Results 14,281-14,300 of 26,864 for speaker:Darragh O'Brien

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Flood Risk Management (27 Jul 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: With effect from 1 January 2014, Irish Water has statutory responsibility for all aspects of water services planning, delivery and operation at national, regional and local levels for public water services, including the delivery of water services capital infrastructure, encompassing the management of urban waste water collection and treatment infrastructure.  Under section 7 of the...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Policy (27 Jul 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: My Department provides funding under the suite of Housing Adaptation Grants for Older People and People with a Disability, to assist people in private houses to make their accommodation more suitable for their needs.  The grants include the Housing Adaptation Grant for People with a Disability, the Mobility Aids Grant and the Housing Aid for Older People, which are...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Schemes (27 Jul 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: I propose to take Questions Nos. 659 and 660 together. The Mortgage Allowance scheme provides for an allowance of up to €11,450 payable over a 5 year period, to tenants or tenant purchasers of local authority housing, to assist them to purchase or have a private house built with a mortgage.  New applications are still being accepted by local authorities under the scheme, and...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Fire Service (27 Jul 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: The provision of a fire service and the assessment of the requirements arising, including the nature of the fire hazards and the probable incidence and extent of fires, in its functional area is a statutory function of individual fire authorities under Section 10 of the Fire Services Act 1981.  Despite the best efforts of communities, wildland fires can occur in certain...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Schemes (27 Jul 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: Choice Based Letting (CBL) is a method whereby available social housing stock is let by being openly advertised by local authorities to persons on the social housing waiting list. This allows qualified applicants to 'register an interest' in available homes. Applicants can act on their own initiative to respond to adverts and express an interest in dwellings that they would like to live...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: National Asset Management Agency (27 Jul 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: There has been an ongoing engagement between my Department, the Housing Agency and the National Asset Management Agency (NAMA) since 2011 to identify properties from the NAMA loan portfolio that would be suitable for social housing. In 2011, a Steering Group was established to identify properties that would be suitable for social housing.  Once demand was confirmed, NAMA facilitated...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Departmental Bodies (27 Jul 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: The Code of Practice for the Governance of State Bodies (Department of Public Expenditure and Reform, 2016) provides a framework for the application of best practice in corporate governance by both commercial and non-commercial State bodies. Section 9 of the Code requires that State bodies publish in their annual report the salary of the Chief Executive Officer. All State bodies...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Water Quality (27 Jul 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: I propose to take Questions Nos. 674, 675, 677 and 678 together. I note the report from the Environmental Protection Agency, which highlights that the main risk to water quality continues to be excess nutrients in our rivers, lakes and coastal areas. Nutrient concentrations are too high and the trends in some areas are going in the wrong direction. The oversupply of nutrients is coming from...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Rental Sector (27 Jul 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: The Residential Tenancies (No. 2) Act 2021 was signed into law on 9 July 2021 and limits, in respect of tenancies created on or after 9 August 2021, the amount of rent in advance (maximum of 1 month’s rent) and/or a deposit (maximum of 1 month’s rent) that a landlord can ask anyone, including a student, to pay to secure a tenancy Accordingly, the maximum...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Rental Sector (27 Jul 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: I propose to take Questions Nos. 681 and 682 together. The Residential Tenancies Board (RTB) was established as an independent statutory body under the Residential Tenancies Acts 2004-2021, to operate a national tenancy registration system and to facilitate the resolution of disputes between landlords and tenants.    My Department does not collect the data sought, however...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Local Authorities (27 Jul 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: It is a matter for individual local authorities to assess an applicant's eligibility for the Rebuilding Ireland Home Loan in accordance with the conditions of the scheme.  These conditions include a loan amount of 90% of the market value of the property or, in the case of self-build properties, 90% of the total build costs subject to a maximum loan of between €225,000 and...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Provision (27 Jul 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: My Department publishes a Social Housing Construction Status Report (CSR) each quarter, which contains details of all social housing developments completed, under construction or at the planning and design stage in each local authority area. The most recent report, published on 28 May 2021, covers the period up to the end of Quarter 1 2021 and is available at the following...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Policy (27 Jul 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: The level of vacancy in local authority housing stock will fluctuate over time as tenancy surrender and re-letting of stock is an ongoing process. Data in relation to the number of vacant local authority units are not collated by my Department, however, statistics in relation to the social housing stock are published by the National Oversight and Audit Commission...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Wastewater Treatment (27 Jul 2021)

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 levels. The prioritisation and progression of individual projects is a matter for determination by Irish Water. Under section 16 of the Water Services Act 2013 (as amended by section 46 of the Gas Regulation Act 2013), Irish...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Fire Service (27 Jul 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: I propose to take Questions Nos. 687 and 688 together. 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 fire authorities...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: National Parks (27 Jul 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: Front-line services to visitors in Killarney National Park, are provided by the Guide staff, which are made up of a combination of full time and seasonal Guide staff.  Over the past number of years, the Guide staff complement in Killarney National Park has comprised of 10 permanent and an average of 16 seasonal Guide staff. Staffing levels across my Department are kept under...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Wastewater Treatment (27 Jul 2021)

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 levels. Irish Water takes a strategic, nationwide approach to asset planning and investment, and meeting customer requirements. The prioritisation and progression of individual projects and programmes, including the project...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Departmental Projects (27 Jul 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: My Department builds its strategic water policy and infrastructure delivery programmes around the National Planning Framework 2018-2040 and the National Development Plan 2018-2027. Investment is primarily delivered through Irish Water while my Department operates the Rural Water Programme directly. The Programme for Government supports the uptake of Irish Water's Small Towns and...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Schemes (27 Jul 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: Government policy in relation to electricity matters is led by the Minister for Environment, Climate and Communications and electricity connection charges and charging arrangements are subject to independent regulation by the Commission for the Regulation of Utilities (CRU). In relation to charges for connections to the public water services systems, there are no plans at present...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Policy (27 Jul 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: The EU Court of Justice ‘Flemish Decree’ judgement ruled that restrictions on the sale of all property to locals, which had been imposed in the Flanders Region of Belgium, were disproportionate and contrary to the EU principles of freedom of movement. It is an objective of Government to encourage the proportionate growth of rural communities and we have recently...