Results 16,601-16,620 of 20,884 for speaker:Alan Kelly

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Social and Affordable Housing Data (12 May 2015)

Alan Kelly: The number of vacant social housing units returned to productive use in 2014 with support from my Department was 2,333. The breakdown of the units per local authority was as follows - Local Authority Returned Units Carlow 42 Cavan 23 Clare 65 Cork City 212 Cork County 155 Donegal 167 Dublin City 467 Fingal 165 South Dublin 92 Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown 5 Galway City 24...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: House Purchase Schemes (12 May 2015)

Alan Kelly: Currently, there are two types of house purchase loan s available from local authorities: standard annuity loans targeted at lower income first time buyers and those under the Home Choice Loan scheme which are available to qualifying middle income first time buyers. The terms and conditions governing the operation, including eligibility terms, of annuity mortgages and the Home Choice Loan...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Homeless Persons Data (12 May 2015)

Alan Kelly: My Department’s role in relation to homelessness involves the provision of a national framework of policy, legislation and funding to underpin the role of housing authorities in addressing homelessness at local level. Statutory responsibility in relation to the provision of accommodation and related services for homeless persons rests with individual housing authorities. Data on...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Ministerial Meetings (12 May 2015)

Alan Kelly: Neither I nor Mr. Paudie Coffey, T.D., Minister of State at my Department, have had meetings with the company referred to in the Question. The company concerned is involved in a pilot rural broadband initiative in a number of areas around Ireland. I understand that my colleague, Ms. Ann Phelan T.D., Minister of State with special responsibility for Rural Affairs has met with the company on...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Shared Services (12 May 2015)

Alan Kelly: Shared services have been identified in the Local Government Efficiency Review and the Public Service Reform Plans as an important opportunity to make further savings in administrative costs, through streamlining and improving service delivery without impacting on front line services. This builds on practical experience, over many years, in the local government sector of local authorities...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Nitrates Action Programme Implementation (7 May 2015)

Alan Kelly: The EU Nitrates Directive and Ireland's National Nitrates Action Programme limit the amount of nitrogen from livestock manure which may be applied to land each year, including by the animals themselves, to 170 kg of nitrogen per hectare per annum. On 27 February 2014, after lengthy negotiation, the EU Nitrates Management Committee renewed Ireland’s derogation which enables farmers...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Housing Provision (7 May 2015)

Alan Kelly: The social housing targets that I recently announced for all local authorities cover the period to 2017 and include almost 7,500 units that will be capital-funded and 15,400 current-funded units, which will support a combination of building, buying and leasing schemes by local authorities. My announcement also contained provisional funding allocations within the overall announcement of over...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Capital Assistance Scheme (7 May 2015)

Alan Kelly: Proposals for this scheme were submitted and funding was approved under my Department’s Capital Assistance Scheme in 2014. As the design has now been amended, my Department has requested and is awaiting additional information from Cork City Council, to allow the altered proposal and design to be evaluated.

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Public Sector Staff Retirements (7 May 2015)

Alan Kelly: Representations have previously been received by my Department on this matter and were responded to. With regard to local authority employment, the position is that since the enactment of the Public Service Superannuation (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2004, the minimum age at which pensions will be payable to new entrants to the public service, from 1 April 2004, is age 65 and there is no...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Housing Adaptation Grant (7 May 2015)

Alan Kelly: The provision of housing to support independent living by people with specific categories of need, including people with an intellectual, physical or mental health disability, older people, the homeless, returning emigrants and victims of domestic violence, is supported through my Department’s Capital Assistance Scheme. The scheme provides funding of up to 100% of the approved costs....

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Public Sector Staff Increment Payments (7 May 2015)

Alan Kelly: It is not possible to extract historical increment financial data from the system on a global basis for the years 2008 - 2011. Historic costs could be calculated manually on an individual basis but this would take a prohibitively long time.  The number of increments awarded to staff in my Department, along with indicative approximate values of new increments paid, in each of the years...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Electromagnetic Fields Studies (6 May 2015)

Alan Kelly: My Department has commissioned a study to review and report on international developments on the potential health effects of electro-magnetic fields, by examining international developments in non-ionising radiation (NIR) and electromagnetic fields (EMF) research, which have taken place since publication in 2007 of a report by the then Department of Communications, Marine and Natural...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Local Authority Staff Recruitment (6 May 2015)

Alan Kelly: As announced in Budget 2015, the moratorium and the Employment Control Framework for the Public Service have been lifted but recruitment/promotion will be subject to adherence to binding 3 year pay ceilings. Staffing resources must be managed within these overall ceilings. Detailed arrangements in terms of the local government sector will be worked out between my Department and the...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Motor Tax Collection (6 May 2015)

Alan Kelly: Motor tax on cars registered prior to 2008 is based on engine capacity. Motor tax on cars registered since 2008 is based on CO 2emissions. I do not consider that either basis of taxation is regressive. In the case of cars taxed on engine capacity, the banding is structured so that the level of tax payable increases as the engine size increases. In the case of cars taxed on the basis of CO2,...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Waste Management Regulations (6 May 2015)

Alan Kelly: Among the measures included in the Government’s national waste policy, A Resource Opportunity - Waste Management Policy in Ireland, which was published in July 2012, was the establishment of an inter-Departmental working group to report to Government with options on minimising the impact of waste charges on low-income households. The working group, which comprises representatives of my...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Wind Energy Guidelines (6 May 2015)

Alan Kelly: I propose to take Questions Nos. 527, 534, 539 and 564 together. 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...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Local Authority Housing Data (6 May 2015)

Alan Kelly: My Department collates and publishes a wide range of housing and planning statistics that inform the preparation and evaluation of policy. It includes data on the number of local authority houses built, broken down by year, and those data are available on my Department’s website at: by clicking “Social Housing Outputs” under the Social Housing Supports heading. Social...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Local Authority Housing Waiting Lists (6 May 2015)

Alan Kelly: In order for a household to qualify for social housing support, a housing authority must carry out an assessment to establish whether the household meets specified eligibility requirements and has a housing need. The housing need criteria, as prescribed in the Social Housing Assessment Regulations 2011, includes a household that has a mortgage that is deemed to be unsustainable under the...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Irish Water Administration (6 May 2015)

Alan Kelly: Since 1 January 2014, Irish Water has statutory responsibility for all aspects of water services planning, delivery and operation at national, regional and local levels. Under the Water Services Acts 2007-2013, Irish Water has statutory powers to request its customers and certain specified persons or bodies to provide it with information so that Irish Water can perform its functions under...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Voluntary Housing Sector (6 May 2015)

Alan Kelly: Approved housing bodies (AHBs) are organisations approved under section 6 of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1992 to provide social housing support in conjunction with local authorities. These organisations include voluntary housing associations. The ownership of homes being rented to tenants by AHBs varies, depending on the scheme under which the dwelling was provided. Since the...