Results 3,621-3,640 of 13,375 for speaker:Pat Rabbitte

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Energy and Natural Resources: Alternative Energy Projects (18 Sep 2012)

Pat Rabbitte: I have no function in relation to grants for local authority housing which is a matter for my colleague, the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government. The Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) operates the Better Energy Homes Programme, which is available to homeowners of private dwellings built before 2006. The Better Energy Homes solar grant for domestic...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Energy and Natural Resources: Departmental Bodies (18 Sep 2012)

Pat Rabbitte: I wish to advise the Deputy that my Department does not own any corporate boxes. There are 18 bodies under the aegis of my Department and together with the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform I am a shareholder in a number of the companies. The matter of whether any of these companies have corporate boxes at sports stadia or other venues is a matter for each company.

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Energy and Natural Resources: State Bodies Numbers (18 Sep 2012)

Pat Rabbitte: I wish to advise the Deputy that I have not set up any State Bodies since taking office on 9th March 2011.

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Energy and Natural Resources: Appointments to State Boards (18 Sep 2012)

Pat Rabbitte: I wish to advise the Deputy that on the 3rd of June 2011 I invited Expressions of Interest from persons wishing to be considered for appointment to vacancies on State Boards under the aegis of my Department, which were expected to occur up to the end of 2011. On 9th February 2012 I invited further expressions of interest from persons wishing to serve on any of the Boards under the aegis of...

Energy Prices (19 Jul 2012)

Pat Rabbitte: I will indeed ensure the regulator is fully cognisant of the contents of that report. There is a long way to go on the analysis of whether any price increase in warranted. The main drivers in international gas prices are the euro-sterling exchange rate, network costs and volume consumption trends. The weak euro may indeed have assisted many of our SMEs in exporting from the country in...

Natural Gas Grid (19 Jul 2012)

Pat Rabbitte: The matters raised by the Deputy are operational matters for Bord Gáis Éireann. The company's gas safety operators are regulated in accordance with the safety regulatory framework established by the Commission for Energy Regulation, which has statutory responsibility for gas safety. I have no function in this regard. The first incident referred to by the Deputy occurred in May 2010, as...

Natural Gas Grid (19 Jul 2012)

Pat Rabbitte: I must confess that I did not even know about this incident until the Deputy put down the question. However, I was only recently engaged in exchanges in the House with Deputy Catherine Murphy about the unfortunate incident that happened at Leixlip. There is a very careful safety framework in place and it is effectively supervised by the national gas safety committee, which includes...

Natural Gas Grid (19 Jul 2012)

Pat Rabbitte: I agree with the Deputy that anything short of best practice would not be acceptable in this area. I have assured myself that best practice obtains and will continue to obtain.

Media Mergers (19 Jul 2012)

Pat Rabbitte: The issue of media ownership and the concentration of that ownership in the hands of limited numbers of individuals is a sensitive and critical issue for Governments in every developed country. It is all the more so here due to our small scale and the relative ease with which this concentration can occur. The reason this issue is such a critical one stems obviously from the critical role...

Media Mergers (19 Jul 2012)

Pat Rabbitte: I agree with the Deputy that the media is not like other businesses and media enterprises are not like other enterprises because of the formative role media can have on the very character of our democracy and the coverage of public affairs. I agree with him that diversity of content and ownership are central. The Sreenan report sets out several principles concerning the public interest test...

Media Mergers (19 Jul 2012)

Pat Rabbitte: From long years of experience, I am unlikely to dip my toe into organising who should sit in the Press Gallery. Detailed matters such as that might be best avoided. Undue concentration of media ownership in Ireland would be unacceptable. I hope the legislation, when published, will reflect that. The media has a powerful influence in reporting and analysing current affairs. It is...

Sale of State Assets (19 Jul 2012)

Pat Rabbitte: The Government has decided to dispose of Bord Gáis Éireann's energy business and some of the ESB's non-strategic power generation capacity as part of the State assets disposal programme. The Government has also reiterated its commitment to retaining the electricity and gas networks, as well as the two gas interconnectors in State ownership as national strategic infrastructure, critical for...

Sale of State Assets (19 Jul 2012)

Pat Rabbitte: The Deputy has acknowledged that no private company has a right to expect to retain any given contract. I presume he also accepts that it is not my job to micromanage matters in respect of contractors which might be recruited by Bod Gáis, as it is currently configured, or by a new privatised Bord Gáis Energy. Management make these calls and companies sometimes win contracts, while at...

Energy Resources (19 Jul 2012)

Pat Rabbitte: The Corrib gas field will strengthen Ireland's security of energy supply and at peak production will provide approximately 60% of Ireland's annual gas needs. Completion of the Corrib field development works by the developer is the principal factor that will determine the date for first gas. Pending such completion, it is not possible to definitely state when gas from the Corrib field will...

Energy Resources (19 Jul 2012)

Pat Rabbitte: I published a major Government policy statement yesterday on the delivery of energy infrastructure. A significant part of what is envisaged in this regard involves setting down principles of both community engagement and community gain. Both of those principles are equally relevant in this case. At the beginning of the Corrib project, a good relationship was fostered with the local...

Energy Resources (19 Jul 2012)

Pat Rabbitte: Compared to similar circumstances, it took approximately three times as long to bring it ashore in this jurisdiction from discovery of the field to the likely date of 2014. That is not justifiable because a great deal of cost can be written down by the company, a great deal of tax is forgone by the State and a huge bill is incurred by the State in providing security in the form of the Garda...

Renewable Energy (19 Jul 2012)

Pat Rabbitte: While offshore wind is already being deployed in a number of EU member states, it is still a very expensive technology to deploy. Offshore wind currently costs in the region of €3 million per MW to deploy compared to the cost of onshore wind which is about half of that. Wave energy technology is still very much at the research and development stage and the commercial and technical...

Renewable Energy (19 Jul 2012)

Pat Rabbitte: Deputy Daly is confusing many things in that peroration and, in the process, misrepresenting the policy of the Labour Party then and of the Government now. This matter is attracting enormous concentrated attention. We will proudly deliver on our extraordinarily ambitious target of 40% generation of electricity from renewables by 2020. As I said in my reply, I am in negotiations with the...

Renewable Energy (19 Jul 2012)

Pat Rabbitte: I commend Deputy Clare Daly on her reading matter. I recommend, however, that at least for the month of August she might apply a more eclectic test to her reading by moving beyond Labour Party policy documents.

Renewable Energy (19 Jul 2012)

Pat Rabbitte: I am delighted to hear it. I do not know why the Deputy is complaining about what we are doing in the area of wave energy technology, given that she acknowledges it is in its infancy and is only at the research stage. I do not see how I am supposed to pull a switch and work wonders until such time as the technology is proven. In the interim, we are supporting research in this area by the...