Results 701-720 of 6,137 for speaker:Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Social Protection: Energy Poverty: Discussion (Resumed) (14 Feb 2024)

Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire: A person can qualify for the warmer homes scheme if he or she receives a disability or partial capacity allowance but not if it is an invalidity pension. Maybe the angle is that the invalidity pension is a means-tested payment. Having said that, these are primarily people who are either not going to work again for a very long time or may never work again. A means test is done usually...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Social Protection: Energy Poverty: Discussion (Resumed) (14 Feb 2024)

Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire: Okay. Actually I came at that a little wrongly. Mr. Deegan is correct when he says it is the other way around, but the point is that there are people in receipt of the invalidity pension who might well qualify under a means test but have chosen an invalidity payment because of medical criteria and it might be easier to get if they have the contributions. Some people who are on the...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Social Protection: Energy Poverty: Discussion (Resumed) (14 Feb 2024)

Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire: There are a few issues in that. What Mr. Deegan said about the close alignment of the fabric and the heat pump is coherent. It ensures the impact on that house and householder is as efficient as possible. However, the downside is that we are proceeding slowly with the stock as whole. I am not saying that is necessarily wrong. My colleague, Deputy O'Rourke, raised the issue of biofuel...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Social Protection: Energy Poverty: Discussion (Resumed) (14 Feb 2024)

Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire: I have one more question and then I have two more pieces. That report is not from a million years ago but things develop quickly in this arena. That document is from February 2022 and I imagine some of the studies and considerations it was working off were from 2020, 2021 and so on. Things have evolved. We have our first HVO refinery now in my constituency, as it happens. That is not the...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Social Protection: Energy Poverty: Discussion (Resumed) (14 Feb 2024)

Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire: Okay.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Social Protection: Energy Poverty: Discussion (Resumed) (14 Feb 2024)

Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire: I thank Mr. Deegan. I have two more questions-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Social Protection: Energy Poverty: Discussion (Resumed) (14 Feb 2024)

Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire: -----and I will ask them together. I imagine this comes up often but I am concerned at the skills deficit and the fact there is obviously contract within construction and all that kind of stuff. There is a pipeline delay with apprenticeships, especially for electricians and probably plumbers and heating engineers as well. Is that an ongoing conversation with the Department of enterprise?...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Social Protection: Energy Poverty: Discussion (Resumed) (14 Feb 2024)

Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire: I asked a question that was touched on but not answered. It was about the relationship between the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications and the Department of housing. Mr. Deegan touched on it in some of his answers. Different local authorities tell me different things. However, they indicate that the funding they get from the Department of Housing is not adequate to...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Social Protection: Energy Poverty: Discussion (Resumed) (14 Feb 2024)

Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire: That concludes our business in public session. I propose that the committee go into private session to consider other business. Is that agreed? Agreed.

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: School Transport (13 Feb 2024)

Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire: I support the comments made by Deputy Clarke on this issue. On top of the issue of transport to school, I also flag the issue of transport between school campuses. The proposal put forward by the Minister's Department for Owenabue Educate Together national school sees the school split between two campuses for its temporary accommodation. Split campuses are rarely ideal. However, in a...

Select Committee on Social Protection: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 37 - Social Protection (Revised) (7 Feb 2024)

Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire: I echo the expressions of condolence to the family and community of John Bruton. Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam dílis. I also echo the Minister's comments about the staff of her Department, particularly those on the front line. I was listening in on the meeting but I missed the administration head. I have one question in that regard. On the working age payments-----

Select Committee on Social Protection: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 37 - Social Protection (Revised) (7 Feb 2024)

Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire: For most of the payments, if not all, the processing times are close to target and they are paid in four to eight weeks or perhaps a little longer sometimes. It is increasingly my experience that there are delays. The social welfare appeals office is obviously an independent office that is funded through the Department but the timescale for those appeals can be considerable. Is the...

Select Committee on Social Protection: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 37 - Social Protection (Revised) (7 Feb 2024)

Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire: Briefly, sometimes when people are asked for additional information, they were not asked for it in the first place. The appeals office comes back to them looking for information for which they were not asked in the first place and they are then asked to provide it. I say that as a point of information.

Select Committee on Social Protection: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 37 - Social Protection (Revised) (7 Feb 2024)

Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire: Sometimes, yes.

Select Committee on Social Protection: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 37 - Social Protection (Revised) (7 Feb 2024)

Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire: That is true sometimes but sometimes it is-----

Select Committee on Social Protection: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 37 - Social Protection (Revised) (7 Feb 2024)

Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire: That is precisely the point and I put-----

Select Committee on Social Protection: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 37 - Social Protection (Revised) (7 Feb 2024)

Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire: I accept that. To some extent, I see it as a minor bit of progress in that the Minister is not saying there is any policy objection from the Department to examine that. That is positive because there has been a firm resistance in the past to examining that. It was a recession era change. The message that people, particularly the organisations, have got is that it is immovable. If the...

Select Committee on Social Protection: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 37 - Social Protection (Revised) (7 Feb 2024)

Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire: I am not sure if it is miscellaneous or the working age payments. The point on payments follows on from the point made by Deputy Ó Cuív about payments made to those from Ukraine. I seek clarity from the Minister. In the Dáil last week, when debating one of my amendments, she raised the possibility that one of my amendments might prevent the reduction of payments to people...

Select Committee on Social Protection: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 37 - Social Protection (Revised) (7 Feb 2024)

Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire: I would consider it a matter of fact that the amendment would not have prevented that. I consider it an objective fact. Leaving aside the amendment for a moment, the question remains: what is happening? We have one year and three months until the directive expires. What is the Department's plan? What will the proposed approach towards those claimants be in one year and three months?

Select Committee on Social Protection: Estimates for Public Services 2024
Vote 37 - Social Protection (Revised) (7 Feb 2024)

Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire: I should clarify; I made an error there. There is a cliff edge at age 12 as well but it is the cliff edge at seven that I was actually thinking of. When they move from the one-parent family payment to the transitional payment, they can no longer claim working family payment with that. Those 5,000 people will lose their working family payment when they move on to the transitional payment.