Results 11,441-11,460 of 25,844 for speaker:Darragh O'Brien

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Provision (29 Mar 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: Data in relation to new dwelling completions is published by the CSO on a quarterly basis and can be accessed via the following link: www.cso.ie/en/releasesandpublications/er/ndc/newdwellingcomp letionsq42021/ Data for the years 2016 - 2021 inclusive is set out in the table below. Data for Q1 2022 has not yet been published by the CSO. Statistic Year All house...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Schemes (29 Mar 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: The Capital Advance Leasing Facility (CALF) funding is capital support provided to AHBs by local authorities to facilitate the funding of construction, acquisition or refurbishment of new social housing units. This loan facility can support up to 30% of the eligible capital cost of the housing project, with the housing units provided to local authorities for social housing use under...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Schemes (29 Mar 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: Approved Housing Bodies (AHBs) are important partners for local authorities in the delivery of social housing. My Department and local authorities administer a number of funding programmes to assist AHBs with the cost of building, acquiring and leasing new social housing units. The Capital Advance Leasing Facility (CALF) funding is capital support provided to AHBs by local authorities to...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Departmental Reports (29 Mar 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: My Department publishes comprehensive programme level statistics on social housing delivery for each local authority on a quarterly basis. The statistics are currently available to the end of Quarter 3 2021. Details of individual local authority delivery are available on my Department’s website at the following link: www.gov.ie/en/collection/6060e-overall-social-housing-provis ion/. ...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Departmental Consultations (29 Mar 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: My Department’s People Strategy was developed in partnership with staff and sets out the strategic priorities, objectives and actions through which we wish to engage, support, develop and lead our staff, in alignment with our strategic goals. The strategic goals identified under our ‘WELL’ Strategy are ‘Wellbeing’, ‘Engagement’,...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Covid-19 Pandemic (29 Mar 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: My Department's role in relation to homelessness involves the provision of a national framework of policy, legislation and funding to underpin the role of housing authorities in addressing homelessness at local level. Statutory responsibility in relation to the provision of emergency accommodation and related services for homeless persons rests with individual housing authorities. This...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Emergency Accommodation (29 Mar 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: The National Quality Standards Framework (NQSF) for homeless services is in place nationally for local authority and NGO delivered services. The NQSF has been developed to ensure a consistent approach in how local authorities and service providers respond to the needs of those experiencing homelessness and to improve the quality of services provided. In general, the operation of...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Schemes (29 Mar 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: The Tenant (Incremental) Purchase Scheme is open to eligible tenants, including joint tenants, of local authority houses that are available for sale under the Scheme. The scheme is governed by the Housing (Sale of Local Authority Houses) Regulations 2015. These regulations provide for specified classes of houses to be excluded from sale, including those provided to local authorities under...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Departmental Reports (29 Mar 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: The information requested is set out in the below table. Consultancy service providers are only engaged by my Department where specific expertise is required which is not available in the organisation at the relevant time. Consultancy Report Title Year of Commission Year Received Cost of Report To be Published Yes/No Date of publication ...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Local Authorities (29 Mar 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: Housing for All recognises the need to strengthen the capacity of local authorities to initiate, design, plan, develop and manage housing projects. It also commits to making additional resources available to local authorities to further build housing delivery teams. During 2021, the Housing Delivery Coordination Office (HDCO) engaged with each local authority to identify their additional...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Official Engagements (29 Mar 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: Since my appointment in June 2020, my diary and those of my Ministers of State are routinely published on my Department’s website at: www.gov.ie/en/collection/5f6f1-ministers-diaries/#. The information requested predates my appointment as Minister. This information is being compiled from our archives and will be forwarded to the Deputy in accordance with Standing Orders.

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Farm Inspections (24 Mar 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: Local authorities currently inspect farms under the Good Agricultural Practice for the Protection of Waters regulations and for compliance with other environmental codes. The Environmental Protection Agency reports periodically on the work local authorities carry out in its Focus on Local Authority Environmental Enforcement Activity Report, most recently in 2021. On the 11 March 2022, I...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Homeless Accommodation (24 Mar 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: My Department publishes a detailed monthly report on homelessness, based on data provided by housing authorities. The Report outlines details of individuals utilising State-funded emergency accommodation arrangements that are overseen by housing authorities. The Reports are available on my Department's website at the following link: www.gov.ie/en/collection/80ea8-homelessness-data/ and via...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Schemes (24 Mar 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: I propose to take Questions Nos. 203 and 204 together. Housing for All (published in September 2021) provides a new housing plan for Ireland to 2030 with the overall objective that every citizen in the State should have access to good quality homes through a steady supply of housing in the right locations, with economic, social and environmental sustainability built into the system. The...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Water Supply (24 Mar 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: The Water Supply Project – Eastern and Midlands Region is a strategic national project to help meet the future water supply needs for housing, commercial and industrial growth in an area comprising 40 per cent of Ireland's population. The preferred scheme for the project involves an abstraction of water from the lower River Shannon at Parteen Basin in Co. Tipperary, with water...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Water Services (24 Mar 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: Following two serious incidents in September 2021 at the drinking water treatment plants in Ballymore Eustace, serving parts of Dublin City and in Gorey Co. Wexford, I requested Irish Water to immediately undertake audits of the largest water treatment plants across the country. Both of these incidents were quickly rectified. Irish Water has confirmed that it has completed audits on 37...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Construction Industry (24 Mar 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: The CSO Wholesale Price Index (WPI) shows the annual increase for building and construction materials to be 16.7% to the end of January 2022. The latest data shows that productivity in the construction sector remains below 2010 levels and is less productive than EU average. Construction costs have risen considerably over recent years through a combination of the increased cost of regulatory...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Schemes (24 Mar 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: As set out in the Housing for All strategy, this Government is committed to supporting 54,000 new affordable homes by 2030, of which 36,000 will be for purchase and 18,000 for rental. The Affordable Housing Act 2021, the provisions of which I commenced in August and September 2021, laid the foundation for three new affordable housing schemes: 'Cost Rental' housing, the 'Local Authority...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Fire Service (24 Mar 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: The provision of a fire service in its functional area, including the establishment and maintenance of a fire brigade, the assessment of fire cover needs and the provision of fire station premises, is a statutory function of individual fire authorities under the Fire Services Acts, 1981 and 2003. My Department supports the fire authorities through setting general policy, providing a central...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Departmental Contracts (23 Mar 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: My Department has engaged the services of this company since 2018, primarily for the provision of the translation of material to Irish and occasionally for translation services in other languages. The attached table sets out the number of engagements and the total costs. Note that an engagement, in this context, represents a distinct translation service. Year Number of...