Results 4,381-4,400 of 5,013 for speaker:Victor Boyhan

Seanad: Planning and Development (Amendment) Bill 2016: Committee Stage (14 Feb 2018)

Victor Boyhan: There is an order for that.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Reports on Homelessness: Discussion (14 Feb 2018)

Victor Boyhan: First, I thank the witnesses from Focus Ireland for coming in. Even the name is indicative of the exceptionally good job it does. Everything Deputy Ó Broin said is spot on. He has hit the nail on the head. What struck me is all the recurring themes. I served on a council for more than 20 years so none of this is new to me. What is really scary is that only two weeks ago I had...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Reports on Homelessness: Discussion (14 Feb 2018)

Victor Boyhan: I thank the witnesses for their presentations. During Senator Murnane O'Connor's contribution, I was struck by something which I would like to share because it illustrates the extent of the problem. A number of county councillors have made representations to Wicklow County Council on this issue. I have received in writing a clear policy statement from the county council, which has had a...

Seanad: Order of Business (13 Feb 2018)

Victor Boyhan: I want to raise three issues. I call on the appropriate Minister to come to the House to explain the Government's intentions in establishing an electoral commission. Page 152 of the programme for partnership Government states the Government's commitment to establishing an independent electoral commission and sets out its role and functions. It is important that we have a strong, robust and...

Seanad: Data Protection Bill 2018: Second Stage (8 Feb 2018)

Victor Boyhan: What are the time slots?

Seanad: Data Protection Bill 2018: Second Stage (8 Feb 2018)

Victor Boyhan: I thank the Minister for coming to the House. I will start with the concluding paragraph of his report to us. He knows better than anyone else that this is very complex legislation, but, at the end of the day, it is both important and necessary. As he says, it is lengthy and complex. I acknowledge the Oireachtas Library and Research Service which has provided a very comprehensive digest...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Reclassification of Approved Housing Bodies: Discussion (8 Feb 2018)

Victor Boyhan: I thank the two speakers for attending. We have had the opportunity to read their presentations and papers. I want to ask a number of questions to keep the focus here. What percentage of housing associations' annual income comes from State agencies, either local or central government? That is a really important thing for us to understand. I would like to see some stats on it rather than...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Reclassification of Approved Housing Bodies: Discussion (8 Feb 2018)

Victor Boyhan: On a supplementary question, is Ms Murphy saying just 50% or------

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Reclassification of Approved Housing Bodies: Discussion (8 Feb 2018)

Victor Boyhan: It is just that.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Reclassification of Approved Housing Bodies: Discussion (8 Feb 2018)

Victor Boyhan: I thank Ms Murphy.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Reclassification of Approved Housing Bodies: Discussion (8 Feb 2018)

Victor Boyhan: Mr. Hannigan made a good point about the possibilities of reversing the decision and he is right to say that united we stand. There may be other fora in this House at which we can raise the matter. Mr. Brennan mentioned the lack of availability of land. There is, however, a substantial amount of land in Dublin city and county. The issue is the level of co-operation with the parties which...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Reclassification of Approved Housing Bodies: Discussion (8 Feb 2018)

Victor Boyhan: I thank all the witnesses for coming before the committee. Before I ask a number of general questions, I want to ask Mr. Smith about two or three issues regarding his statement before the committee. On page 3 of his statement, he states: "the Department [has] received the redacted version of the submission from the CSO to Eurostat on 15th January" and that the Department has "[examined]...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Reclassification of Approved Housing Bodies: Discussion (8 Feb 2018)

Victor Boyhan: Not particularly.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Reclassification of Approved Housing Bodies: Discussion (8 Feb 2018)

Victor Boyhan: I asked five other general questions. Luckily, I have them here so I can repeat them. I raised the local government auditing service. It published a report containing 13 recommendations. Clearly, I am not expecting everyone to be on top of that today, but perhaps someone might give a commitment to look at this and come back to us on it. There were 13 recommendations. The sector was dealt...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Reclassification of Approved Housing Bodies: Discussion (8 Feb 2018)

Victor Boyhan: I thank Mr. Smith.

Seanad: Commencement Matters: Planning Issues (7 Feb 2018)

Victor Boyhan: It says something that there are only two of us in Chamber. As a result, we can engage in dialogue. I welcome the Minister. This Commencement matter concerns the Government's and the Minister's intentions to set up an independent office of national planning regulator, which is timely. The Government is committed to doing so, but I do not know what the timeframe or timeline is. The...

Seanad: Commencement Matters: Planning Issues (7 Feb 2018)

Victor Boyhan: I thank the Minister for his comprehensive response. This is about maintaining confidence in the planning process, which is very important. I am conscious of what has been reported in the media today. It is very important that we do not close down but rather tighten up the timeframes and timelines involved. We must encourage some consultation within the process. The sooner we have the...

Seanad: Order of Business (7 Feb 2018)

Victor Boyhan: Today's edition of The Irish Timescarries a major story on its front page, which states "Proposed rules aim to limit court challenges to building projects", written by Pat Leahy, the political editor. The article purports to give an account of decisions taken at Cabinet yesterday in regard to planning and infrastructure. This suggests that there will be efforts by the Government to reduce...

Seanad: Order of Business (7 Feb 2018)

Victor Boyhan: He needs to get a nomination first.

Seanad: Technological Universities Bill 2015: Committee Stage (7 Feb 2018)

Victor Boyhan: The Minister of State addressed some of the concerns regarding student representation. I appeal to Senators to take a calm, reflective approach to the issue. Perhaps the Minister will engage with Senators on it before Report Stage. The Minister of State provided some clarity when she stated she envisaged governing bodies having student representatives on them. This has been a good and...