Results 41-60 of 2,461 for speaker:John Cummins

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Local Government and Heritage: Planning and Development (Exempted Development (Act of 2000)) Regulations 2025: Discussion (14 Oct 2025)

John Cummins: It does. It is required that the construction has been deemed exempt. It does not require an EIA and it will not be on a Natura site. It will be set back a sufficient distance from watercourses and neighbouring locations.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Local Government and Heritage: Planning and Development (Exempted Development (Act of 2000)) Regulations 2025: Discussion (14 Oct 2025)

John Cummins: Could the Deputy elaborate on the last question?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Local Government and Heritage: Planning and Development (Exempted Development (Act of 2000)) Regulations 2025: Discussion (14 Oct 2025)

John Cummins: There are legal requirements under nitrates law to ensure something is built in a compliant way. There are, obviously, checks by the Department of agriculture in relation to-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Local Government and Heritage: Planning and Development (Exempted Development (Act of 2000)) Regulations 2025: Discussion (14 Oct 2025)

John Cummins: No. Then there are local authority building control checks in the same way that there would be such checks for any structure built. We were speaking earlier about the exemptions pertaining to the commercial-to-residential aspect. It is a matter for the local authority to ensure the conversions are made compliantly.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Local Government and Heritage: Planning and Development (Exempted Development (Act of 2000)) Regulations 2025: Discussion (14 Oct 2025)

John Cummins: Sure.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Local Government and Heritage: Planning and Development (Exempted Development (Act of 2000)) Regulations 2025: Discussion (14 Oct 2025)

John Cummins: I hear what the Deputy is saying and understand why he is saying it. His concern relates to pollution and run-off. When the Department of agriculture carries out inspections on farms, it assesses for pollution. Where something is not operating as it should, it will be very evident from an inspection. I accept the Deputy's point on taking action before a facility is built rather than...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Local Government and Heritage: Planning and Development (Exempted Development (Act of 2000)) Regulations 2025: Discussion (14 Oct 2025)

John Cummins: As I understand it, the 100 m is the setback distance as part of the animal housing element that has existed for the last 24 years. While the slurry storage facility can be stand-alone, slurry can also be stored under animal warehousing.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Local Government and Heritage: Planning and Development (Exempted Development (Act of 2000)) Regulations 2025: Discussion (14 Oct 2025)

John Cummins: Exactly. The setback distance has been in place. The capacity of 1,000 cu. m corresponds to the 300 sq. m of animal housing we are providing for now.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Local Government and Heritage: Planning and Development (Exempted Development (Act of 2000)) Regulations 2025: Discussion (14 Oct 2025)

John Cummins: It corresponds to the 300 sq. m for animal housing. The 1,000 cu. m is what can be stored under a facility of that size.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Local Government and Heritage: Planning and Development (Exempted Development (Act of 2000)) Regulations 2025: Discussion (14 Oct 2025)

John Cummins: It has not come up. As the Deputy knows, we had public consultation as part of the wider exempted development discussion. There were over 920 submissions. I am not aware that what the Deputy is referring to was one of the points raised in the public consultation. A very significant number did respond in the public consultation, so if the matter has been a concern, I would expect it to...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Local Government and Heritage: Planning and Development (Exempted Development (Act of 2000)) Regulations 2025: Discussion (14 Oct 2025)

John Cummins: It has been a slow burner since its introduction. I would have to do the calculations but I would argue that numbers of applicants in 2024 and 2023 probably correspond to the numbers in the four or five preceding years. It has ramped up and the number of units provided as a result of the notifications has increased. Since 2022, former pubs have been included. I have that figure. In 2024,...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Local Government and Heritage: Planning and Development (Exempted Development (Act of 2000)) Regulations 2025: Discussion (14 Oct 2025)

John Cummins: The notification is given at the outset before commencement of works. We do not have a completion figure. However, in my experience of dealing with small builders on the ground who have availed of the commercial to residential exemption, combined with such schemes as the repair and leasing scheme, which has been hugely successful in my county, Waterford, when a property is given a...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Local Government and Heritage: Planning and Development (Exempted Development (Act of 2000)) Regulations 2025: Discussion (14 Oct 2025)

John Cummins: I will take that back and discuss it with the Minister, Deputy Browne. The Deputy makes a fair point. While there is increased awareness of these exemptions and such, it is probably not widespread. Where schemes are in place and used well, they are having a positive impact on reducing vacancy and dereliction. That is what we want to see. In the context of the budget announcement last...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Local Government and Heritage: Planning and Development (Exempted Development (Act of 2000)) Regulations 2025: Discussion (14 Oct 2025)

John Cummins: Exempted development regulations are currently in place under the 2000 Act. As we transfer to the 2024 Act, those regulations need to be updated and brought forward. We had a public consultation on potential new exemptions and it is intended they will be brought forward using a thematic approach. The first of those will be on the domestic side. Attention has been on the modular buildings...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Local Government and Heritage: Planning and Development (Exempted Development (Act of 2000)) Regulations 2025: Discussion (14 Oct 2025)

John Cummins: I do not want to pre-empt it because there a number of moving parts associated with it. In the same way as we are carrying out the environmental consideration for the regulations before us, it will also have to be done as part of the domestic elements so I would be slow to say that. However, I am clearly saying that we will bring the thematic area of domestic regulations before the...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Local Government and Heritage: Planning and Development (Exempted Development (Act of 2000)) Regulations 2025: Discussion (14 Oct 2025)

John Cummins: That is correct, and we have been crystal clear on that from the outset.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Local Government and Heritage: Planning and Development (Exempted Development (Act of 2000)) Regulations 2025: Discussion (14 Oct 2025)

John Cummins: I cannot say on the domestic piece. We are still working through that. To be clear about what is before us today, this is not retrospective.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Local Government and Heritage: Planning and Development (Exempted Development (Act of 2000)) Regulations 2025: Discussion (14 Oct 2025)

John Cummins: It corresponds to the 300 sq. m.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Local Government and Heritage: Planning and Development (Exempted Development (Act of 2000)) Regulations 2025: Discussion (14 Oct 2025)

John Cummins: The only thing I would say on that is that the regulations before us are not retrospective. You cannot make something compliant by virtue of an exemption that may be coming into force. It is forward-looking from here. I am not familiar with that particular case.

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Public Sector Pay (14 Oct 2025)

John Cummins: I understand that the question relates to pay scales in the Local Government sector and specifically those of refuse collectors working outside the Dublin area. While Public Sector pay is set at national level by the Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation, under section 158(1)(d) of the Local Government Act, my Department issues circulars...