Results 1,121-1,140 of 3,336 for speaker:Kate O'Connell

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Communications, Climate Action and Environment: National Broadband Plan: Discussion (Resumed) (19 Jun 2019)

Kate O'Connell: Initially, it was renting a pole with a cable on it from Eir, now Dr. Palcic is saying is that the pole and the cable is there to service Eir's own people and the company proposal is to layer other cable on top of it.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Communications, Climate Action and Environment: National Broadband Plan: Discussion (Resumed) (19 Jun 2019)

Kate O'Connell: Is Dr. Palcic suggested that it should have used the existing Eir's network?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Communications, Climate Action and Environment: National Broadband Plan: Discussion (Resumed) (19 Jun 2019)

Kate O'Connell: On that point, let us say we have done that and let us say that Eir is sold again, how would that have benefitted the Irish taxpayer if we had gone with that model, which was not the overlaying of cable - in other words, if Eir had control over the connectivity of those 300,000 households and was then sold? How would that play out for the people, if an integral part of the network could be...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Communications, Climate Action and Environment: National Broadband Plan: Discussion (Resumed) (19 Jun 2019)

Kate O'Connell: There is nothing to say that if Eir had been sold and with the position of the 300,000 homes being serviced, that the company that bought it would have had the same priorities. It could have been just a small part of its overall business. Do the witnesses understand the point I am making? The witnesses are assuming that this theoretical company would have had the same model, but if the new...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Communications, Climate Action and Environment: National Broadband Plan: Discussion (Resumed) (19 Jun 2019)

Kate O'Connell: What if Eir provided to the 300,000 homes with its own cable, and it had nothing to do with NBP people and that it was just a part of the solution? It could reuse the cable it already had and could be part of the whole solution to broadband. What if Eir, which is a private company with control over those 300,0000 homes, had been sold and the new company decided to specialise in electric...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Communications, Climate Action and Environment: National Broadband Plan: Discussion (Resumed) (19 Jun 2019)

Kate O'Connell: I totally get that.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Communications, Climate Action and Environment: National Broadband Plan: Discussion (Resumed) (19 Jun 2019)

Kate O'Connell: The point that I make is that obviously duplicating an overlaying of cable would have had a cost impact but the whole point is to roll out broadband to all of Ireland. If one did not overlay fibre on the Eir poles, one was at risk of leaving 300,000 families that were in the intervention area.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Communications, Climate Action and Environment: National Broadband Plan: Discussion (Resumed) (19 Jun 2019)

Kate O'Connell: Ignoring the analysis for a moment, full State ownership would require land CPOs with Eir. Essentially, the process would be starting again. How would the witnesses do this? There are poles and cables currently. What does a State-led model entail? Does it involve owning the ground, the poles and the cables?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Communications, Climate Action and Environment: National Broadband Plan: Discussion (Resumed) (19 Jun 2019)

Kate O'Connell: Would the witnesses contract-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Communications, Climate Action and Environment: National Broadband Plan: Discussion (Resumed) (19 Jun 2019)

Kate O'Connell: Instead of Granahan McCourt doing it, an agency would be set up and incur these costs, which would probably not be too much. That agency would approach Eir in one area, Virgin in another and so on and use their cables.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Communications, Climate Action and Environment: National Broadband Plan: Discussion (Resumed) (19 Jun 2019)

Kate O'Connell: The person at the head is the issue. Does Dr. Palcic believe the State would be more efficient or is that just another assumption? Would it be less efficient?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Communications, Climate Action and Environment: National Broadband Plan: Discussion (Resumed) (19 Jun 2019)

Kate O'Connell: Professor Reeves mentioned two drivers of value for money. They were competition and something else.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Communications, Climate Action and Environment: National Broadband Plan: Discussion (Resumed) (19 Jun 2019)

Kate O'Connell: The private sector would have skin in the game.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Communications, Climate Action and Environment: National Broadband Plan: Discussion (Resumed) (19 Jun 2019)

Kate O'Connell: The opening statement raised a question about the cost-benefit methodology. There can be qualitative and quantitative assessments. Would the cost-benefit analysis that the witnesses would have preferred provide a figure for the future value of remote working? To my mind, that cannot be quantified now. No figure can be put on the person outside Skibbereen being able to sell his or her...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Communications, Climate Action and Environment: National Broadband Plan: Discussion (Resumed) (19 Jun 2019)

Kate O'Connell: I understand.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Communications, Climate Action and Environment: National Broadband Plan: Discussion (Resumed) (19 Jun 2019)

Kate O'Connell: I suppose I refer to Professor Reeves' raw analysis of the analysis.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Communications, Climate Action and Environment: National Broadband Plan: Discussion (Resumed) (19 Jun 2019)

Kate O'Connell: How could one?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Communications, Climate Action and Environment: National Broadband Plan: Discussion (Resumed) (19 Jun 2019)

Kate O'Connell: To summarise it for myself, there are levers here in terms of the qualitative impact of something like this but there are variables taken in by the people who do this analysis to put a value on whatever, for instance, staying in Portlaoise three days a week.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Communications, Climate Action and Environment: National Broadband Plan: Discussion (Resumed) (19 Jun 2019)

Kate O'Connell: No one can be definitely right.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Communications, Climate Action and Environment: National Broadband Plan: Discussion (Resumed) (19 Jun 2019)

Kate O'Connell: It also depends on what lens one is coming at it with. If one is coming at it as an economist looking only at figures one would have one view but if one is coming at it, I would argue, as a Minister trying to deliver high-speed cable across Ireland, one's lens is totally different, wishing no disrespect to the academic lens. Legislators and Ministers have a different job to do. They must...