continue.

Estimates for Public Services 2007 (17 Oct 2007)

Eamon Ryan: No — there was a choice. We could have kept the schemes going as they were and that, I understand, has been the Labour Party position up to this point.

Estimates for Public Services 2007 (17 Oct 2007)

Eamon Ryan: One of my aims was to provide continuity. One should not stop-start an industry by building up a supply chain and suddenly, overnight, drop it off a cliff.

Estimates for Public Services 2007 (17 Oct 2007)

Eamon Ryan: I chose to continue, having spent the first €47 million.

Estimates for Public Services 2007 (17 Oct 2007)

Eamon Ryan: I am answering the Deputy's question as to what choice there was.

Estimates for Public Services 2007 (17 Oct 2007)

Eamon Ryan: I had plenty of choice.

Estimates for Public Services 2007 (17 Oct 2007)

Eamon Ryan: The choice was taken to manage the funding so that we could continue the greener home scheme, albeit, in certain cases, at a reduced level, which I believed was correct in view of the fact that technology had developed to a level where it could stand up on its own.

Estimates for Public Services 2007 (17 Oct 2007)

Eamon Ryan: One cannot spend the money for these schemes on the day an application comes in. There is an ongoing commitment and certain applications will come through next year relating to phase 1 while certain others will relate to phase 2. One cannot separate the two — we are not buying sweets but major building projects and they take time. It is a multi-annual programme which requires continuity.

Estimates for Public Services 2007 (17 Oct 2007)

Eamon Ryan: SEI has done a fantastic job in managing the whole range of heating schemes. There were and will continue to be demands on it, but we are learning. It is providing a first class service for the public, which I decided to support by continuing the grant schemes established here. We will continue to amend, extend and change as we see fit. It is my job to manage the budget on the public's...

Estimates for Public Services 2007 (17 Oct 2007)

Eamon Ryan: We will also seek to reduce carbon emissions, which is the challenge facing us. I am confident and happy that we have managed the matter particularly well and we will continue to manage it in a way that will deliver for SEI and the people.