Results 15,901-15,920 of 40,897 for speaker:Simon Coveney

Other Questions: Rent Controls (19 Jan 2017)

Simon Coveney: It is not strange at all. We need to have a faster dispute resolution process for tenants and landlords. Some people in this House only want to make the case for one side of the rental debate. Of course, we need to introduce changes to protect tenants from spiralling rents and to address the matter of security of tenure to ensure that landlords are not abusing tenants, but we also need to...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Housing Provision (19 Jan 2017)

Simon Coveney: We need a lot of extra commercial property in Dublin and in other cities. IDA Ireland has indicated that accessing suitable properties is now a big issue. There is a pipeline of companies that want to come to Ireland and provide good jobs here. One of the challenges is being able to build office and other commercial accommodation for them quickly enough in areas such as Dublin and Cork....

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Housing Provision (19 Jan 2017)

Simon Coveney: We are seeing a correction happening quite quickly.

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Housing Provision (19 Jan 2017)

Simon Coveney: I will look at that, but I will not to commit to that report on the floor of the House now. I will look at and come back to the Deputy. It is important not to draw conclusions from a Dublin market and make national decisions on that basis. We have a real shortage of good-quality commercial accommodation outside Dublin at the moment and we need to attract the investment to deliver that....

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Housing Provision (19 Jan 2017)

Simon Coveney: ----- and Wicklow, where they can lease similar property for 40% less. We have seen virtual stagnation in residential property delivery until recent months. We are starting to see a big change in that now. There is a series of strategies to build on the small momentum that is now there.

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Housing Provision (19 Jan 2017)

Simon Coveney: I am not sure that by trying to reduce the momentum on the commercial property side we will necessarily get a corresponding increase in residential, given where land is zoned, not zoned and so on and given the availability of finance at the moment at relatively low cost for-----

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Housing Provision (19 Jan 2017)

Simon Coveney: ----- decent commercial properties.

Other Questions: Housing Issues (19 Jan 2017)

Simon Coveney: I can give a straight answer to that question. The Deputy will shortly see quite a big initiative from me to increase the emphasis on repair and leasing. We will try to move budgets around to try to ensure we use this scheme as a way to get many vacant properties back into use much faster. We had to ensure the scheme worked and was legally sound which is why we have essentially had...

Other Questions: Housing Issues (19 Jan 2017)

Simon Coveney: I will push this scheme hard and we will spend much more than €6 million on it this year.

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Housing Provision (19 Jan 2017)

Simon Coveney: Undoubtedly, we have seen an extraordinary acceleration in investment in and delivery of commercial property not just in Dublin but in Cork. On one level, that is a really good thing because those commercial properties are filling up. It is part of facilitating a significant amount of foreign direct investment jobs and the expansion of the number of Irish companies across the capital. I...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: National Spatial Strategy (19 Jan 2017)

Simon Coveney: This will be the most ambitious attempt ever by a Government to plan for the development of the country in the medium to long term. We are planning for Ireland in 2040 when there will be an extra million people and twice as many over the age of 65. We must accommodate that growth, expansion and opportunity through a combination of a new city strategy as well as a very progressive strategy...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: National Spatial Strategy (19 Jan 2017)

Simon Coveney: I am fully committed to ensuring the regions are very much part of this plan. The problem with the previous national spatial strategy is that it has not come to fruition. It has not even come close.

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: National Spatial Strategy (19 Jan 2017)

Simon Coveney: A total of 20 towns were earmarked for growth. They were to be the 20 fastest growing towns in the country and not one of them is in the top 20 towns in terms of growth since the national spatial strategy was put in place.

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: National Spatial Strategy (19 Jan 2017)

Simon Coveney: Even though there was some good thinking in that plan, it was not followed through in terms of ensuring the aspirations of the national spatial strategy were met by means of the hubs and spokes and regional drivers of growth. It was good thinking but it has not come to fruition because of the dominance of Dublin in particular in terms of its magnetism for job creation and population. We...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Homeless Persons Data (19 Jan 2017)

Simon Coveney: My responsibilities are towards the areas that I control. I will speak to the other Ministers involved. I have a long briefing note. When these data were being put together initially, there were discussions around adding figures, particularly those from domestic violence refuges. It was not possible to do that at the time. Regarding the new community units, a series of other...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Homeless Persons Data (19 Jan 2017)

Simon Coveney: I will respond in my final segment.

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Homeless Persons Data (19 Jan 2017)

Simon Coveney: Regarding the numbers, various comments have been made, including by the Deputy, that are not accurate. The Dublin figures return to us separately from the rest of the country. We wait until we have the national figure before we publish anything. If I got figures on a Friday and waited until Tuesday to publish them because Tuesday was a Dáil sitting day, I would still be accused of...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Homeless Persons Data (19 Jan 2017)

Simon Coveney: There was no attempt to hide anything and if there had been, I would probably have waited until 1 or 2 January when there would have been no focus on the figures at all. Instead, we published them before then. Normally, we get the figures towards the end of the third week or so of the month after the one for which we have data. Most of the time, we try to get the figures out as soon as...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Homeless Persons Data (19 Jan 2017)

Simon Coveney: My point is that we should not try to turn this into a political campaign around who managed to get concessions and who did not. The truth is that most of those commitments had already been made. I gave a reassurance to Home Sweet Home that they would be implemented. That is the only point that I would like to make in terms of accuracy, as no written agreement was signed off on by both sides.

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: National Spatial Strategy (19 Jan 2017)

Simon Coveney: I welcome the opportunity to provide clarity on this issue because there has been some media coverage, particularly in the north west, that is inaccurate. Comments were made by the chief executive that were not accurate either. In a few weeks' time, we will launch a consultation process around a new national planning framework, called "Ireland 2040 - A National Planning Framework"....