Results 4,121-4,140 of 11,114 for speaker:Damien English

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Local Infrastructure Housing Activation Fund (25 May 2017)

Damien English: The aim of the Local Infrastructure Housing Activation Fund (LIHAF) is to relieve critical infrastructural blockages in order to enable the accelerated delivery of housing on key development sites in urban areas with high demand for housing.   On 28 March 2017, Minister Coveney announced funding of €226.5 million for 34 projects under the LIHAF to build...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Local Authority Boundaries Review (25 May 2017)

Damien English: The report of the Waterford Local Boundary Review Group is one of four such review processes initiated under the previous Government. The groups were asked to carry out a review of the boundaries between the relevant local authorities and to make recommendations with respect to those boundaries and any consequential matters that they consider necessary in the interests of...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Housing Policy (25 May 2017)

Damien English: Pillar 5 of the Government's Rebuilding Ireland: Action Plan for Housing and Homelessness is specifically focused on Utilising Existing Housing Stock, with a key objective of ensuring that the existing vacant housing stock throughout the country and across all forms of tenure, in both the public and private sectors, is used to the optimum degree possible. In this regard, Action 5.1 of...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Departmental Reports (25 May 2017)

Damien English: I propose to take Questions Nos. 43 and 63 together. An expert panel on concrete blocks was established by my Department in April 2016 to investigate the problems that have emerged in the concrete blockwork of certain dwellings in Donegal and Mayo. The panel have the following terms of reference: - (i) To identify, insofar as it is possible, the numbers of private dwellings which...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Pyrite Remediation Programme Expenditure (25 May 2017)

Damien English: The Pyrite Resolution Act 2013 provides the statutory framework for the Pyrite Remediation Scheme and while the Act provides that the scheme can be amended, replaced or revoked, this can only be done in accordance with the scope of the Act. In this regard, any proposal to revise the pyrite remediation scheme is ultimately a matter for the Pyrite Resolution Board and would require detailed...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Animal Breeding Regulations (25 May 2017)

Damien English: In late 2015, my Department agreed to begin a process of review of the current Dog Breeding Establishment Guidelines, under the auspices of the County and City Management Association Dogs Working Group. The work undertaken to date has been to produce a first draft revision of the Guidelines. It was considered essential to broaden the review of the Guidelines to a more formal public...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Traveller Accommodation (25 May 2017)

Damien English: In accordance with the Housing (Traveller Accommodation) Act 1998, housing authorities have statutory responsibility for the assessment of the accommodation needs of Travellers and the preparation, adoption and implementation of multi-annual Traveller Accommodation Programmes (TAPs) in their areas. My Department’s role is to ensure that there are adequate structures and supports in...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: National Spatial Strategy (25 May 2017)

Damien English: The new National Planning Framework (NPF), titled Ireland 2040 - Our Plan, will act as the successor to the National Spatial Strategy 2002 (NSS) and will serve as the Government’s strategic 20+ year strategic planning and development framework for the co-ordination of a range of national, regional and local authority policies and activities, planning and investment. On foot of the...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Pyrite Remediation Programme (25 May 2017)

Damien English: I propose to take Questions Nos. 114 and 115 together. The Pyrite Resolution Act 2013 provides the statutory framework for the establishment of the Pyrite Resolution Board and for the making of a pyrite remediation scheme to be implemented by the Board with support from the Housing Agency.  The pyrite remediation scheme is a scheme of “last resort” and is limited in its...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Housing Provision (25 May 2017)

Damien English: Based on ESB connections data, around half of the 15,000 new homes completed last year were one-off houses, mainly built in rural areas, which account for less than 40% of the national population. The high proportion of overall national house-building taking place in rural areas points to the degree to which indigenous communities in rural areas are being facilitated in meeting their...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Pyrite Issues (24 May 2017)

Damien English: I propose to take Questions Nos. 171 and 172 together. The Pyrite Resolution Act 2013 provides the statutory framework for the establishment of the Pyrite Resolution Board and for the making of a pyrite remediation scheme to be implemented by the Board, with support from the Housing Agency. The pyrite remediation scheme is a remedial works scheme of “last resort” and is...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Animal Breeding Regulations (24 May 2017)

Damien English: The regulation of dog breeding establishments is a matter for local authorities in accordance with the Dog Breeding Establishment Act 2010. Each local authority must maintain for public inspection a register of dog breeding establishments in its functional area, which must include the name and address of the applicant seeking entry onto the register, the address of the dog breeding...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Housing Provision (23 May 2017)

Damien English: Pillar 5 of the Government's Rebuilding Ireland: Action Plan for Housing and Homelessness is specifically focused on Utilising Existing Housing Stock, with a key objective of ensuring that the existing vacant housing stock throughout the country and across all forms of tenure, in both the public and private sectors, is used to the optimum degree possible. In this regard, Action 5.1 of...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Fire Safety Regulations (23 May 2017)

Damien English: I propose to take Questions Nos. 282 and 289 together. Under the Building Control Acts 1990 to 2014, primary responsibility for compliance with the requirements of the Building Regulations rests with the designers, builders and owners of buildings.  Enforcement of the Building Regulations is a matter for the 31 local building control authorities, who have extensive powers of inspection...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government: Traveller Accommodation (23 May 2017)

Damien English: In accordance with the Housing (Traveller Accommodation) Act 1998, housing authorities have statutory responsibility for the assessment of the accommodation needs of Travellers and the preparation, adoption and implementation of multi-annual Traveller Accommodation Programmes (TAPs) in their areas.  My Department’s role is to ensure that there are adequate structures and supports...

Residential Tenancies (Housing Emergency Measures in the Public Interest) (Amendment) Bill 2016: Second Stage [Private Members] (18 May 2017)

Damien English: It happened six or seven years ago.

Residential Tenancies (Housing Emergency Measures in the Public Interest) (Amendment) Bill 2016: Second Stage [Private Members] (18 May 2017)

Damien English: The rental sector needs to be an attractive option for tenants and a safe and viable investment choice for investors. Tenants need to have certainty that as long as they pay rent to meet their obligations they will be able to stay in the properties they are renting. Equally, landlords and investors, from the individual wishing to secure an income into the future to an institutional investor...

Residential Tenancies (Housing Emergency Measures in the Public Interest) (Amendment) Bill 2016: Second Stage [Private Members] (18 May 2017)

Damien English: The Deputy might be happy with that but we think that would greatly affect supply. During the debate on the rental strategy at Christmas, we tried to get a balance between supply and demand. It is all very fine to say that we should cut rents and keep them low. We want to keep rents as low as we possibly can but we also want to attract more investment into the sector. We had this...

Residential Tenancies (Housing Emergency Measures in the Public Interest) (Amendment) Bill 2016: Second Stage [Private Members] (18 May 2017)

Damien English: I am okay with Deputies who believe that but it is not possible to do that overnight. We are trying to ramp up building and we will get back to where we should be. As I said, local authorities should never have stopped building houses. We need to build houses but it takes a little time. We also need investment from the private sector because we need 25,000 or 30,000 houses to come on...

Topical Issue Debate: Hospital Consultant Recruitment (18 May 2017)

Damien English: I will be as brief as I possibly can. I did answer the question in detail and I explained to the Deputy all that has been done. The high level working groups have tried to address this and any concerns the Deputy has and deal with the process. We recognise that there are approximately 300 consultant posts that are difficult to fill due to geographical location or the nature of the...