Results 41-60 of 5,445 for in 'Dáil debates' speaker:Kieran O'Donnell

Local Government (Mayor of Limerick) and Miscellaneous Provisions Bill 2023: From the Seanad (28 Feb 2024)

Kieran O'Donnell: Amendment No. 8 adds two new functions to the mayoral advisory and implementation committee at paragraphs (d) and (g) of section 32(5). These are in the areas of nature, biodiversity and sustainability and regeneration projects in Limerick. There is also some re-ordering of paragraphs. That is the technical point. The importance of having regard to nature, biodiversity and...

Local Government (Mayor of Limerick) and Miscellaneous Provisions Bill 2023: From the Seanad (28 Feb 2024)

Kieran O'Donnell: There is a slight clarification to that point. Currently under section 154 of the Local Government Act 2001, the CEO can delegate functions to staff within the local authority. However, the CEO continues to be responsible for those activities. Similarly, we made an amendment to the legislation whereby the mayor is entitled to delegate the carrying out of functions to the DG, which was the...

Local Government (Mayor of Limerick) and Miscellaneous Provisions Bill 2023: From the Seanad (28 Feb 2024)

Kieran O'Donnell: I will go through the points made by Deputy Quinlivan. I am conscious that people voted by plebiscite to bring in a directly elected mayor, but 48% of the people of Limerick had reservations and voted against it. We need to bring those people with us. In regard to staff, we tabled an amendment on Report Stage in the Dáil. This was something that Deputies Quinlivan and Mitchell and...

Local Government (Mayor of Limerick) and Miscellaneous Provisions Bill 2023: From the Seanad (28 Feb 2024)

Kieran O'Donnell: We have debated this at length. This Bill has had 20 hours of debate - four days in the Dáil and four days in the Seanad. We can agree to differ. We have put in place something that will bring about a very good mayor. It is based on what the public voted for. Certain functions stay with the CEO, now to be called the director general. Amendment No. 5 specifically is about being...

Local Government (Mayor of Limerick) and Miscellaneous Provisions Bill 2023: From the Seanad (28 Feb 2024)

Kieran O'Donnell: There was some discussion on Committee Stage in the Seanad about the importance of ensuring the membership of the delivery board and the transport subgroup of that board includes a person who has relevant climate expertise. More generally, we discussed how to reflect the role of the mayor in relation to climate matters in the new structures under the Bill. I indicated that I would consider...

Local Government (Mayor of Limerick) and Miscellaneous Provisions Bill 2023: From the Seanad (28 Feb 2024)

Kieran O'Donnell: I will speak to amendments Nos. 3, 4, 15 to 18, inclusive, 21 and 49 to 55, inclusive. These are minor technical and drafting amendments. Amendments No. 3 and 4 to sections 23 and 25 aim to ensure a consistency of language across various sections. Amendments No. 15 to 18, inclusive, and 21 to existing sections 65 and 66 are of a technical drafting nature and there is no change to the...

Local Government (Mayor of Limerick) and Miscellaneous Provisions Bill 2023: From the Seanad (28 Feb 2024)

Kieran O'Donnell: Regarding amendment No. 5, section 27 provides that the mayor may delegate in writing certain of his or her functions to the director general. This applies only to the functions that transferred from the chief executive to the mayor when he or she assumed office. This amendment requires that the elected members of Limerick City and County Council are notified when a function has been...

Local Government (Mayor of Limerick) and Miscellaneous Provisions Bill 2023: From the Seanad (28 Feb 2024)

Kieran O'Donnell: It is about delegate functions.

Local Government (Mayor of Limerick) and Miscellaneous Provisions Bill 2023: From the Seanad (28 Feb 2024)

Kieran O'Donnell: To be helpful, it is about delegate functions.

