Results 3,981-4,000 of 9,994 for speaker:John Gormley

Written Answers — Planning Issues: Planning Issues (17 Feb 2009)

John Gormley: Full planning permission was granted on 30 May 2008 for the building of a Combined Cycle Gas Turbine (CCGT) power plant in Toomes, Co. Louth. Conditions relating to habitats were attached to planning permission. The site at Toomes mostly comprises abandoned pasture but includes areas of wet grassland, wet woodland and birch woodland, which are of ecological interest although the site is not...

Written Answers — Election Management System: Election Management System (17 Feb 2009)

John Gormley: Details on participating local authorities have yet to be finalised. My Department is liaising with the County & City Managers Association in this regard, and details of participating local authorities and the specific pilot schemes they intend to introduce will be made available when finalised.

Written Answers — Waste Management: Waste Management (17 Feb 2009)

John Gormley: National waste statistics for all waste streams are independently produced and published by the EPA. National Waste Reports have been published in respect of the years 1995, 1998, 2001, 2004 and 2006 with interim reports published for 2002, 2003, 2005 and 2007 respectively. These reports are available on the Agency's website: www.epa.ie. While there is no specific information available to...

Written Answers — Waste Disposal: Waste Disposal (17 Feb 2009)

John Gormley: I propose to take Questions Nos. 382 and 383 together. Irish Steel was sold to Ispat Mexicana S.A. de C.V. in 1996 and renamed Irish Ispat. After a difficult trading period, Irish Ispat Limited went into liquidation in June 2001. In 2002, the liquidator initiated proceedings under section 290 of the Companies Acts to disclaim the lease. In early 2003 the liquidator exercised a break clause...

Written Answers — Waste Management: Waste Management (17 Feb 2009)

John Gormley: A policy direction issued from my Department on 3 May 2005 in regard to local authorities, in the course of reviewing their statutory waste management plans, complying with the requirements of section 22 of the Waste Management Acts by preparing an inventory and risk assessment of all non-licensed closed landfills where disposal or recovery activities have taken place. To assist local...

Written Answers — Natural Heritage Areas: Natural Heritage Areas (17 Feb 2009)

John Gormley: Provision is made in Regulation 20 of the EC (Natural Habitats) Regulations, 1997, for the payment of compensation to landowners and/or users of land who suffer an actual financial loss as a result of Natura 2000 designations and I envisage that compensation will continue to be payable on that basis. To date, my Department has paid some €24 million in compensation to landowners and/or...

Written Answers — Natural Heritage Areas: Natural Heritage Areas (17 Feb 2009)

John Gormley: I propose to take Questions Nos. 386 and 387 together. During the planning stage of this project my Department's National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) raised concerns that placing the road in a cutting could potentially have adverse impacts on Pollardstown Fen, which is a Special Area of Conservation. This view was accepted by the National Roads Authority and Kildare County Council, and...

Written Answers — Environmental Policy: Environmental Policy (17 Feb 2009)

John Gormley: Council Directive 85/337/EEC on the assessment of the effect of certain public and private projects on the environment (as amended in 1997 and 2003) specifies projects which, by virtue of their nature, size or location are likely to have significant effects on the environment and should be subject to an environmental impact assessment (EIA). Article 4(1) of the Directive requires projects...

Written Answers — Ministerial Appointments: Ministerial Appointments (17 Feb 2009)

John Gormley: A number of different statutory processes are involved in appointments to State bodies and boards. In some cases statutory selection procedures must be followed or nominations must be sought from independent nominating panels before appointments are made by the Government or by me, as Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government. In other cases only particular public office...

Written Answers — Water and Sewerage Schemes: Water and Sewerage Schemes (17 Feb 2009)

John Gormley: These schemes are included for funding in my Department's Water Services Investment Programme 2007-2009. In December 2008, I approved South Tipperary County Council's Design Review Report, which proposed to procure new water treatment plants for both Burncourt and Fethard as a single Design Built Operate contract and to provide the other elements of the schemes by traditional procurement. No...

Written Answers — Ministerial Staff: Ministerial Staff (17 Feb 2009)

John Gormley: The information requested is set out in the following table. Grade Number of staff Personal Assistant-Higher Executive Officer 1 Personal Secretary-Executive Officer 0.5 × 2 Executive Officer 2 Clerical Officer 2.5 The salary scales for all administrative grades are available on the Department of Finance website (www.finance.gov.ie).

Written Answers — Smarter Travel Policy: Smarter Travel Policy (17 Feb 2009)

John Gormley: As part of my Department's participation in the Dublin Transportation Office's One Small Step campaign, a Workplace Travel Plan was launched in October 2008. The aim of the Plan is to: encourage greater staff use of sustainable transport options when travelling to and from work; and ensure that, where practicable, staff opt for sustainable transport options when conducting business on behalf...

Written Answers — Waste Management: Waste Management (17 Feb 2009)

John Gormley: The facility in question is provided for in the Dublin regional waste management plan for which the four Dublin local authorities have statutory responsibility under the Waste Management Acts. Section 60(3) of the Waste Management Act, 1996 precludes the Minister from exercising any power or control in relation to the performance in particular circumstances by a local authority of a function...

Written Answers — Local Authority Housing: Local Authority Housing (17 Feb 2009)

John Gormley: My Department does not collect information on the names and locations of housing estates taken in charge by planning authorities.

Written Answers — Dublin Docklands Development Authority: Dublin Docklands Development Authority (17 Feb 2009)

John Gormley: I am aware of concerns, expressed most recently at the meeting of the Joint Committee on the Environment, Heritage and Local Government on 10 February 2009, regarding the involvement of the Dublin Docklands Development Authority in the purchase of the site concerned, and related conflicts of interest on the part of members of the Board of the Authority. The Authority was established in 1997...

Written Answers — Register of Electors: Register of Electors (17 Feb 2009)

John Gormley: In order to be able to vote at elections and referenda in this jurisdiction, a person's name must be entered in the register of electors for a constituency in the State in which the person ordinarily resides. Postal voting is provided for in electoral law in respect of certain categories of person who are entered in the register of electors. The Electoral Act 1992 provides for postal voting...

Written Answers — Offshore Islands: Offshore Islands (17 Feb 2009)

John Gormley: I propose to take Questions Nos. 405 to 407, inclusive, together. I made funding available to the Office of Public Works (OPW) for the purchase of the majority land holding on the Great Blasket Island. This purchase has now been completed. The OPW will be responsible for the management, conservation and promotion of the property and will carry out initial protection/conservation works to...

Written Answers — Property Management Companies: Property Management Companies (17 Feb 2009)

John Gormley: My Department has no function in relation to the running of property management companies in general, or the issue of management charges in particular. Property management companies, comprising the owners of dwellings, are generally constituted under the Companies Acts and are required to operate in compliance with company law, which comes under the area of responsibility of the Minister for...

Written Answers — Planning Issues: Planning Issues (17 Feb 2009)

John Gormley: I refer to the reply to Question No. 245 of 11 February 2009. I approved and issued draft Guidelines for Planning Authorities on the Planning System and Flood Risk Management for public consultation on 23 September 2008.

Written Answers — Local Authority Funding: Local Authority Funding (17 Feb 2009)

John Gormley: No allocation had been provided by my Department in respect of this project.