Results 16,481-16,500 of 20,884 for speaker:Alan Kelly

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Housing Assistance Payments Implementation (28 May 2015)

Alan Kelly: The implementation of the Housing Assistance Payment (HAP) is a key Government priority and a major pillar of the Social Housing Strategy 2020.The HAP scheme will bring all social housing supports provided by the State under the aegis of local authorities. The scheme will remove a barrier to employment by allowing recipients to remain in the scheme if they gain full-time employment. HAP will...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Local Authority Housing Eligibility (28 May 2015)

Alan Kelly: The Household Means Policy issued in March 2011 under Regulation 17 of the Social Housing Assessment Regulations 2011 defines income for the purposes of determining an applicant’s compliance with the income eligibility criterion for social housing support and applies in all housing authorities. Under this criterion, the net income of an applicant household, as assessed in accordance...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Local Authority Staff (27 May 2015)

Alan Kelly: My Department has not received a sanction request from Cork County Council for a School Warden.

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Planning Issues (27 May 2015)

Alan Kelly: Under section 30 of the Planning and Development Act 2000, as amended, I am specifically precluded from exercising any power or control in relation to any particular case, including enforcement matters and Part V agreements, with which a planning authority or An Bord Pleanála is or may be concerned. Enforcement of planning control is a matter for the planning authority, which has...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Local Authority Finances (27 May 2015)

Alan Kelly: I propose to take Questions Nos. 185 to 187, inclusive, together. The Government, at its meeting on 30 September 2014, approved the publication of the General Scheme of the Planning and Development (No.1) Bill 2014 and the subsequent drafting of a Bill along the lines of the General Scheme. The General Scheme was published in November 2014. The proposed Bill is primarily aimed at supporting...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Election Management System (27 May 2015)

Alan Kelly: An elector ordinarily resident in a hospital, nursing home or other similar institution who is unable to go in person to vote at their normal polling station by reason of a physical illness or disability may apply to be included in a special voters list. Arrangements are made at each election or referendum for such voters to vote at the institution where they are resident. This is facilitated...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Planning Issues (27 May 2015)

Alan Kelly: I propose to take Questions Nos. 191, 192 and 194 to 199, inclusive, together. The papers concerned were not stolen or removed from my office without authorisation, but were inadvertently placed with other papers and were subsequently found after a period of time.  Accordingly, no Garda or other inquiry was required. I have received correspondence in relation to the complaints referred...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Illegal Dumping (27 May 2015)

Alan Kelly: In November 2001, Wicklow County Council discovered that unauthorised dumping had taken place on this site and subsequent investigations revealed that the illegal dumping operation was systematic and large scale and had taken place over a period of a number of years, from 1996 to 2001. By June 2002, Wicklow County Council investigations concluded that in excess of 200,000 tonnes of waste...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Election Management System (27 May 2015)

Alan Kelly: Legal provisions governing the right to vote provide that the returning officer or the presiding officer may of their own volition, or if so required by a personation agent present in the polling station, request any person at the time of applying to vote to produce a specified identity document. If the person fails to produce such a document or if the returning officer or presiding officer...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Wind Energy Guidelines (26 May 2015)

Alan Kelly: In December 2013, my Department published proposed “draft” revisions to the noise, setback distance and shadow flicker aspects of the 2006 Wind Energy Development Guidelines. These draft revisions proposed: - The setting of a more stringent day and night noise limit of 40 decibels for future wind energy developments; - A mandatory minimum setback distance of 500 metres between...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Non-Principal Private Residence Charge Administration (26 May 2015)

Alan Kelly: The Local Government (Charges) Act 2009, as amended, provides the legislative basis for the Non-Principal Private Residence (NPPR) Charge. The NPPR Charge, which has since been discontinued, applied in the years 2009 to 2013 to any residential property in which the owner did not reside as their normal place of residence. The NPPR Charge is based on self-declaration and therefore the onus is...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Mortgage Arrears Proposals (26 May 2015)

Alan Kelly: I propose to take Questions Nos. 921 to 923, inclusive, together. The Government has committed to take decisive action to address the mortgage arrears challenge; to ensure that a full range of options is available to distressed borrowers; and to keep as many people in their homes as possible. As part of the package of commitments on mortgage arrears announced by Government recently, a...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Irish Water Remit (26 May 2015)

Alan Kelly: In November 2014 I announced a package of measures to ensure that domestic water charges are certain, affordable and clear. If a customer does not pay their water charges, late payment provisions shall automatically apply, unless the customer enters into a payment plan. In the case of a One Adult Household (capped at €160), €30 will be added to any bill where outstanding...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Non-Principal Private Residence Charge Collection (26 May 2015)

Alan Kelly: I propose to take Questions Nos. 925, 926 and 928 to 931, inclusive, together. The Local Government (Charges) Act 2009, as amended, provides the legislative basis for the Non-Principal Private Residence Charge. The NPPR Charge, which has since been discontinued, applied in the years 2009 to 2013 to any residential property in which the owner did not reside as their normal place of...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Litter Pollution Legislation (26 May 2015)

Alan Kelly: The Litter Pollution Acts 1997 to 2009 provide the statutory framework to combat litter problems. Under the Acts, the primary management and enforcement response to littering is a matter for the relevant local authority. Section 19 of the Litter Pollution Act 1997 makes it an offence to exhibit articles or advertisements on property in or visible from a public place without the prior...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Local Authority Finances (26 May 2015)

Alan Kelly: It is a matter for each local authority, including Sligo County Council, to determine its own spending priorities in the context of the annual budgetary process having regard to both locally identified needs and available resources. The elected members of a local authority have direct responsibility in law for all reserved functions of the authority, which include adopting the annual budget...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Library Services (26 May 2015)

Alan Kelly: There are currently 30 mobile libraries in operation, including one mobile shared cross-border between Donegal County Council and the library service in Northern Ireland. The determination of priorities for library development is a matter for each local authority. The April 2015 Library Development Programme Guidelines provide that each local authority’s library development...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Control of Dogs (26 May 2015)

Alan Kelly: I propose to take Questions Nos. 934, 935 and 973 together. Consultations in relation to controls on dogs, including in relation to the breeds to be subject to restrictions, were conducted with the Director of Veterinary Services of the Department of Agriculture, Food and Forestry, the Irish Veterinary Association (IVA), the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ISPCA) and the...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Local Authority Housing Provision (26 May 2015)

Alan Kelly: Proposals for the acquisition of properties for social housing purposes are developed by local authorities and submitted to my Department on an ongoing basis, particularly where there are specific social housing needs they are seeking to address and where good value for money can be obtained. In their planned delivery of new social housing units out to 2017, Kildare County Council has...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Water Charges Administration (26 May 2015)

Alan Kelly: With effect from 1 January 2014, Irish Water is responsible for public water services. The Water Services (No. 2) Act 2013 provides that Irish Water can collect charges from its customers in receipt of water services provided by it. The Act defines the customer as the occupier of the premises in respect of which the water services are provided. As such, people in sheltered housing,...