Local Government (Mayor of Limerick) and Miscellaneous Provisions Bill 2023: From the Seanad (28 Feb 2024)

Kieran O'Donnell: These amendments propose that three new provisions be inserted to Part 8 along with consequential amendments to the Long Title, the collective citation and the commencement provisions. These are housing activation measures. The first substantive provision proposes an amendment to the Housing Finance Agency Act 1981 to allow for the consent of the Minister for Public Expenditure, National...

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate: Ambulance Service (15 Feb 2024)

Kieran O'Donnell: I thank Deputy Kerrane. I will take back the points she raised to the Minister. In my opening statement I concentrated for the most part on ambulance resourcing and some recent alternative care paths in County Roscommon. I will now focus on the service nationally and touch on the investment in our National Ambulance Service and its future plans. This Government has invested very...

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate: Ambulance Service (15 Feb 2024)

Kieran O'Donnell: I am taking this Topical Issue on behalf of the Minister for Health. I thank Deputy Kerrane for the opportunity to update the House on delivery of ambulance services in Roscommon, including the important emergency response role carried out by the rapid resource vehicle, RRV. I am informed that in the context of the National Ambulance Service emergency response operations across the...

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate: Hospital Overcrowding (15 Feb 2024)

Kieran O'Donnell: I am taking this matter on behalf of the Minister for Health, Deputy Stephen Donnelly. I thank Deputy Paul Donnelly for raising the question of overcrowding at Connolly Hospital, Blanchardstown. Connolly Hospital, Blanchardstown, is a major teaching academic hospital within the RCSI Hospitals Group. It has a catchment population of upwards of 331,000 people and serves a mixed urban and...

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate: Hospital Overcrowding (15 Feb 2024)

Kieran O'Donnell: I appreciate the Deputy’s contribution and his genuine sentiments on the surge in attendance at Connolly Hospital, Blanchardstown. I also thank him for raising this important topic and acknowledge that he has raised other issues. The Government understands how important it is to make quality patient services available to people in Blanchardstown and everyone across the country....

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate: Antisocial Behaviour (15 Feb 2024)

Kieran O'Donnell: I am taking this matter on behalf of the Minister for Justice, Deputy McEntee. I thank Deputy Gannon for raising it. In fairness to the Deputy, he has raised it on many occasions. As the Deputy may be aware, the Government's approach to the misuse of drugs is set out in Ireland's national drug strategy, Reducing Harm, Supporting Recovery. This is a health-led approach to drug and...

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate: Antisocial Behaviour (15 Feb 2024)

Kieran O'Donnell: I ask the Deputy to send me a structured email so that we can formally follow up with Dublin City Council on the issues he has raised on behalf of the people he represents. On behalf of the Minister, Deputy McEntee, I thank the Deputy for raising this issue in the House. While the Minister for Health and his Department lead the Government response to drug use, tackling this issue will...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Renewable Energy Generation (15 Feb 2024)

Kieran O'Donnell: Under the climate action plan, the retrofit target for local authority owned homes is to retrofit 36,500 to BER B2 or cost optimal equivalent by 2030. As part of this new scheme over the period 2021 to 2023, 5,766 local authority homes have been retrofitted to B2 cost optimal equivalent. Furthermore, retrofit works were completed on over 74,000 local authority-owned dwelling since 2013 to...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Renewable Energy Generation (15 Feb 2024)

Kieran O'Donnell: We note the last point the Deputy has made. If he looks at the funding for this particular programme, in 2023, €76.9 million was provided. There were 2,445, which was the target. Next year, the target is 3,500 social homes. We have an increased allocation in that area. We are looking at this as a programme we want to work. It is a programme we are committed to, and we are looking...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Renewable Energy Generation (15 Feb 2024)

Kieran O'Donnell: It is something we are looking at. We have received correspondence from the Deputy and others, and it is something that the Minister, Deputy O'Brien, and I are considering as we speak.

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Vacant Properties (15 Feb 2024)

Kieran O'Donnell: Cork City Council last year got an initial allocation of €1.8 million. It received an additional allocation of €800,000, making a total of €2.56 million.