Results 4,641-4,660 of 9,814 for speaker:Steven Matthews

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Planning and Development Bill 2022: Discussion (Resumed) (23 Feb 2023)

Steven Matthews: Sure.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Planning and Development Bill 2022: Discussion (Resumed) (23 Feb 2023)

Steven Matthews: I am going to have to bring the meeting to a close, much as we could probably keep going for a bit longer. It comes back to the point Dr. O'Leary made about demonstrating that planning is for the common good. It is what creates our societies, how we get around, where we should live, where are jobs are, and for all the good reasons we are so committed to it on this committee. In a way,...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Planning and Development Bill 2022: Discussion (Resumed) (23 Feb 2023)

Steven Matthews: I thank the witnesses very much for their time this morning. It has been very helpful. We will have another couple of meetings on this topic. I will send the witnesses that section comparator document. We would be happy to take anything else that has occurred to them throughout this discussion which they did not include in their submission. If they could get it to us as soon as possible,...

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Estimates for Public Services 2023
Vote 16 - Tailte Éireann (Further Revised)
Vote 23 - Electoral Commission (Further Revised)
Vote 34 - Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Further Revised) (23 Feb 2023)

Steven Matthews: I welcome everybody to the meeting. We are looking at the Further Revised Estimates for Vote 16 - Tailte Éireann, Vote 23 - Electoral Commission and Vote 34 - Housing, Local Government and Heritage. I welcome the Minister, Deputy Darragh O'Brien, and the Ministers of State, Deputies Noonan and O'Donnell. I congratulate Deputy O'Donnell on his appointment as Minister of State with...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Planning and Development Bill 2022: Discussion (Resumed) (23 Feb 2023)

Steven Matthews: There have been many definitions or interpretations of what sustainable development is, such as equality between economy, society and environment. Have we done that on balance over the years? Is it not time to try to rebalance more towards environment being the main aim with society sitting in it and economy sitting within that. I could not find the definition of sustainable development....

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Estimates for Public Services 2023
Vote 16 - Tailte Éireann (Further Revised)
Vote 23 - Electoral Commission (Further Revised)
Vote 34 - Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Further Revised) (23 Feb 2023)

Steven Matthews: Could we just have the question followed by the answer?

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Estimates for Public Services 2023
Vote 16 - Tailte Éireann (Further Revised)
Vote 23 - Electoral Commission (Further Revised)
Vote 34 - Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Further Revised) (23 Feb 2023)

Steven Matthews: There are about 40 seconds remaining to answer the question which has been asked several times.

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Estimates for Public Services 2023
Vote 16 - Tailte Éireann (Further Revised)
Vote 23 - Electoral Commission (Further Revised)
Vote 34 - Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Further Revised) (23 Feb 2023)

Steven Matthews: I am going to move on now to the next slot, which is mine. I am pleased to see rural water schemes being mentioned by the Minister in his opening statement. They are a critically important aspect of water quality that we need to address. I have several examples of areas that were rural but have now become urban because the urban footprint has grown around these rural houses, some of them...

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Estimates for Public Services 2023
Vote 16 - Tailte Éireann (Further Revised)
Vote 23 - Electoral Commission (Further Revised)
Vote 34 - Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Further Revised) (23 Feb 2023)

Steven Matthews: That is grand. I might write to the Minister with a description of the places I am currently looking at in Wicklow. Planning resources have come up consistently in our pre-legislative scrutiny of the planning Bill. We had a discussion today with the Irish Planning Institute, the Royal Town Planning Institute, the Office of the Planning Regulator, An Bord Pleanála and the regional...

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Estimates for Public Services 2023
Vote 16 - Tailte Éireann (Further Revised)
Vote 23 - Electoral Commission (Further Revised)
Vote 34 - Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Further Revised) (23 Feb 2023)

Steven Matthews: That will definitely assist with some of the backlogs we have heard about with the board. That is very welcome. We now move to electoral reform and the heritage part of the Department. It is probably too parochial and self-interested to ask when the Minister thinks the Electoral Commission is going to report and when we will know how many seats are in our constituencies. I acknowledge...

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Estimates for Public Services 2023
Vote 16 - Tailte Éireann (Further Revised)
Vote 23 - Electoral Commission (Further Revised)
Vote 34 - Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Further Revised) (23 Feb 2023)

Steven Matthews: We have another five minutes so we can briefly go back around members. I do not know what the figure for the urban regeneration and development fund, URDF, is in the Estimates. Approximately a month ago it was announced that €150 million would be spent on regeneration. Will the Minister outline the target or aim of the regeneration fund?

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Estimates for Public Services 2023
Vote 16 - Tailte Éireann (Further Revised)
Vote 23 - Electoral Commission (Further Revised)
Vote 34 - Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Further Revised) (23 Feb 2023)

Steven Matthews: Are workshops being done with local authorities?

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Estimates for Public Services 2023
Vote 16 - Tailte Éireann (Further Revised)
Vote 23 - Electoral Commission (Further Revised)
Vote 34 - Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Further Revised) (23 Feb 2023)

Steven Matthews: Depending on what happens, will the Department consider expanding the scheme to urban centres located outside of these cities?

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Estimates for Public Services 2023
Vote 16 - Tailte Éireann (Further Revised)
Vote 23 - Electoral Commission (Further Revised)
Vote 34 - Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Further Revised) (23 Feb 2023)

Steven Matthews: The committee will have a session on dereliction and vacancy to which we will invite officials from the Department. I call Deputy Ó Broin.

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Estimates for Public Services 2023
Vote 16 - Tailte Éireann (Further Revised)
Vote 23 - Electoral Commission (Further Revised)
Vote 34 - Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Further Revised) (23 Feb 2023)

Steven Matthews: That concludes our consideration of the further Revised Estimates for Votes 16, 23 and 34, which were referred by the Dáil to this committee in accordance with Standing Order 101. A message to that effect will be sent to the Clerk of the Dáil. I thank the Minister, Deputy Darragh O'Brien, the Ministers of State, Deputies O'Donnell and Noonan, and their officials for their...

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Message to Dáil (23 Feb 2023)

Steven Matthews: In accordance with Standing Order 101, the following message will be sent to the Dáil: The Select Committee on Housing, Local Government and Heritage has completed its consideration of the following Revised Estimates for public services for the year ending 31 December 2023: Vote 16 - Tailte Éireann, Vote 23 - Electoral Commission-An Coimisiún Toghcháin, and Vote 34 -...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Fire Safety (22 Feb 2023)

Steven Matthews: 139. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government if his attention has been drawn to significant wait periods to get a fire safety certificate from Wicklow County Council (details supplied) for completed building works; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9004/23]

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Planning and Development Bill 2022: Discussion (Resumed) (21 Feb 2023)

Steven Matthews: Good afternoon everybody, and welcome to the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Local Government and Heritage. Today we are carrying out further scrutiny on the draft planning and development Bill 2022. We are joined by a number of groups which have direct involvement in the planning system, both at council and regional levels. From the County and City Management Association, CCMA, we...