Results 9,681-9,700 of 25,799 for speaker:Darragh O'Brien

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Departmental Staff (9 Nov 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: There is one civil servant in my Department who is currently on a secondment to a public body and who is in receipt of a higher duty/acting allowance, which is payable by that body.  The civil servant in question has been on secondment since 2019.  This allowance is deemed to be pensionable.

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: International Protection (9 Nov 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: I propose to take Questions Nos. 54 and 58 together. The European Union (Planning and Development) (Displaced Persons from Ukraine Temporary Protection) Regulations 2022 (S.I. 306 of 2022), which came into effect on the 23rd of June 2022 give effect to Council Directive No 2001/55 EC and Council Implementing Decision EU 2022/382 of 4 March 2022, to provide immediate protection in EU...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Schemes (9 Nov 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: The Housing Assistance Payment (HAP) is a flexible and immediate form of social housing support for people with a long-term housing need. Any household assessed by their local authority as eligible for social housing is immediately eligible for HAP. These households must find their own accommodation in the private rental sector.  The HAP scheme started in 2014 and at the end of Q2 2022,...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Departmental Bodies (9 Nov 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: The operation of the Residential Tenancies Acts 2004-2022, the residential rental market and the Residential Tenancies Board (RTB) are kept under constant review by my Department to ensure that the legislation is fit for purpose. I have no plans to provide for a legal requirement, as proposed in the Question. The RTB was established as an independent statutory body under the Residential...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Provision (9 Nov 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: Further to my reply to Question No. 552 of 8 September 2022, the day-to-day operation of the social housing system, including the oversight and practical management of the lists of qualified households awaiting accommodation, is a matter solely for each local authority. I have no role in this regard.  Accordingly, it is a matter for Galway City and Galway County Councils to...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Provision (9 Nov 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: Housing First recognises that a stable home provides the basis for recovery in other areas. With Housing First, the priority is to support a person who has experienced homelessness into permanent housing as quickly as possible, without any preconditions around addiction or mental health treatment. Then, intensive work continues on these issues once they are housed. Housing First has been a...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Policy (9 Nov 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: I am confident the funding and targeted schemes committed to under Housing for All will deliver a greater supply of homes and increase access to purchasing affordable homes for all who aspire to do so, including local authority tenants. Government has committed a record €4 billion current and capital funding in Budget 2022 to help increase homeownership. This investment, a 20% increase...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Policy (9 Nov 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: The Residential Tenancies Acts 2004-2022 regulate the landlord-tenant relationship in the private rented sector and set out the rights and obligations of landlords and tenants. The Acts apply to every dwelling that is the subject of a tenancy, subject to a limited number of exceptions. Section 3(2)(g) provides that the Acts do not apply to a dwelling within which the landlord also...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Water Services (8 Nov 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: The water services authority (Irish Water, since 2014) is legally responsible for water services infrastructure extending from a waste water works to the curtilage of a private property. Responsibility for waste water drainage pipes located within the boundary of a property rests with the owner of the property, in line with sections 43, 54 and 70 of the Water Services Act, 2007. The...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Agriculture Industry (8 Nov 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: There is no regulatory provision to exempt slurry spreading in the closed period beyond the 15th October. I have, in consultation with the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, set out scientific criteria to consider before granting an exemption to the closed period for slurry spreading under the Good Agricultural Practice Regulations. This exemption can only be applied up...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Rental Sector (8 Nov 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: The Residential Tenancies (Deferment of Termination Dates of Certain Tenancies) Act 2022 was signed into law on 29 October 2022. The Act makes emergency provision to defer the termination dates of certain residential tenancies that fall, or would fall, during the 'winter emergency period', beginning on 30 October 2022 and ending on 31 March 2023. The aim is to mitigate the risk that...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Water Safety (8 Nov 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: Since 1 January 2014, Irish Water has statutory responsibility for all aspects of water services planning, delivery and operation at national, regional and local level, including investment in wastewater treatment plants and returning wastewater safely to the environment in an efficient and sustainable manner. My Department has no operational function in this matter. As a result, my...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Planning Issues (8 Nov 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: I propose to take Questions Nos. 350 to 355, inclusive, together. An Bord Pleanála (the Board) 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. Under section 30 of the Planning...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Provision (8 Nov 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: Housing for All, is the Government’s plan to increase the supply of housing to an average of 33,000 per year over the next decade. This includes the delivery of 90,000 social homes by 2030. Housing for All is supported by an investment package of over €4bn per annum, through an overall combination of €12bn in direct Exchequer funding, €3.5bn in funding through the...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Valuation Office (8 Nov 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: The making of valuations for rating purposes is the sole responsibility of the Commissioner of Valuation and I, as Minister, have no function in decisions in this regard. The information requested in the question can therefore be best be provided directly by the Valuation Office. To facilitate rapid responses to queries from members of the Oireachtas, in accordance with Circular 25/2016,...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Departmental Properties (8 Nov 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: One of the roles of the Office of Public Works (OPW) is to provide office accommodation to all Government Departments. The OPW owns or leases the buildings which my Department occupies. These buildings are generally occupied by numerous Government Departments. As such, my Department would not have the information which the Deputy is seeking. The information requested in relation to bodies...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Departmental Correspondence (8 Nov 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: While my Department has no record of receiving the request, the Ministerial Direction and 'Incremental Tenant Purchase Scheme 2016 Existing Local Authority Houses Guidance for Housing Authorities' (September 2022), issued by email to the Councillor on 28 October 2022.

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Rented Dwellings Register (8 Nov 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: The Residential Tenancies Board (RTB) was established as an independent statutory body under the Residential Tenancies Acts 2004-2022 (RTA) to operate a national tenancy registration system and to resolve disputes between landlords and tenants. Accordingly, the implementation of the new tenancy management system is an operational matter for the RTB. From 4 April 2022, landlords are...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Rental Sector (8 Nov 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: The Residential Tenancies (Deferment of Termination Dates of Certain Tenancies) Act 2022 was signed into law on 29 October 2022. The Act makes emergency provision to defer the termination dates of certain residential tenancies that fall, or would fall, during the period beginning on 30 October 2022 and ending on 31 March 2023 in order to mitigate the risk that persons whose tenancies would...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Departmental Data (8 Nov 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: Social Housing Investment Programme (SHIP) funded construction projects by local authorities must, like all publicly-funded construction programmes, comply with the Public Spending Code and Capital Works Management Framework and accordingly, my Department periodically issues Unit Cost Ceilings (UCCs) for each local authority area, for use as a key benchmark for the development and costing of...