Results 8,981-9,000 of 21,588 for speaker:Denis Naughten

Other Questions: Mobile Telephony Services (7 Feb 2017)

Denis Naughten: I thank Deputy Heydon and am critically aware of the frustration currently being experienced across Ireland, where mobile networks are not always delivering the services people expect.  Any customer, including those in County Kildare, who experiences service difficulties should raise the matter with the service provider in the first instance. If this fails to resolve matters,...

Other Questions: Mobile Telephony Services (7 Feb 2017)

Denis Naughten: ComReg hopes to be in a position by the end of this year to have significant progress made with regard to that mapping. We have received a commitment from the mobile operators that they will provide us with the data on their coverage black spots across the country. The Deputy is right about the repeaters. They will help to boost the signal in many parts of the country. What we are...

Other Questions: Mobile Telephony Services (7 Feb 2017)

Denis Naughten: The quality of service is something I raised specifically with ComReg when I became Minister. It has not received the scale of complaints that it should have received based on what I was receiving as complaints in my own constituency. That is why I would actively encourage people to first contact their operator. If they are not satisfied with the response, they should contact ComReg about...

Other Questions: Air Quality (7 Feb 2017)

Denis Naughten: 5 o’clock I acknowledge the work Deputy Kelly has done in this area. Part of the problem is that, effectively, we had no Government in place for the first half of last year. Since I became Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment this has been one of my priorities, especially now because the Department has responsibility not only for environmental issues but...

Other Questions: Air Quality (7 Feb 2017)

Denis Naughten: I have never given the issue of staff transferring as a reason. The staff are answerable to me and I am working closely with them on the matter.

Other Questions: Air Quality (7 Feb 2017)

Denis Naughten: I have been working closely with them since I became Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment at the end of July. It does not only apply to Enniscorthy. Enniscorthy has been flagged because we have an air monitoring station there. In fact, we have a poor network for monitoring air quality in the country. That is part of the problem. This was one of the issues I...

Other Questions: Media Mergers (7 Feb 2017)

Denis Naughten: Following approval by the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission, notification of the proposed merger referenced in the question was received by me as Minister on 21 November 2016. I had 30 working days from the notification deadline of 24 November 2016 to conduct an initial assessment, or phase one assessment, of the case on media plurality grounds. The examination was guided by the...

Other Questions: Media Mergers (7 Feb 2017)

Denis Naughten: I will set out the answer to that question. The names of the members of the advisory panel are as follows: John Horgan, former Press Ombudsman and a media academic at Dublin City University; Marie McGonagle, a retired academic from NUI Galway and Peggy Valcke, a Belgian media plurality and competition expert. Mr. John Horgan has agreed to be the chairperson of that panel. I know that the...

Other Questions: North-South Interconnector (7 Feb 2017)

Denis Naughten: I am told the only feasible way to underground a circuit with 1,500 MW capacity over a distance of 138 km is to use a specialised high-voltage direct current with conversation equipment at either end, not AC technology. For a DC link to act reliably with a synchronous network, it would be necessary to develop new and complex control systems that have not been tried before in order to...

Other Questions: North-South Interconnector (7 Feb 2017)

Denis Naughten: I am meeting representatives from NEPP in the morning and I will listen to what they have to say.

Other Questions: North-South Interconnector (7 Feb 2017)

Denis Naughten: I am quite willing to hear what people have to say. However, it is important for people to understand that a legal case has already been lodged with the courts and a planning process is ongoing. I have to be conscious of both of those issues.

Other Questions: Air Quality (7 Feb 2017)

Denis Naughten: I propose to take Questions Nos. 41, 75, 574 and 575 together. The ban on the marketing, sale and distribution of bituminous coal - the smoky coal ban, as it is commonly known - was first introduced in Dublin in 1990 and subsequently extended to the major cities. Following a more recent public consultation process in 2012, it was extended and now applies to 26 urban areas nationwide....

Priority Questions: National Broadband Plan (7 Feb 2017)

Denis Naughten: We are seeking a USO because we feel it is probably the most effective way to deal with isolated cases in the blue area relating to the national broadband plan. There are places in Dublin 1 and Dublin 2 that cannot get high-speed broadband. We believe that the only way to enable them to do so is through a USO. We are trying to deal with issues, including those relating to local...

Priority Questions: National Broadband Plan (7 Feb 2017)

Denis Naughten: My priority and that of the officials in my Department is to roll out as much mobile, wireless, fixed-line or fibre broadband as we can as quickly as possible. We are facilitating the commercial operators in doing that. We are pushing the national broadband plan as far as we can. We are working closely with the three preferred bidders and the European Commission on the communications and...

Priority Questions: National Broadband Plan (7 Feb 2017)

Denis Naughten: I thank the Leas-Cheann Comhairle.

Other Questions: North-South Interconnector (7 Feb 2017)

Denis Naughten: I thank Deputy Niamh Smyth.

Other Questions: North-South Interconnector (7 Feb 2017)

Denis Naughten: I propose to take Questions Nos. 40 and 558 together. EirGrid estimates that the cost of constructing the proposed North-South interconnector will be €286 million, with €180 million of this cost being incurred in Ireland and the remaining €106 million being incurred in Northern Ireland. The proposed interconnector is a critical piece of energy...

Other Questions: North-South Interconnector (7 Feb 2017)

Denis Naughten: I have heard what the Deputy has said, but I am a bit surprised that she is questioning whether we need the interconnector. I look forward to meeting representatives of the groups tomorrow morning. Having listened to many of them already, it seems to me that there is agreement across the board that an interconnector is needed, even if the question of how it should be connected might remain...

Priority Questions: Waste Disposal Charges (7 Feb 2017)

Denis Naughten: Deputy Stanley is right that the local authorities have a crucial role to play in this respect. That is why the waste management planning lead authorities and the enforcement regional lead authorities engage directly with the local authorities about waste. The Deputy is correct about illegal dumping. That is very frustrating. We have made a specific additional allocation. I will make...

Priority Questions: Waste Disposal Charges (7 Feb 2017)

Denis Naughten: Deputy Stanley is perfectly correct about that. We have to work on preventions, and one of the initiatives I want to focus on this year is food waste. There is huge potential to reduce the volumes of food waste. The Deputy is right about unnecessary packaging. That is the objective of the circular economy. My Department is working with other Departments in the context of the...