Results 4,101-4,120 of 9,814 for speaker:Steven Matthews

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Modern Construction Methods: Discussion (2 May 2023)

Steven Matthews: That is fine. We will have time.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Modern Construction Methods: Discussion (2 May 2023)

Steven Matthews: I would like to come back to that. I am hearing that this is possible but not straightforward, which can often act as a barrier to doing something.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Modern Construction Methods: Discussion (2 May 2023)

Steven Matthews: I thank Deputy O'Callaghan. We will go back now to the second Fine Gael slot. I call Deputy Higgins.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Modern Construction Methods: Discussion (2 May 2023)

Steven Matthews: I thank Deputy Higgins. We will move now to Deputy Ó Broin.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Modern Construction Methods: Discussion (2 May 2023)

Steven Matthews: Absolutely. This discussion has been fascinating. It has been quite technical, however, and I am trying to look at it from the perspective of members of the public who might be watching or anybody who does not have the technical expertise of the people in this room. How will modular and modern methods of construction impact on affordability in the long run? We have heard a number of ways...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Modern Construction Methods: Discussion (2 May 2023)

Steven Matthews: Mr. O'Connor might help us with that. One does not have to do that at the moment. When an electrician wires a house in Dublin, a guy in Cork can test and certify it. One does not need the-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Modern Construction Methods: Discussion (2 May 2023)

Steven Matthews: That is the rule at the moment.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Modern Construction Methods: Discussion (2 May 2023)

Steven Matthews: How do we address that? Is it through SOLAS, RECI or the Electro-Technical Council of Ireland, ETCI?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Modern Construction Methods: Discussion (2 May 2023)

Steven Matthews: Okay. We are at the start of that this, so these are the kinds of things where we can say, "this is where we can shave a week off, and this is where we can save as the volume goes up." I have another question which might be asked by somebody who is watching or has an interest in this. If I walk around a volumetric home, am I going to notice that this is not the same as what I would call...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Modern Construction Methods: Discussion (2 May 2023)

Steven Matthews: Okay. In regard to putting them together and building at higher densities, I notice the drawings Mr. O'Connor put up. I appreciate it is very early days. They are in a line. Is there a space we can go to where these can be joined together and on top of each other, so we have these not very high rise but multi-unit options?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Modern Construction Methods: Discussion (2 May 2023)

Steven Matthews: I want to come back to that question, which Ms Wylde raised in her last contribution. We have a lot of the brains in the room here. We have a lot of people who know about this. Are they all sitting down together? Is there a format or working group, working on this with Departments, industry and expertise? Is that group set up?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Modern Construction Methods: Discussion (2 May 2023)

Steven Matthews: Ms Wylde referenced it in her last contribution. Is that an agenda item? How are we dealing with TGD-B and the regulations and the possibility and the opportunity that is here? Is that being worked on at the moment? When are we going to see an output from that? My sense, from speaking to people in the industry who are working on this, is that there is a huge opportunity. A lot of people...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Modern Construction Methods: Discussion (2 May 2023)

Steven Matthews: Mr. Balfe might talk me through that. What would that board do? We would have a building regulation advisory board. What was its title?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Modern Construction Methods: Discussion (2 May 2023)

Steven Matthews: We could approach that group and say we may be importing CLT because we are not yet ready to manufacture it here and we want to build four-, five- or six-storey buildings in CLT and ask it what we need to do to enable that to happen. It seems there is a gap here somewhere.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Modern Construction Methods: Discussion (2 May 2023)

Steven Matthews: How long has the working group on which Mr. O'Connor sits along with representatives of the NSAI been meeting? Have there been any outputs, recommendations or changes made to building codes or whatever we wish to call them?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Modern Construction Methods: Discussion (2 May 2023)

Steven Matthews: That is what I am concerned about. What would our representatives from Coillte say is the number one goal they would like to see as a result of this group?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Modern Construction Methods: Discussion (2 May 2023)

Steven Matthews: I will focus on that before I come to Ms Larkin. A group made up of some players, including Mr. O'Connor, representatives of the NSAI and some Departments, meets at the moment.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Modern Construction Methods: Discussion (2 May 2023)

Steven Matthews: Where could we get the list of people who sit on that group to see where the gaps are? We could consult others out there. As Mr. O'Toole has said, we need to ask if other people need to sit on the group to move things along.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Modern Construction Methods: Discussion (2 May 2023)

Steven Matthews: Yes.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Modern Construction Methods: Discussion (2 May 2023)

Steven Matthews: I understand that.