Results 15,281-15,300 of 25,999 for speaker:Darragh O'Brien

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Local Government Management Agency (20 Jan 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: The qualifications for the recent Local Authority Graduate Programme run by the Local Government Management Agency required that applicants would at time of application be able to demonstrate that they had on or before the 31 December 2020 a recently achieved first or second class primary (2.2 minimum) honours degree (level 8 on the National Framework of Qualifications). Each application...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Local Authority Staff (20 Jan 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: In line with statutory provisions, my Department declares qualifications of such classes and descriptions for specified employment under a local authority or for such of the employments as belong to a specified class, description or grade. An Honours degree, Level 8 on the National Framework of Qualifications, is set as the standard requirement for candidates to be deemed eligible to...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Covid-19 Pandemic (20 Jan 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: The Government announced that additional public health restrictions would apply under Level 5 of the Plan for Living with COVID-19 on 6 January 2021. The additional restrictions required all construction activity to cease from 6pm on Friday 8 January, with certain exemptions, including social housing developments meeting certain criteria. These measures are set out in the Health Act 1947...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Social and Affordable Housing (20 Jan 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: I propose to take Questions Nos. 211, 213 and 218 together. The Programme for Government, ‘Our Shared Future’, commits to putting affordability at the heart of the housing system and to: - prioritise the increased supply affordable homes and to ensure that local authorities are central to delivering housing, and - progress a state-backed affordable home purchase scheme to...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Home Loan Scheme (20 Jan 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: The local authority mortgage protection insurance (MPI) scheme has applied to all house purchase loans approved by local authorities after 1 July 1986, including the Rebuilding Ireland Home Loan introduced on 1 February 2018. Local authority mortgage protection insurance is charged at the rate of 0.555%, this rate does not vary between local authorities. It is obligatory for all local...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Provision (20 Jan 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: The Land Development Agency (LDA) was established on an interim basis in September 2018, by way of an Establishment Order made under the Local Government Services (Corporate Bodies) Act 1971, pending the enactment of primary legislation when it will be established as a commercial State agency. In partnership with Dún Laoghaire Rathdown County Council, the LDA have been granted...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Data (20 Jan 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: My Department has published the Q3 2020 Social Housing Construction Status Report, which provides details of all social housing developments under construction in each local authority. The report is available at the following link: . In relation to affordable housing, in terms of affordable housing developments under construction across the four Dublin local authorities; €310 million...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Covid-19 Pandemic (20 Jan 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: The Government announced that additional public health restrictions would apply under Level 5 of the Plan for Living with COVID-19 on 6 January 2021. The additional restrictions required all construction activity to cease from 6pm on Friday 8 January, with a number of exceptions. These measures are set out in The Health Act 1947 (Section 31A - Temporary Restrictions) (Covid-19) (No. 10)...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Covid-19 Pandemic Supports (20 Jan 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: From the very start of the COVID-19 emergency, in March 2020, it was recognised that people who were cocooning, self-isolating or quarantining would need extra help, particularly if their usual networks of support would not be able to reach them. For that reason, and to put in place a safety net for such people, some of whom would be among the most vulnerable in our communities, national and...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Transport Infrastructure Provision (20 Jan 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: Seventy six proposals were received under Call 2 of the Urban Regeneration and Development Fund (URDF), with every local authority submitting at least one application for URDF support. The proposal in question is one of two proposals submitted by Louth County Council. The assessment process for proposals received under Call 2 is nearing completion, and I intend to soon announce a new...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Building Control Management System (20 Jan 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: The National Building Control Management Project (NBCMP) is managed by the National Building Control Office (NBCO) within Dublin City Council (DCC) to provide oversight, support and direction for the development, standardisation and implementation of Building Control as an effective shared service in the 31 Building Control Authorities, through the five pillars of: 1. Training:This includes...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Building Control Management System (20 Jan 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: Under section 159 of the Local Government Act 2001, each Chief Executive is responsible for the staffing and organisational arrangements necessary for carrying out the functions of the local authority for which he or she is responsible. My Department oversees workforce planning for the local government sector, including the monitoring of local government sector employment levels. To this...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Construction Industry Register Ireland (20 Jan 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: The Government is committed to placing the Construction Industry Register Ireland, or CIRI, on a statutory footing. CIRI was established on a voluntary basis in 2014 and 798 building and contracting entities are currently included on the register. The voluntary register can be viewed online at the following link: Government approved the General Scheme of a Bill to place the CIRI on a...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Data (20 Jan 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: The “Call for Housing 2020” was launched on 21 July 2020 as a short-term intervention to stimulate interest in social housing delivery, through acquisitions and leasing from opportunities arising in the property market. The campaign has been run on behalf of my Department by the Housing Agency, in consultation with the local authorities. Up to 15 January 2021, the total...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Environmental Policy (20 Jan 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: The Programme for Government - Our Shared Future contains a commitment to realise our outstanding target of 10% marine protected area (MPA) coverage in Ireland's waters as soon as is practicable, aiming for 30% by 2030. In this regard the Government has also committed in the Programme for Government to deliver comprehensive legislation for the identification, designation and management of...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Data (20 Jan 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: I propose to take Questions Nos. 230 and 233 together. Increasing the supply of housing, particularly new build social and affordable is a priority for my Department. The Programme for Government commits to increasing the social housing stock by more than 50,000, with an emphasis on new builds. In Budget 2021, we backed this objective with funding of €3.3 billion for the delivery...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Defective Building Materials (20 Jan 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: The Programme for Government sets out a number of commitments in respect of the important policy area of building defects and provides for an examination of defective housing, having regard to the recommendations of the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing report, "Safe as Houses". In this regard, my Department is actively engaging with key stakeholders and I have had several meetings...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Home Loan Scheme (20 Jan 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: The costs my Department incurred in relation to the communication related costs arising from the Rebuilding Ireland plan, including the website, social media account, events, publications and other related matters are set out in the following table. Year € 2016 €38,900.00 Rebuilding Ireland. The photography costs...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Public Private Partnerships (20 Jan 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: As the Deputy will be aware, the Public Sector Benchmark (PSB) is an essential part of any PPP project. It contains commercially sensitive information in relation to the methodology used for costing public sector projects and for the pricing of risks by public sector bodies. In accordance with Department of Public Expenditure and Reform guidelines (Guidelines for the use of Public Private...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Departmental Bodies (20 Jan 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: I have established a Homelessness Task Force, to provide a forum for engagement with key organisations working together to address homelessness and to provide input on the implementation of the commitments on homelessness in the Programme for Government. The Group has met on eight occasions to date, on the 13th, 20th and 27th of July, on the 14th and 21st of September, and on October...