Results 6,441-6,460 of 32,583 for speaker:Richard Bruton

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Brexit Issues (11 Dec 2018)

Richard Bruton: The negotiations on both the EU-UK Withdrawal Agreement and political declaration on the framework for the EU-UK future relationship, both of which we were endorsed by the European Council on 25 November, were conducted on behalf of the EU27 by the European Commission and its Article 50 Taskforce.  Brexit is a priority issue for the Government and Ministers and...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Departmental Staff Data (11 Dec 2018)

Richard Bruton: I propose to take Questions Nos. 427 to 432, inclusive, together. The information sought in relation to my Department is set out in the following table.  Figures are represented in full time equivalents. Grade Total staff Males Females Ratio M:F Administrative Officer 20.0 14.0 6.0 1 : 0.4 Assistant Principal 71.7 35.8 35.9 1 : 1 Assistant Secretary 5.0 4.0 1.0...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Climate Change Policy (11 Dec 2018)

Richard Bruton: Addressing climate change and our targets to 2030 and beyond is one of the key policy priorities for this Government.Since my appointment as Minister I have secured Government approval to prepare an All of Government Plan which will set out the actions which must be taken to make Ireland a leader in responding to climate change. I will work with colleagues across Government to develop new...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Greenhouse Gas Emissions (11 Dec 2018)

Richard Bruton: The National Development Plan (NDP), published in February 2018, commits to a significant step change in funding available for climate action over the next decade. Reflecting the strong commitment of Government on this issue, almost €22 billion will be directed, between Exchequer and non-Exchequer resources, to addressing the transition to a low-carbon and climate resilient society. A...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Carbon Budget (11 Dec 2018)

Richard Bruton: The first recommendation of the Citizens’ Assembly report on the topic of “How the State can make Ireland a Leader in Tackling Climate Change” included a proposal that a new or existing independent body, resourced appropriately and given a broad range of new functions and powers, be mandated to propose five year national and sectorial targets for emissions reductions.The...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Climate Change Policy (11 Dec 2018)

Richard Bruton: I propose to take Questions Nos. 434 and 435 together. Addressing climate change, whether through decarbonisation of our economy, or preparing to adapt to the impacts of climate change, is one of the most significant challenges of this century. The publication on 8 October of the Special Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) on the impacts of global warming of...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Consultancy Contracts Expenditure (11 Dec 2018)

Richard Bruton: In considering whether to extend the existing agreements or retender for a new concessionaire at the end of the term of the Concession Agreements, a detailed review of the Metropolitan Area Networks (MANs) was undertaken by my Department in 2016.  Subsequently, my Department engaged Norcontel Consultants following a procurement process to undertake an external review of...

Climate Change: Statements (6 Dec 2018)

Richard Bruton: I thank Deputies for participating in this debate. We had a good exchange, as some of the Deputies acknowledged, for two and a half hours yesterday in the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Climate Action. That committee, as the House will be aware, has been appointed to report back by the end of January on how we should respond to the various reports on climate change, including the report of...

Climate Change: Statements (6 Dec 2018)

Richard Bruton: I should also say that we had two and a half hours in the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Climate Action yesterday so it is not the case that it is not being taken seriously by Government.

Climate Change: Statements (6 Dec 2018)

Richard Bruton: We are, and five minutes is very limited time, so I will try to be brief and perhaps just refer to matters that were not referred to in the committee yesterday. The emissions figures for 2017 have been published and, overall, show a slight reduction in carbon emissions. The areas that drove this reduction were energy, which is down 6.9%, residential, which is down 5%, and transport,...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Cyber Security Policy (6 Dec 2018)

Richard Bruton: While my Department does not release specific details in relation to the staff or precise funding allocated to the National Cyber Security Centre for operational security reasons, in Budget 2018 additional funding was secured for additional capacity in the NCSC, both in terms of personnel and additional technology. Further recruitment into the NCSC was undertaken in 2018 and is...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Better Energy Homes Scheme (6 Dec 2018)

Richard Bruton: The Better Energy Warmer Homes scheme is funded by my Department and administered by the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI).  The scheme delivers a range of energy efficiency measures free of charge to low income households vulnerable to energy poverty. To date over 130,000 homes have received free upgrades under the scheme, leaving the occupants better able to...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Asbestos Remediation Programme (6 Dec 2018)

Richard Bruton: There is no funding available from my Department for the removal of asbestos from residential properties. However, the Home Renovation Incentive (HRI) scheme lets homeowners, landlords and local authority tenants claim tax relief on repairs, renovations or improvement work that is carried out on their main home or rental property. The works must be completed by a tax-compliant...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Post Office Closures (6 Dec 2018)

Richard Bruton: I propose to take Questions Nos. 218, 222 and 223 together. An Post is a commercial State body with a mandate to deliver a postal delivery service and a viable post office network. In November 2017, Government was presented with a future for An Post and the post office network that was uncertain and extremely bleak with a very real possibility that the company would go under. The...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Legislative Measures (6 Dec 2018)

Richard Bruton: I propose to take Questions Nos. 219 and 220 together. There were two post enactment reports published by my Department since March 2011, the details of which are as follows:- Post Enactment Report Date of Publication Post Enactment Report on Energy Act 2016 24 July 2017 Post Enactment Scrutiny Report on Communications Regulation (Postal Services) (Amendment) Act 2017 17 May 2018 The...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Departmental Schemes (6 Dec 2018)

Richard Bruton: There are a number of grant schemes administered either directly by my Department or on behalf of my Department by the agencies under its aegis, for which funding can be applied for.  I have set out in the table details of the programmes, the basis or criteria used for the allocation of funding and the value of the Project/Grant. Name of Scheme Basis or Criteria used for allocation of...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Electric Vehicles (6 Dec 2018)

Richard Bruton: A key aspect of the work of the Low Emission Vehicle Taskforce, co-chaired by my Department and the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport, involved examining how best to support the development of the electric vehicle charging. The first phase of the Taskforce's work, which focused on electric vehicles, is now complete and the progress report is available on my Department’s...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Third Report of the Citizens' Assembly: Discussion (Resumed) (5 Dec 2018)

Richard Bruton: I thank the Chairman and committee for the invitation. I am new to this job and I am sure many of those here are better informed than I am on some of the challenges but I can report on the blunt message from Katowice this week where I attended the UN climate change conference. It will not come as a surprise to the committee that the themes were stark. One was that the window to act in...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Third Report of the Citizens' Assembly: Discussion (Resumed) (5 Dec 2018)

Richard Bruton: The model we had then was to identify up to 200 actions per year right across the spectrum of Government. Each action was timelined. During the course of the year, the then Department of Business, Enterprise and Innovation then reported on the progress of those targets to the Cabinet committee, chaired by the Taoiseach. We published, in each quarter, the extent to which actions had or had...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Third Report of the Citizens' Assembly: Discussion (Resumed) (5 Dec 2018)

Richard Bruton: To answer the question on legislation, we will need regulatory change. We will need legislation in areas like foreshore. There is a need for guidelines and standards. We need to consider whether an omnibus item of legislation will be produced to enshrine all of those or whether they will be developed individually. There are legislative or statutory bottlenecks that are holding sectors...