Results 581-600 of 9,065 for speaker:James Browne

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Renewable Energy Generation (29 Jul 2025)

James Browne: I propose to take Questions Nos. 1504, 1505 and 1506 together. An Coimisiún Pleanála is the national independent statutory body with responsibility for the determination of planning appeals and direct applications for strategic infrastructure and other developments under the Planning and Development Act 2000, as amended, and certain other Acts. The Planning and Development...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: National Parks and Wildlife Service (29 Jul 2025)

James Browne: Policy and planning for offshore renewable energy, including offshore wind energy development, is the responsibility of the Minister for Climate, Energy and the Environment (MCEE). In that context, I have not met with or had any engagement with the National Parks and Wildlife Service in relation to offshore renewable energy.

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Departmental Policies (29 Jul 2025)

James Browne: Section 17(4B) of the Electoral Act 1997, as amended by the Electoral (Amendment) (Political Funding) Act 2012, introduced a gender balance provision aimed at increasing female representation in politics. This provision first came into effect for the February 2016 Dáil election and introduced a requirement that in order to receive full State funding under the Electoral Act 1997, a...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Departmental Policies (29 Jul 2025)

James Browne: The development of new legislation relating to National Parks is a priority for the National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) within my Department. The NPWS is currently assessing the requirements of such legislation and is considering how best to advance the process so as to maximise possible benefits to the ongoing development and management of the National Parks System. The NPWS is...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Schemes (29 Jul 2025)

James Browne: The information requested is not available in my Department. In relation to the Local Authority Affordable Purchase Scheme (LAAPS), in line with Part 2 of the Affordable Housing Act 2021 the administration of affordable housing schemes under LAAPS is a matter for the local authority concerned who will have the specific information sought in relation to any fees by estate agents which have...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Rental Sector (29 Jul 2025)

James Browne: Cost Rental is a key element of the Government's strategy to improve affordability in the rental sector and to provide secure, long-term homes for moderate-income households which are above the income limits for social housing but which may have difficulty affording rental accommodation in the private market. The core principle of Cost Rental is that the rents cover the development,...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Provision (29 Jul 2025)

James Browne: As Social Housing PPP Bundle 3 is now the subject of legal proceedings, it would not be appropriate to make any comment on the matter.

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Public Private Partnerships (29 Jul 2025)

James Browne: The clear focus of this Government is to increase the supply of new build social and affordable homes. This is key to addressing the housing challenge and in particular preventing and ultimately eliminating long term homelessness, and that unquestionably must be the priority for all local authorities. The social housing PPP programme was announced in 2014 aiming to deliver circa 1,500...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Planning Issues (29 Jul 2025)

James Browne: I propose to take Questions Nos. 1514 and 1518 together. In response to the Programme for Government commitment, my Department launched a newly revised ten year Energy Efficiency Retrofit Programme (EERP) in 2021 to retrofit 36,500 local authority homes by 2030. This new programme set a minimum BER performance requirement of B2. The upscaling of the works included in the programme sees a...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Schemes (29 Jul 2025)

James Browne: I propose to take Questions Nos. 1515, 1516 and 1517 together. The Capital Assistance Scheme (CAS) provides up to 100% capital funding to Approved Housing Bodies (AHBs) for the construction and targeted acquisition of housing for priority needs categories to include homelessness, persons with a disability, age-friendly and care leavers. Applications to deliver new social housing under...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Regeneration Projects (29 Jul 2025)

James Browne: My Department currently supports ongoing activity and projects under the Social Housing National Regeneration Programme in the cities of Dublin, Cork and Limerick and the counties of Sligo and Kerry. Wicklow is not currently one of the counties which comes under the National Regeneration Programme and therefore no payments were made in the period in question.

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Regeneration Projects (29 Jul 2025)

James Browne: I propose to take Questions Nos. 1520 and 1521 together. My Department have received a submission from Wicklow County Council in relation to a remedial plan for the estate referred to. Preliminary estimates by the local authority indicate that funding of c. €2 million euro will be required. This submission is currently under review within my Department.

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Provision (29 Jul 2025)

James Browne: Data on residential Commencement Notices, disaggregated by local authority and dwelling type, are published monthly on my Department's website. These data can be accessed at the following link: www.gov.ie/en/department-of-housing-local-government-and-her itage/publications/residential-commencement-notices/

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Provision (29 Jul 2025)

James Browne: My Department collects, collates and publishes data on social housing delivery on a quarterly basis. The Social Housing Construction Status Report (CSR) provides details of social housing developments and their location that have been completed, are under construction or are progressing through the various stages of the design and tender processes. It also includes details on when the...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Provision (29 Jul 2025)

James Browne: Local authorities, including Wicklow County Council, have published 5 year Housing Delivery Action Plans setting out their affordable housing delivery targets up to 2026. Additional affordable homes will also be delivered by the Land Development Agency (LDA), Approved Housing Bodies (AHBs), via the higher Part V requirements introduced in the Affordable Housing Act 2021 and via the First...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Animal Culls (29 Jul 2025)

James Browne: The tables below contain the number of deer shot in Wicklow under licences issued for Section 29 (deer hunting) and Section 42 (serious damage) of the Wildlife Acts, 1976, as amended. Figures for the number of deer shot during the 2024/25 season under a S29 deer hunting licence will not be available until 2026, as returns are received as applicants apply for their new deer hunting licence....

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Ministerial Communications (29 Jul 2025)

James Browne: I propose to take Questions Nos. 1527 and 1528 together. I use my Departmental email address for all official business. I do not conduct any Government business through personal email accounts. I use a mobile phone provided by my Department. The only messaging applications used are Email and MS Teams – both of which are used in Departmental communications.

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Rental Sector (29 Jul 2025)

James Browne: The Government is acutely aware of the housing challenges faced by many sectors of society including those in the rental sector who receive a Notice of Termination. The Government supports people in that position through as number of different Schemes detailed below. The First Home Scheme, which launched in July 2022, is a shared equity scheme designed to help bridge the gap between a...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Planning Issues (29 Jul 2025)

James Browne: The Revised National Planning Framework (NPF) was approved by Government and the Oireachtas in April 2025. The revised NPF recognises that investment in high quality, affordable early learning and childcare is critical both as an educational support for children, and as an enabler of parental labour market participation. National Policy Objective 41 of the NPF in particular prioritises...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Defective Building Materials (29 Jul 2025)

James Browne: The Remediation of Dwellings Damaged by the Use of Defective Concrete Blocks Act 2022 (the Act) was commenced on 22 June 2023 which contains the enhanced grant scheme and adopted the related Regulations on 29 June 2023. The scheme is now open to applications in five counties: Clare, Donegal, Limerick, Mayo and Sligo with comprehensive information of all aspects of the Scheme available on...