Results 1,621-1,640 of 2,990 for speaker:Ossian Smyth

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Telecommunications Services (4 May 2022)

Ossian Smyth: Mobile coverage obligations are set out in licences granted by the independent regulator, ComReg, to mobile operators. ComReg advises that the current minimum coverage obligations in those licences are being considerably exceeded by all operators. Capital investment by telecommunications operators over the last 5 years was in the order of €3.3 billion for both fixed and mobile...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Telecommunications Services (4 May 2022)

Ossian Smyth: As set out in the 2018 Report, Government initiatives, including the National Broadband Plan (NBP) and the Mobile Phone and Broadband Taskforce, are fundamental to making high-speed broadband fixed connectivity available to all premises in Ireland, and to identifying solutions to barriers obstructing the provision of improved mobile phone and broadband coverage. Mobile coverage...

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: National Broadband Plan (4 May 2022)

Ossian Smyth: The National Broadband Plan (NBP) State led Intervention will be delivered by National Broadband Ireland (NBI) under a contract to roll out a high speed and future proofed broadband network within the Intervention Area which covers 1.1 million people living and working in almost 560,000 premises, including almost 100,000 businesses and farms along with some 679 schools.I am advised by NBI...

Select Committee on Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Circular Economy, Waste Management (Amendment) and Minerals Development (Amendment) Bill 2022: Committee Stage (3 May 2022)

Ossian Smyth: I will start with amendments Nos. 13 and 14. To my mind, these amendments have the same effect. I note that Deputy Bríd Smith is not here to propose her amendment but Deputy O'Rourke is here to propose amendment No. 13, which proposes that the targets should be mandatory or that there must be targets within the circular economy strategy, with which I agree. I had planned to accept...

Select Committee on Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Circular Economy, Waste Management (Amendment) and Minerals Development (Amendment) Bill 2022: Committee Stage (3 May 2022)

Ossian Smyth: We are considering amendments Nos. 2 to 5, inclusive, which are concerned with changing the definition of the circular economy. It is absolutely critical we get this right because the circular economy is mentioned all the way through the Bill so any kind of change that introduces an ambiguity or has a loophole or flaw may weaken other sections. I reviewed the report that came from the...

Select Committee on Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Circular Economy, Waste Management (Amendment) and Minerals Development (Amendment) Bill 2022: Committee Stage (3 May 2022)

Ossian Smyth: We can discuss that further.

Select Committee on Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Circular Economy, Waste Management (Amendment) and Minerals Development (Amendment) Bill 2022: Committee Stage (3 May 2022)

Ossian Smyth: To start with Deputy Devlin’s request that the amendments be sent to the clerk with a list of which amendments I am planning to take, I have done that. Of course, I might be persuaded otherwise, but there is a list up there. I will address some of Deputy Farrell's comments for a minute. When we are comparing the sustainability of a plastic cup and a paper cup, for example, we are...

Select Committee on Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Circular Economy, Waste Management (Amendment) and Minerals Development (Amendment) Bill 2022: Committee Stage (3 May 2022)

Ossian Smyth: We will be discussing PFAS in more detail later because there are specific amendments on that issue. Deputy Bruton is correct in saying that there are multiple types of plastic. There are seven named classes of plastic, each with a different numbered symbol and the more types there are, the harder it is to recycle. It has been proposed that we should reduce the number of plastic types that...

Select Committee on Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Circular Economy, Waste Management (Amendment) and Minerals Development (Amendment) Bill 2022: Committee Stage (3 May 2022)

Ossian Smyth: I am not accepting amendment No. 36 from Deputy Devlin. It was grouped with amendment No. 6 on the basis that it is a broader issue than just plastic. We are trying to avoid single-use items, no matter what material they are made from. I am not tying it down to a particular material type or limiting the restriction or the attempt to persuade people away from single-use, disposable items to...

Select Committee on Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Circular Economy, Waste Management (Amendment) and Minerals Development (Amendment) Bill 2022: Committee Stage (3 May 2022)

Ossian Smyth: Amendment No. 8 seeks to insert “and anaerobic digestion shall form part of said strategy,”. Yes, the bioeconomy is a really important part of the circular economy. Deputy O'Sullivan pointed out that the cost of fertiliser has tripled. As we all know, the cost of electricity and gas has gone up also. One can see that this type of economy is now essential and something that...

Select Committee on Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Circular Economy, Waste Management (Amendment) and Minerals Development (Amendment) Bill 2022: Committee Stage (3 May 2022)

Ossian Smyth: Yes.

Select Committee on Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Circular Economy, Waste Management (Amendment) and Minerals Development (Amendment) Bill 2022: Committee Stage (3 May 2022)

Ossian Smyth: Exactly. As Deputy Bríd Smith is not here to move her amendment, I will ask for it to be brought back in on Report Stage.

Select Committee on Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Circular Economy, Waste Management (Amendment) and Minerals Development (Amendment) Bill 2022: Committee Stage (3 May 2022)

Ossian Smyth: Amendments Nos. 20 to 24, inclusive, provide for an annual review of a circular economy strategy and for publication of that review. I have looked at these amendments and I believe it is important that we have regular monitoring and reviews, and that we would use the outcome of those reviews to see that the objectives are being achieved and whether we need to change direction. It is also...

Select Committee on Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Circular Economy, Waste Management (Amendment) and Minerals Development (Amendment) Bill 2022: Committee Stage (3 May 2022)

Ossian Smyth: Okay.

Select Committee on Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Circular Economy, Waste Management (Amendment) and Minerals Development (Amendment) Bill 2022: Committee Stage (3 May 2022)

Ossian Smyth: On the right to repair, it is really important that we can repair goods. What does the right to repair mean? It means having access to product manuals, parts, the information on how to fix something and the relevant software. It also comes down to the design of the product. For example, with a mobile phone that has been glued together, with the battery glued to the case, it is much harder...

Select Committee on Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Circular Economy, Waste Management (Amendment) and Minerals Development (Amendment) Bill 2022: Committee Stage (3 May 2022)

Ossian Smyth: The amendments, which I will not accept, would transfer the responsibility for preparing a programme from the agency to the Minister. The strategy will be prepared by the Minister and have to be approved by the Government, and the idea is the programme is the operational element prepared by the EPA. This is based on the model used in the waste prevention strategies and programmes, which is...

Select Committee on Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Circular Economy, Waste Management (Amendment) and Minerals Development (Amendment) Bill 2022: Committee Stage (3 May 2022)

Ossian Smyth: I have asked my staff, and they have agreed, to prepare such a report for the Deputy and the other committee members before Report Stage in order that we can examine any specific cases. He suggested the EPA's bandwidth would be stretched. Is that his concern?

Select Committee on Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Circular Economy, Waste Management (Amendment) and Minerals Development (Amendment) Bill 2022: Committee Stage (3 May 2022)

Ossian Smyth: We will go into the details of that and circulate the report to all the members of the committee.

Select Committee on Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Circular Economy, Waste Management (Amendment) and Minerals Development (Amendment) Bill 2022: Committee Stage (3 May 2022)

Ossian Smyth: PFAS chemicals are a significant concern based on their toxicity. While bearing in mind that this is a Bill about the principles of wastage and circularity rather than toxicity, there are genuine concerns, if not real problems, with these chemicals. They can be extremely hazardous and because of this, they are being regulated at EU level rather than by individual member states. In recent...

Select Committee on Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Circular Economy, Waste Management (Amendment) and Minerals Development (Amendment) Bill 2022: Committee Stage (3 May 2022)

Ossian Smyth: It is a separate note but the officials have said they will prepare another note for Deputy O'Rourke.