Results 461-480 of 2,965 for speaker:Robert Dowds

Public Accounts Committee: 2013 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 29 - Communications, Energy and Natural Resources
Chapter 8 - Operation of the Emergency Call Answering Service (7 May 2015)

Robert Dowds: Can Mr. Griffin give an indication of what new areas will be covered within a year?

Public Accounts Committee: 2013 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 29 - Communications, Energy and Natural Resources
Chapter 8 - Operation of the Emergency Call Answering Service (7 May 2015)

Robert Dowds: Is it the intention to provide coverage for the maximum number of people in the first year of operation and then to move gradually to the more remote areas?

Public Accounts Committee: 2013 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 29 - Communications, Energy and Natural Resources
Chapter 8 - Operation of the Emergency Call Answering Service (7 May 2015)

Robert Dowds: In terms of company selection, will the decision be based on who can roll out the programme quickest or on tender bid?

Public Accounts Committee: 2013 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 29 - Communications, Energy and Natural Resources
Chapter 8 - Operation of the Emergency Call Answering Service (7 May 2015)

Robert Dowds: In regard to roll-out of broadband to second level schools, Mr. Griffin referred in his opening statement to a programme having been completed in 2014. The counties to which he referred in this regard are Dublin and its three surrounding counties. Am I to take it from that that delivery of second level school broadband for counties Dublin, Meath, Kildare and Wicklow has been completed?

Public Accounts Committee: 2013 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 29 - Communications, Energy and Natural Resources
Chapter 8 - Operation of the Emergency Call Answering Service (7 May 2015)

Robert Dowds: What is the position in regard to the counties beyond the greater Dublin area?

Public Accounts Committee: 2013 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 29 - Communications, Energy and Natural Resources
Chapter 8 - Operation of the Emergency Call Answering Service (7 May 2015)

Robert Dowds: This is an excellent programme that is absolutely essential given the world in which we now live. Presumably, as in the case of business and domestic customers, broadband coverage in the schools in remote areas is poor.

Public Accounts Committee: 2013 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 29 - Communications, Energy and Natural Resources
Chapter 8 - Operation of the Emergency Call Answering Service (7 May 2015)

Robert Dowds: In some cases, the schools will have by far the best broadband service of any organisation in that area.

Public Accounts Committee: 2013 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 29 - Communications, Energy and Natural Resources
Chapter 8 - Operation of the Emergency Call Answering Service (7 May 2015)

Robert Dowds: Does Mr. Griffin have any sense of how business is adversely affected by the delay in good broadband delivery to remote areas?

Public Accounts Committee: 2013 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 29 - Communications, Energy and Natural Resources
Chapter 8 - Operation of the Emergency Call Answering Service (7 May 2015)

Robert Dowds: The Department would be as keen as possible to get this rolled out as fast as possible. Presumably Mr. Griffin will see that no stone is left unturned to ensure that.

Public Accounts Committee: 2013 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 29 - Communications, Energy and Natural Resources
Chapter 8 - Operation of the Emergency Call Answering Service (7 May 2015)

Robert Dowds: I want to go on to some other areas.

Public Accounts Committee: 2013 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 29 - Communications, Energy and Natural Resources
Chapter 8 - Operation of the Emergency Call Answering Service (7 May 2015)

Robert Dowds: May I move on to broadcasting? That is where the biggest tranche of money coming through the Department goes. A sum of €181.5 million goes to RTE and €33.7 million to Teilifís na Gaeilge. Does the amount they get vary according to what comes in from the broadcasting licence each year? That is my understanding.

Public Accounts Committee: 2013 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 29 - Communications, Energy and Natural Resources
Chapter 8 - Operation of the Emergency Call Answering Service (7 May 2015)

Robert Dowds: By Vote-neutral, does Mr. Griffin mean there is no money coming from the general Government budget?

Public Accounts Committee: 2013 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 29 - Communications, Energy and Natural Resources
Chapter 8 - Operation of the Emergency Call Answering Service (7 May 2015)

Robert Dowds: Does the Department do any monitoring of RTE? As the national broadcaster, are there criteria under which it has to operate to demonstrate it is broadcasting in the interests of the country in the widest sense, without having too much political control or whatever? There is always going to be tension between politicians of every hue and the media. Does the Department do any monitoring in...

Public Accounts Committee: 2013 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 29 - Communications, Energy and Natural Resources
Chapter 8 - Operation of the Emergency Call Answering Service (7 May 2015)

Robert Dowds: What happens if the BAI decides that coverage of a particular issue is unbalanced?

Public Accounts Committee: 2013 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 29 - Communications, Energy and Natural Resources
Chapter 8 - Operation of the Emergency Call Answering Service (7 May 2015)

Robert Dowds: For example, when my party colleague, the previous Minister in the Department, criticised RTE over its coverage of the water issue, did the BAI intervene to see if his allegations were regarded as fair or not?

Public Accounts Committee: 2013 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 29 - Communications, Energy and Natural Resources
Chapter 8 - Operation of the Emergency Call Answering Service (7 May 2015)

Robert Dowds: Can it issue a direction?

Public Accounts Committee: 2013 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 29 - Communications, Energy and Natural Resources
Chapter 8 - Operation of the Emergency Call Answering Service (7 May 2015)

Robert Dowds: I would appreciate that.

Public Accounts Committee: 2013 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 29 - Communications, Energy and Natural Resources
Chapter 8 - Operation of the Emergency Call Answering Service (7 May 2015)

Robert Dowds: I would be interested, as I am sure would other members of the committee. Does the Department have any say in the running of RTE or TG4? For example, in respect of salary levels it is a point of contention that certain senior people in RTE are on very high salaries. Is that done entirely within RTE itself?

Public Accounts Committee: 2013 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 29 - Communications, Energy and Natural Resources
Chapter 8 - Operation of the Emergency Call Answering Service (7 May 2015)

Robert Dowds: To wind up the discussion of RTE, can Mr. Griffin come back to me on the exact role of the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland? If I could move to one or two other areas, I will then leave it to Deputy Perry, who is going to cover some other points. On the area of energy research, to what extent does the Department feel this should be prioritised? Can Mr. Griffin outline the long-term...

Public Accounts Committee: 2013 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 29 - Communications, Energy and Natural Resources
Chapter 8 - Operation of the Emergency Call Answering Service (7 May 2015)

Robert Dowds: Would Mr. Griffin think there is a case for having a centre of excellence, probably somewhere in the west, examining renewable energies and how they can be best progressed? I am aware that not all renewable energy would come from the offshore direction but some of it would. I see it as an area in which Ireland could forge out into the future ahead of various other countries. I suspect we...