Results 16,621-16,640 of 20,884 for speaker:Alan Kelly

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Housing for People with Disabilities (6 May 2015)

Alan Kelly: My Department does not have a grant scheme specifically to support the building of a new house where there are family members with disabilities.

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

Alan Kelly: In law, the preparation of the Register of Electors is a matter for each local authority as a registration authority. It is their duty to ensure, as far as possible and with the cooperation of the public, the accuracy and comprehensiveness of the Register. This involves the carrying out of house-to-house or other local enquiries, including in many cases delivering registration forms to...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Housing for People with Disabilities (6 May 2015)

Alan Kelly: Exchequer funding of over €37 million was provided by my Department to local authorities in 2014 for the Housing Adaptation Grants for Older People and People with a Disability. Combined with an additional 20% contribution by individual local authorities, there was an overall spend last year of €46.3 million in this area. I am pleased to confirm that the 2015 amount will...

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

Alan Kelly: Social housing is key priority for this Government, as evidenced by the additional €2.2 billion in funding announced for it in Budget 2015 and the publication of the Social Housing Strategy 2020 in November 2014. The total targeted provision of over 110,000 social housing units, through the delivery of 35,000 new social housing units and meeting the housing needs of some 75,000...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Control of Dogs (6 May 2015)

Alan Kelly: I propose to take Questions Nos. 542, 543 and 559 together. The overall thrust of dog control legislation is to place the onus on dog owners and those in control of dogs to act responsibly by keeping their dogs under effectual control, irrespective of breed. Such responsible dog ownership is the key to reducing incidences of dog biting and other problem behaviours. The Control of...

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

Alan Kelly: I refer to the reply to Question No. 139 of 29 April which sets out the position in this matter.

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

Alan Kelly: The primary role of my Department in electoral matters is to provide an appropriate policy and legislative framework for a modern and efficient electoral system. Within that framework, local returning officers are responsible for all matters in connection with the actual conduct of elections and referendums, including the selection, appointment and training of polling station and count staff...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Social and Affordable Housing Expenditure (6 May 2015)

Alan Kelly: I propose to take Questions Nos. 546 and 547 together. The social housing targets that I recently announced for all local authorities are out to 2017 and include almost 7,500 units that will be capital-funded and 15,400 current-funded units. My announcement also contained provisional funding allocations which are sufficient to deliver the targeted units. Details in tabular form are available...

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

Alan Kelly: I propose to take Questions Nos. 548 and 549 together. The allocation of funding to local authorities of some €20m from my Department in respect of the 2015 programme to bring vacant units back to productive use will be made shortly. This allocation will also set out the number of targeted units per local authority. For 2015, a target of 1,000 vacant units to be returned to...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Homeless Accommodation Provision (6 May 2015)

Alan Kelly: I propose to take Questions Nos. 550 to 553, inclusive, together. A range of measures are being taken to secure a ring-fenced supply of accommodation to house homeless households and mobilise the necessary supports nationally in order to deliver on the Government's target of ending involuntary long-term homelessness by the end of 2016. These measures are set out in the Government's...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Departmental Funding (6 May 2015)

Alan Kelly: Funding to approved housing bodies is allocated to them on the basis of proposals they make in respect of social housing provision which have been approved by local authorities and my Department. These proposals must be viable, meet housing need and represent value for money. Under my Department's Capital Assistance Scheme, approved housing bodies are already implementing projects for the...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Departmental Investigations (6 May 2015)

Alan Kelly: I have considered what next steps need to be taken in respect of certain Donegal County Council planning matters taking account of advice from the Office of the Attorney General. My Department is finalising arrangements for the imminent appointment of a Senior Counsel, on a non-statutory basis, nominated by the Attorney General to prepare a report in relation to these matters in line with...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Planning Issues (6 May 2015)

Alan Kelly: MacCabe Durney Barnes Consultants were appointed in February 2014 to carry out an independent planning review on the performance of planning functions in six selected planning authorities (Carlow, Cork, Galway and Meath County Councils and Cork and Dublin City Councils) in accordance with section 255 of the Planning and Development Act 2000, as amended. I expect to receive the final...

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

Alan Kelly: The Water Services Act 2013 provided for the establishment of Irish Water as an independent subsidiary within the Bord Gáis Éireann Group (now Ervia) and assigned the necessary powers to allow Irish Water to undertake the domestic water metering programme. I have no responsibility for the rollout of the metering programme. However, I understand that water meters are being installed...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Housing Assistance Payments (6 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...

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

Alan Kelly: Information on the funding provided by my Department to local authorities for the suite of Housing Adaptation Grants for Older People and People with a Disability is available on my Department’s website at the following link: by selecting ‘Social and Affordable Housing’, ‘Housing Adaptation Grants by Area 2008 to date’. The average payment per recipient in...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Social and Affordable Housing Provision (6 May 2015)

Alan Kelly: The statutory social housing needs assessments carried out in 2008, 2011 and 2013 detail the number of households on social housing waiting lists during the period concerned, broken down by each local authority. The full results of the assessments undertaken in 2008 to 2013 are available on my Department’s website at the following links: 2008: 2011: 2013: The 2013 figures are the most...

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

Alan Kelly: A number of Approved Housing Bodies (AHBs) provide internal dispute resolution facilities, including mediation, for their tenants; however, where it is not possible to resolve a dispute between an AHB and their tenant, the dispute must ultimately be resolved before the Courts. The current law for AHB tenancies is based on a combination of tenancy agreements, the Landlord and Tenant Acts...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Housing Assistance Payments (6 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, which I published on 26 November 2014. 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...

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

Alan Kelly: My role as Minister with regard to development contributions is to provide the necessary statutory and policy framework within which individual development contribution schemes are adopted by each local authority. The adoption of these schemes is a reserved function of the locally elected members of each planning authority. It is a matter for the members to determine the level of...