Results 1,401-1,420 of 3,983 for speaker:Jennifer Whitmore

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Engagement with the Commission for Regulation of Utilities (31 Jan 2023)

Jennifer Whitmore: Ms MacEvilly is saying the ESB did not benefit from this but that money would have been put on domestic bills; is that correct? Theoretically, domestic bill holders from ESB could have been charged a lot more because they were getting charged on a percentage basis rather than to a total of €50 million.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Engagement with the Commission for Regulation of Utilities (31 Jan 2023)

Jennifer Whitmore: To be fair, that is not the only question the CRU should be asking. It should also be asking how a State entity responsible for this misconstrued the direction of the CRU to the point that it was overcharging customers for 12 years. Questions need to be asked in respect of how it took so long for this to be recognised. That is a fundamental issue the CRU needs to consider.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Engagement with the Commission for Regulation of Utilities (31 Jan 2023)

Jennifer Whitmore: I wish to raise the issue of disconnections. The word "vulnerable" is being used a lot, often interchangeably. Under the current remit of the CRU, vulnerable customers are medically vulnerable people who need for energy supply critical medical purposes, as well as people who are elderly or could have medical reasons for needing security of supply. It does not relate to financial...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Engagement with the Commission for Regulation of Utilities (31 Jan 2023)

Jennifer Whitmore: The moratorium for all domestic users, including the financially vulnerable, is up at the end of February.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Engagement with the Commission for Regulation of Utilities (31 Jan 2023)

Jennifer Whitmore: Okay. In its energy poverty strategy the Government stated that it was going to legislate to include "financially vulnerable" within the definition of "vulnerable". That did not happen and-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Engagement with the Commission for Regulation of Utilities (31 Jan 2023)

Jennifer Whitmore: Okay. In the event that the ESB took the CRU's direction and misapplied it, is there a penalty for that? It is quite a large administrative error.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Engagement with the Commission for Regulation of Utilities (31 Jan 2023)

Jennifer Whitmore: It has not yet happened. The Government stated it was going to do it for 2022-23. It is Government policy that financially vulnerable people would be included under the CRU's definition of "vulnerable" but, unfortunately, as that has not happened, financially vulnerable people could face disconnection from the end of February. Is that correct?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Engagement with the Commission for Regulation of Utilities (31 Jan 2023)

Jennifer Whitmore: Will the CRU extend that moratorium to ensure financially vulnerable people will not be disconnected in that period? It is clear we are not at the end of this crisis. Many people are still in very difficult positions. It is Government policy to include financially vulnerable people. Will the CRU extend the moratorium?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Engagement with the Commission for Regulation of Utilities (31 Jan 2023)

Jennifer Whitmore: The CRU is considering extending it to the end of-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Engagement with the Commission for Regulation of Utilities (31 Jan 2023)

Jennifer Whitmore: On the issue of the ESB's non-compliance with the CRU's direction, I am just reading the commission's compliance and enforcement policy statement. It is very clear that the commission expects a culture of compliance among its regulated entities and that enforcement actions should "deliver a credible deterrence against non-compliance and ensure meaningful consequences". That is very much...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Engagement with the Commission for Regulation of Utilities (31 Jan 2023)

Jennifer Whitmore: That decision has been made but do we know how much it will be yet?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Engagement with the Commission for Regulation of Utilities (31 Jan 2023)

Jennifer Whitmore: When does the CRU expect that information to be available?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Engagement with the Commission for Regulation of Utilities (31 Jan 2023)

Jennifer Whitmore: But there is already 12 years. So this one in April will review retrospectively all of that?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Engagement with the Commission for Regulation of Utilities (31 Jan 2023)

Jennifer Whitmore: Not to pre-empt the outcome of any examination but in the event where there is non-compliance that would meet a number of the CRU's criteria, what sanctions are available?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Engagement with the Commission for Regulation of Utilities (31 Jan 2023)

Jennifer Whitmore: At the moment the CRU is not in a position to fine them?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Engagement with the Commission for Regulation of Utilities (31 Jan 2023)

Jennifer Whitmore: Obviously work is happening but that will not deal with any retrospective so really, no matter what the findings are, even if it was deliberate - I am not saying it is - and no matter what is determined, the only sanction available at present is the "name and shame" option. Is that correct?

Written Answers — Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport: Public Transport (31 Jan 2023)

Jennifer Whitmore: 209. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport if consideration has been given to including proposals for the extension of the DART to Wicklow town in the current project remit for the DART+ Coastal South; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4275/23]

Written Answers — Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport: Public Transport (31 Jan 2023)

Jennifer Whitmore: 210. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the steps involved in the approval process to extend the DART to Wicklow town; the timelines required to undertake those steps; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4276/23]

Written Answers — Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport: Public Transport (31 Jan 2023)

Jennifer Whitmore: 211. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport if he will outline the proposed station modifications at Bray and Greystones to enhance train service capacity, as indicated in the NTA Greater Dublin Area Transport Strategy 2022-2042; if he will provide a timeline for completion; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4277/23]

Written Answers — Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport: Public Transport (31 Jan 2023)

Jennifer Whitmore: 212. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport when a formal decision will be made on the deployment of battery-operated carriages to service Wicklow town; the infrastructural changes that would be required on the line to enable the usage of those carriages; the earliest date by which battery-operated carriages would be operational on the Wicklow town line; and if he will make a...