Results 4,021-4,040 of 6,939 for speaker:Cian O'Callaghan

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Local Government (Maternity Protection and Other Measures for Local Authority Elected Members) Bill 2022: Discussion (22 Sep 2022)

Cian O'Callaghan: Before I welcome the Bill, I want to correct something the Minister of State said in his opening remarks. He stated that the working group had representation from all political parties and none. To be clear, it did not have representation from all political parties. It did have representation from a good number of political parties but my party, for example, was not represented on it.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Local Government (Maternity Protection and Other Measures for Local Authority Elected Members) Bill 2022: Discussion (22 Sep 2022)

Cian O'Callaghan: Okay. I thank the Minister of State. It was not represented initially. Other smaller parties, however, were not represented on it.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Local Government (Maternity Protection and Other Measures for Local Authority Elected Members) Bill 2022: Discussion (22 Sep 2022)

Cian O'Callaghan: Okay.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Local Government (Maternity Protection and Other Measures for Local Authority Elected Members) Bill 2022: Discussion (22 Sep 2022)

Cian O'Callaghan: Okay. I accept the Minister of State's correction; apologies for that. I welcome the legislation and, in particular, the fact that it recognises that public representatives are human, just like everyone else. There is a problem in politics and political discourse whereby public representatives are often dehumanised. The expectations of them are very high, and do not recognise their...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Local Government (Maternity Protection and Other Measures for Local Authority Elected Members) Bill 2022: Discussion (22 Sep 2022)

Cian O'Callaghan: However, the council or local authority, through it standing orders, would be able to do that, and that would be an option.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Local Government (Maternity Protection and Other Measures for Local Authority Elected Members) Bill 2022: Discussion (22 Sep 2022)

Cian O'Callaghan: Just to be clear, the provision of administrative support is just for councillors who do not choose to have a temporary substitute. Is that correct?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Local Government (Maternity Protection and Other Measures for Local Authority Elected Members) Bill 2022: Discussion (22 Sep 2022)

Cian O'Callaghan: Did the Minister of State consider having that option available for councillors who do opt to have a temporary substitute? They are still going to have a lot of emails coming into their accounts. An arrangement could be made for the substitute to deal with that, but it is not ideal in the sense that the substitute is obviously going to be new in the role. If a person is filling the...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Local Government (Maternity Protection and Other Measures for Local Authority Elected Members) Bill 2022: Discussion (22 Sep 2022)

Cian O'Callaghan: Is it only the substitute who can do the representation?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Local Government (Maternity Protection and Other Measures for Local Authority Elected Members) Bill 2022: Discussion (22 Sep 2022)

Cian O'Callaghan: Does that mean that councillors on maternity leave will receive maternity leave benefit?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Local Government (Maternity Protection and Other Measures for Local Authority Elected Members) Bill 2022: Discussion (22 Sep 2022)

Cian O'Callaghan: I have a final question on the point that Deputy Mitchell raised about positions on SPCs not being automatically transferable, and that being up to local authorities. Is it not possible to do that in the legislation? I ask the Minister of State to explain more about that. It would certainly be desirable, because where there is not a huge support, we can see people, in a competitive sense,...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Local Government (Maternity Protection and Other Measures for Local Authority Elected Members) Bill 2022: Discussion (22 Sep 2022)

Cian O'Callaghan: They will embrace the spirit of it.

Ceisteanna - Questions: Housing Policy (20 Sep 2022)

Cian O'Callaghan: 10. To ask the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on housing last met. [44366/22]

An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (20 Sep 2022)

Cian O'Callaghan: House prices have never been so high. The number of people who are homeless has never been so high. Young people living at home in their late 20s and into their early 30s are talking about emigrating to find somewhere affordable to live and be able to move out of home, and increasing numbers of them are doing so. In the most recent election, Fianna Fáil promised 10,000 affordable...

An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (20 Sep 2022)

Cian O'Callaghan: The Government is not delivering on it.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Private Rental Sector: Discussion (20 Sep 2022)

Cian O'Callaghan: I thank those who have come in and presented to us. I know from talking to landlords in my constituency that issues around the registration with the RTB have caused a huge amount of stress and distress, and have certainly been cited to me as a reason for people exiting, as well as failures around the RTB in terms of enforcement and so forth. I am constantly meeting younger people in my...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Private Rental Sector: Discussion (20 Sep 2022)

Cian O'Callaghan: I have a follow-up question. The IPOA listed the amount of change in the private rented sector since 2009. For any sector to have faced such a huge amount of change in regulations means it is very difficult for people to navigate and manage that, and I do not think that is the way to do things. It should be about whatever fundamental reforms are needed on an agreed basis and with...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Private Rental Sector: Discussion (20 Sep 2022)

Cian O'Callaghan: I strongly agree in terms of cost rental being available to people in receipt of HAP. On a question for Threshold, its opening statement referred to rent increases outside of rent pressure zones being as high as 60% or even double, and this is something I have come across. Needless to say, no one can sustain those sorts of rent increases. Does Threshold think there is an issue with the...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Private Rental Sector: Discussion (20 Sep 2022)

Cian O'Callaghan: I have a final question for Mr. Davitt. He spoke about the RTB and the frustrations around the registration process. Will he explain this with regard to dispute resolution and the view of his organisation with regard to how the RTB is performing? Does that cause issues?

Water Services (Amendment) (No. 2) Bill 2022: Second Stage (15 Sep 2022)

Cian O'Callaghan: I am disappointed with two aspects of the Minister of State's opening remarks on this legislation. One is relatively minor and it concerns saying that the majority of the joint committee's recommendations are reflected in this Bill. We only made three recommendations, which I think was quite modest of us. Out of those three recommendations, one has been adopted. Therefore, that is by no...

An Bord Pleanála: Statements (15 Sep 2022)

Cian O'Callaghan: At the outset, with reference to the 2016 report that was ordered by the then Minister, Deputy Kelly, I wish to state that some of the recommendations in that report, if implemented, would be a disaster. If that is not clear to people after recent events, I do not know when it will be clear. One of those recommendations was that some decisions would be made, in some cases, by a sole or one...