Results 5,941-5,960 of 21,588 for speaker:Denis Naughten

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Television Licence Fee Collection (10 Oct 2018)

Denis Naughten: As the Deputy will be aware, I obtained Government approval last year to draft a number of legislative amendments to the Broadcasting Act 2009, including amendments for the tendering of television licence fee collection. The proposed amendments were considered under pre-legislative scrutiny by the Joint Committee on Communications, Climate Action and Environment and I received the...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Broadband Service Provision (10 Oct 2018)

Denis Naughten: I will say this again. The vast majority of telecommunications companies in this country have had some role in this procurement process at some stage over its course. If I were the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, the effect of what it has been alleged I should have done would be that I would not meet the farm organisations from the day of my appointment until next month or...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Broadband Service Provision (10 Oct 2018)

Denis Naughten: I did not attend the lunch. My understanding is that Mr. McCourt and his family came in for lunch that day to celebrate a birthday, as they had been in Dublin. That was the reason for that particular lunch.

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Broadband Service Provision (10 Oct 2018)

Denis Naughten: I did not attend it.

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Broadband Service Provision (10 Oct 2018)

Denis Naughten: If Deputy Dooley says it was in my diary, it was in my diary. I do not know.

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Broadband Service Provision (10 Oct 2018)

Denis Naughten: I do not have my diary here.

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: National Broadband Plan Implementation (10 Oct 2018)

Denis Naughten: There are just over 82,200 premises in County Wexford.  When the Government came into office, only 51% of these premises had access to a high-speed broadband service. Today, 67% of premises in the county have access to a high-speed broadband service. On completion of Eir's rural fibre deployment this will increase to 74% of premises in Wexford. However, more than 21,600 premises in...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: National Broadband Plan Implementation (10 Oct 2018)

Denis Naughten: The Department advises me that the bidder in the NBP procurement process is led by Granahan McCourt and includes key subcontractors, Enet, Nokia, Actavo, the Kelly Group and the KN Group. Enet provides access to the MANs infrastructure together with day-to-day operational activities. Nokia will provide a range of high-speed broadband equipment across the intervention area. The KN Group,...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: National Broadband Plan Implementation (10 Oct 2018)

Denis Naughten: The booking was made under my name. I did not speak with David McCourt either in person, on the phone or any other way that day or on subsequent days in relation to that. 11 o’clock I facilitated the family coming into Leinster House, as many colleagues do, but I had no engagement whatsoever with Mr. McCourt.

Ceisteanna - Questions - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Climate Change Policy (10 Oct 2018)

Denis Naughten: The Government has put its money where its mouth is. Earlier this year, we published the National Development Plan 2018-2027, which is committed to €22 billion being invested in climate-related measures over the next decade. On top of that, we are spending €8.6 billion on sustainable transport. If one looks anywhere across Europe, the level of public investment in this area...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Climate Change Policy (10 Oct 2018)

Denis Naughten: Public transport is the solution in our urban areas but, as the Deputy will be aware, 38% of our population lives on 96% of the land mass, and no matter how much public transport one puts in place, we will not be able to address that issue. We have unique challenges in Ireland and we need unique solutions to them. When speaking about the Revised Estimate yesterday, the Minister for Finance...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Broadband Service Provision (10 Oct 2018)

Denis Naughten: The Government's strategy for the NBP was devised following a detailed public consultation. The consultation was undertaken against a backdrop where the telecommunications sector in Ireland operates in a liberalised market that relies on commercial operators investing in building infrastructure and offering services to citizens and businesses on a commercial basis. The commercial...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Post Office Closures (10 Oct 2018)

Denis Naughten: I am responsible for the postal sector, including the governance of An Post, which is a commercial semi-State company with a mandate to deliver a postal delivery service and a viable post office network. I am acutely conscious of the value placed by communities in both rural and urban areas on services provided by post offices. I am fully committed to ensuring a sustainable post office...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Post Office Closures (10 Oct 2018)

Denis Naughten: This decision was not taken today or yesterday. It has been a consistent policy of successive Governments.

Ceisteanna - Questions - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Post Office Closures (10 Oct 2018)

Denis Naughten: In fact, during the greatest economic boom in this country between 2002 and 2010, 629 post offices closed, 26 of which were in Deputy Dooley's county, Clare. At the time, there was not this big public outcry for a public service obligation from Deputy Dooley and his colleagues. An Post is reconfiguring its entire operation, which includes the expansion of the PostPoint service and making...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Post Office Closures (10 Oct 2018)

Denis Naughten: The Fianna Fáil spokesperson, Deputy Ó Cuív, described maintaining all of the post office network throughout the country as "tommyrot". He is on the record here as saying "tommyrot" to anyone who thinks we can save every post office throughout the country. My objective has been to make as many of those post offices as viable as possible. The Deputy said that we should put...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Post Office Closures (10 Oct 2018)

Denis Naughten: What would be the threshold for how many use a service? One person a week? Ten people a week?

Ceisteanna - Questions - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Climate Change Policy (10 Oct 2018)

Denis Naughten: The third report of the Citizens' Assembly, How the State can make Ireland a Leader in Tackling Climate Change, was submitted to the Oireachtas in April of this year. The Houses subsequently established the Joint Committee on Climate Action to further consider the assembly's recommendations and to report by the end of January 2019. I was pleased to note that many of the recommendations...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: National Broadband Plan (10 Oct 2018)

Denis Naughten: First, the minute of the meeting in New York has been published, as has the cover note from the official who took the minute. It reads:Please find attached the minute of last week's meeting in New York. For context the discussion on the NBP was limited to approximately ten minutes during which time Mr. McCourt addressed his remarks to me as the official representing the Department. They...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: National Broadband Plan (10 Oct 2018)

Denis Naughten: First, I have tried to facilitate in every way I can any request for meetings I have had from Members of this Parliament. Second, the Department is responsible for the governance and evaluation of the tender. The Minister has no role in relation to it. As Minister, I have overall responsibility to ensure the Government's objectives under the NBP-----