Results 4,301-4,320 of 14,706 for speaker:Phil Hogan

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Rural Development Programme (13 Mar 2013)

Phil Hogan: There is one single Rural Development Programme (RDP) at a national level for the period 2007 – 2013 . My Department is the responsible Department for the delivery of the Axes 3 and 4 elements (LEADER) and , in line with the ‘bottom-up’ approach to rural development, there are 35 Local Action Groups (LAGs) contracted by my Department to deliver the LEADER elements...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Care of the Elderly (13 Mar 2013)

Phil Hogan: The Seniors Alert Scheme provides grant assistance towards the purchase and installation of equipment to enable older persons, without sufficient means, to continue to live securely in their homes with confidence, independence and peace of mind. The Scheme provides for Monitored Personal Alarms for persons over 65 years of age living on their own or with other qualifying persons. In the...

Seanad: Adjournment Matters: Rural Development Programme (12 Mar 2013)

Phil Hogan: In late 2011, the European Commission approved a change in the maximum co-funding rate from 55% to 85% for axes 3 and 4 elements of Ireland's rural development programme 2007-2013. Prior to this, the axes 3 and 4 rural development programme, RDP, measures were co-funded at a rate of 55% by the EU with the remaining 45% coming from national Exchequer sources. The 2011 agreement reduced the...

Seanad: Electoral (Amendment) (Dáil Constituencies) Bill 2012: Committee and Remaining Stages (12 Mar 2013)

Phil Hogan: I referred to Deputy Kevin Humphreys.

Seanad: Electoral (Amendment) (Dáil Constituencies) Bill 2012: Committee and Remaining Stages (12 Mar 2013)

Phil Hogan: Senator Wilson will probably appreciate this more than most. He can imagine the conversation the Taoiseach had with me concerning Mayo when he discovered it was the first time in the history of the State that a Taoiseach's constituency was losing one seat. It shows how genuinely independent the commission was. I can think of a few people in Senator Wilson's own party who would be glad of...

Seanad: Electoral (Amendment) (Dáil Constituencies) Bill 2012: Committee and Remaining Stages (12 Mar 2013)

Phil Hogan: I am sure they are very practical people.

Seanad: Electoral (Amendment) (Dáil Constituencies) Bill 2012: Committee and Remaining Stages (12 Mar 2013)

Phil Hogan: The Senator will have to ask the Taoiseach and Tánaiste to reflect on that on the third anniversary of the Government next year. That would be the appropriate time. That is the reason why, however. If there was no change in the proportion of the electorate to Members, as we have now, we would have 170 Members in the Dáil on the next occasion. We have gone to the limit of what we are...

Seanad: Electoral (Amendment) (Dáil Constituencies) Bill 2012: Committee and Remaining Stages (12 Mar 2013)

Phil Hogan: That is assuming that the Senator's assumption is right.

Seanad: Electoral (Amendment) (Dáil Constituencies) Bill 2012: Committee and Remaining Stages (12 Mar 2013)

Phil Hogan: I can understand that, for some reasons, Members would like to have that reflected in the name of the constituency to demonstrate that they have more empathy for the constituency they will be in the future. We had a considerable population movement from Meath into Louth on the last occasion - twice as much as Mayo South going into Galway - and it did not change the name. It is still Louth....

Seanad: Electoral (Amendment) (Dáil Constituencies) Bill 2012: Committee and Remaining Stages (12 Mar 2013)

Phil Hogan: I respect the people who have been involved in these constituency revisions over the years, which are laid down in law. We have moved away from some of the problems we had in the 1960s and 1970s on all sides of the House, concerning boundaries being predicated in advance. There was no such thing as an independent Electoral Commission then and they were drawn up by the Department and...

Seanad: Electoral (Amendment) (Dáil Constituencies) Bill 2012: Committee and Remaining Stages (12 Mar 2013)

Phil Hogan: I hope they will be around, but I will not.

Seanad: Electoral (Amendment) (Dáil Constituencies) Bill 2012: Committee and Remaining Stages (12 Mar 2013)

Phil Hogan: I have answered already.

Seanad: Electoral (Amendment) (Dáil Constituencies) Bill 2012: Committee and Remaining Stages (12 Mar 2013)

Phil Hogan: The proposed reduction of the Members of the Dáil by 20 members was not included in the programme for Government, while the proposal to abolish Seanad Éireann is. That is the reason.

Seanad: Electoral (Amendment) (Dáil Constituencies) Bill 2012: Committee and Remaining Stages (12 Mar 2013)

Phil Hogan: The Senator should try to be consistent.

Seanad: Electoral (Amendment) (Dáil Constituencies) Bill 2012: Committee and Remaining Stages (12 Mar 2013)

Phil Hogan: The Sinn Féin Party is trying to gerrymander local government in the North.

Seanad: Electoral (Amendment) (Dáil Constituencies) Bill 2012: Committee and Remaining Stages (12 Mar 2013)

Phil Hogan: Gerrymandering.

Seanad: Electoral (Amendment) (Dáil Constituencies) Bill 2012: Committee and Remaining Stages (12 Mar 2013)

Phil Hogan: It is true. Sinn Féin has held it up for ages.

Seanad: Electoral (Amendment) (Dáil Constituencies) Bill 2012: Committee and Remaining Stages (12 Mar 2013)

Phil Hogan: Threats again.

Seanad: Electoral (Amendment) (Dáil Constituencies) Bill 2012: Committee and Remaining Stages (12 Mar 2013)

Phil Hogan: I am sorry the Senator is inconvenienced.

Seanad: Electoral (Amendment) (Dáil Constituencies) Bill 2012: Committee and Remaining Stages (12 Mar 2013)

Phil Hogan: I suppose that Senator Wilson started from a basis that 13,000 people in Cavan will not be represented at all.