Results 1,501-1,520 of 9,994 for speaker:John Gormley
- Water Meters. (22 Apr 2010)
John Gormley: I have been very clear in that I have a series of options that have been outlined. I need to go to Government, consider those options and pick the best option - the most efficient, cost-effective and fairest option.
- Departmental Bodies. (22 Apr 2010)
John Gormley: I have had no discussions with the institution in question on matters concerning the Dublin Docklands Development Authority, nor would it be appropriate for me to do so. The DDDA's annual accounts for 2008 reported a loss on operations of â¬27 million, reflecting the impairment of the authority's key assets including a significant reduction in the valuation of the Irish Glass Bottle site....
- Departmental Bodies. (22 Apr 2010)
John Gormley: I will try to be as detailed as I can. In October 2006, the authority sought sanction for borrowings of up to â¬127 million for the purposes of property acquisition, particularly in connection with the impending acquisition of the IGB site. Consent for this sanction request was sought by my Department to the Department of Finance and was subsequently received on the basis that repayments...
- Departmental Bodies. (22 Apr 2010)
John Gormley: It obviously depends on which site the Deputy is talking about. There have been-----
- Departmental Bodies. (22 Apr 2010)
John Gormley: If the Deputy is taking about the whole Becbay consortium, I have mentioned the people who are involved, be it Mr. Bernard McNamara or Mr. Derek Quinlan, and prominent names are also involved in the famous Mountbrook case. Some of these people have made a pretty penny but, likewise, some of them are now going through court proceedings, as the Deputy knows, and facing a very tight financial...
- EU Directives. (22 Apr 2010)
John Gormley: Since coming into office, I have given the highest priority to the transposition and implementation of EU environmental legislation and have secured the closure of 25 cases during the past two and a half years. In areas for which my Department has responsibility, the European Commission is currently in correspondence in respect of 25 cases relating to transposition and implementation of EU...
- EU Directives. (22 Apr 2010)
John Gormley: To be clear, the European Commission is currently in correspondence in respect of 25 cases in regard to transposition and implementation of EU environmental legislation where the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government is concerned. This compares with 33 cases when I came into office. To answer the Deputy's question, there is probably a major difference between having a...
- EU Directives. (22 Apr 2010)
John Gormley: The Deputy cannot justify that.
- EU Directives. (22 Apr 2010)
John Gormley: It is 25. I am dealing with this constantly. I inherited this going into office and we have reduced it substantially but there is no way the statement made by Deputy Tuffy's party leader can be condoned. The Labour Party cannot have it every way, it cannot say it wants to comply with EU directives then come out with an opportunistic, populist statement like that. That is vote getting,...
- Local Authority Staff. (22 Apr 2010)
John Gormley: The numbers of permanent and temporary staff employed across all 34 local authorities at end of December 2008 were 31,846 and 3,166 respectively, compared to 30,564 and 1,691 at end of December 2009. The breakdown by individual local authority will be circulated with the Official Record. Figures for 2010 are not yet available. Information In regard to the number of staff shed in each local...
- Local Authority Staff. (22 Apr 2010)
John Gormley: We would like to employ more people, that goes without saying. In these financially straightened times, however, where do we find the money? Everyone must ask that question. We cannot just continue to employ and pay people, we had to make difficult decisions. This was a difficult decision for me but I hope we are doing it in a way that does not affect services to a huge degree. That is...
- Local Authority Staff. (22 Apr 2010)
John Gormley: Given there is a moratorium in place, it is unlikely we will get extra staff, it is as a simple as that.
- Social and Affordable Housing. (22 Apr 2010)
John Gormley: The reply to Question No. 313 of 4 February 2010 provided numbers of unsold affordable homes by local authority area at the beginning of February this year. The total figure of 1,158 reported at that time by the authorities excludes those homes which have been approved by the Department for deployment under the social leasing and rental accommodation schemes. The situation changes frequently...
- Social and Affordable Housing. (22 Apr 2010)
John Gormley: At around this time last year local authorities estimated there were 3,700 unsold affordable housing units so we have made some progress. My Department identified the problem and acted immediately, outlining a comprehensive range of measures designed to allow local authorities bring these units into early and effective use. Despite the fact that further stock has come into the system since...
- Social and Affordable Housing. (22 Apr 2010)
John Gormley: As the Deputy will know, the model has changed. Again, this comes down to the amount of money we have available. We are moving towards two models: first, social leasing and second, the rental accommodation scheme or RAS system. The Deputy's party has called for more people to be put onto the RAS and I agree it has worked well, as has the social leasing programme. We will still be on...
- Social and Affordable Housing. (22 Apr 2010)
John Gormley: Of course it means that.
- Social and Affordable Housing. (22 Apr 2010)
John Gormley: I shall tell the Deputy why. The money that was available before is no longer available. There is a thing called reality and the Deputy must get used to it.
- Social and Affordable Housing. (22 Apr 2010)
John Gormley: The policy is already up and running. As I said, we have made substantial progress already. Within a year we have dealt with half the houses. The demand is there and we need to make the units available, using them for social leasing, in particular. That policy is working. People are very happy to have a good house with the highest standards and the Department wants to ensure these houses...
- Planning Issues. (22 Apr 2010)
John Gormley: In appointing Professor Niamh Brennan, a recognised expert in corporate governance, as chairperson of the Dublin Docklands Development Authority in March 2009, I have demonstrated my commitment to ensuring that the authority conducts its business and is managed in a transparent and appropriate manner. I wrote to the authority's chairperson last year, requesting that a comprehensive review of...
- Planning Issues. (22 Apr 2010)
John Gormley: I will leave no stone unturned on this matter. This is precisely why I appointed Professor Niamh Brennan as chairperson of the authority, who has done an outstanding job so far in looking at these matters and is an expert in corporate governance. The Deputy must remember that I commissioned these reports. Professor Brennan has been quite assiduous in looking at all of these matters. Since...