Results 16,761-16,780 of 20,884 for speaker:Alan Kelly

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Constitutional Convention Recommendations (21 Apr 2015)

Alan Kelly: The Convention on the Constitution recommended that citizens resident outside the State should have the right to vote in Presidential elections. In considering a response to this recommendation the Government decided that it would be necessary to analyse the full range of issue that would arise in any significant extension of the franchise, before any decision could be made on the holding of...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Departmental Records (21 Apr 2015)

Alan Kelly: Where a meeting that takes place involves simply a briefing on issues, it may only be necessary to maintain a record of the meeting having taken place, with progress on the various issues being pursued through separate working arrangements. Minutes are kept of meetings of the Management Advisory Committee of my Department and of meetings of that Committee with myself and the Ministers of...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Water and Sewerage Scheme Grants (21 Apr 2015)

Alan Kelly: A grant of €2,031.58 per house or 75% of the cost, whichever is the lesser, is available, under my Department’s Rural Water Programme, towards the provision or necessary improvement of an individual water supply in a house. Responsibility for the administration of the Rural Water Programme has been devolved to local authorities since 1997. The approval of individual grant...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Water Charges Administration (21 Apr 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. The introduction of domestic water charges is an important element of the funding model and is necessary to drive increased investment in water services infrastructure. A new water charging regime was announced by the...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Local Authority Staff (21 Apr 2015)

Alan Kelly: Under section 159 of the Local Government Act 2001, each Chief Executive is responsible for staffing and organisation arrangements necessary for carrying out the functions of the local authority for which he or she is responsible. Within each local authority, management have engaged in a workforce planning exercise and whilst this has been finalised in a number of local authorities there...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Local Authority Funding (21 Apr 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 Provision (21 Apr 2015)

Alan Kelly: I propose to take Questions Nos. 647, 655, 656 and 657 together. Social housing is a key priority for Government, as evidenced by the increased provision made for the area in Budget 2015. The Social Housing Strategy 2020 targets the supply of 35,000 additional social housing units at a cost of €3.8 billion over the next 6 years, as well as meeting the housing needs of some 75,000...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Social and Affordable Housing Provision (21 Apr 2015)

Alan Kelly: I propose to take Questions Nos. 648 to 654, inclusive, and 658 to 665, inclusive, together. The Government’s Social Housing Strategy 2020 targets the delivery of over 35,000 new social housing units over the period to 2020. These targets are broken down in the Strategy between those that are current-funded, at 23,400 units, and those that are capital-funded, at 12,173 units. The...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Irish Water Administration (21 Apr 2015)

Alan Kelly: I propose to take Questions Nos. 666 and 667 together. 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 the utility can perform its functions under these Acts, including the collection of data to develop its customer database. In particular, section 26 of the Water...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Housing Assistance Payments Expenditure (21 Apr 2015)

Alan Kelly: The Housing Assistance Payment (HAP) is a new social housing support being introduced by local authorities. HAP will replace Rent Supplement for those with a long-term housing need who qualify for social housing support. The introduction of HAP means that local authorities can now provide housing assistance for households with a long term housing need, including many long term Rent Supplement...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Wind Energy Guidelines (21 Apr 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 of 500 metres between a wind...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Social and Affordable Housing Provision (21 Apr 2015)

Alan Kelly: The Social Housing Strategy targets the delivery of over 35,000 new social housing units over the period to 2020. Building on this, I recently announced ambitious targets for all local authorities out to 2017 which will have a major impact for those on the housing waiting lists, with a national reduction of 25% targeted over the period through these targets alone. The target I announced in...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Public Sector Pensions Data (21 Apr 2015)

Alan Kelly: I propose to take Questions Nos. 673 and 674 together. Information regarding the number of pensions in payment in local authorities for each year from 2008 to 2014 is set out in the table below. The total cost of the pensions in payment in local authorities in 2014 was €239.91 million, giving an average pension of €12,406. Information regarding the number of pensions in payments...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Water Charges Administration (16 Apr 2015)

Alan Kelly: To promote sustainable use of water and to enhance water conservation in households, the Department of Social Protection will administer, on behalf of my Department, a €100 water conservation grant for households (principal private dwellings) that complete a valid response to Irish Water’s customer registration process. It is proposed that the grant will be paid in one...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Departmental Funding (16 Apr 2015)

Alan Kelly: Specific funding of €3.5 million was not set aside for these projects in 2014. However, my Department has worked with Meath County Council recently in undertaking various works in these areas relating to energy efficiency improvements and the remediation of boarded-up social housing units. The options for further improvement works are being examined by the Council and my Department...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Water Charges Administration (16 Apr 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 shall collect charges from its customers in receipt of water services provided by it in accordance with a water charges plan to be approved by the Commission for Energy Regulation (CER). Section 22(5) of the Act provides that a water charges...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Consultancy Contracts Expenditure (16 Apr 2015)

Alan Kelly: The only amounts spent on consultants relating to Government homeless strategies for the years in question were in respect of A review of The Way Home: A Strategy to Address Adult Homelessness in Ireland 2008-2013, which was completed in 2012 at a cost of €6,000.

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Homelessness Strategy (16 Apr 2015)

Alan Kelly: A review of the then Government’s strategy The Way Home: A Strategy to Address Adult Homelessness in Ireland 2008-2013 was completed in 2012 and it endorsed the fundamentals of the Strategy – a copy is available on my Department’s website at the following link: . The review also informed this Government’s Homelessness Policy Statement, which was published in...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Social and Affordable Housing Provision (16 Apr 2015)

Alan Kelly: The Land Aggregation Scheme was introduced in 2010 as part of revised arrangements for the funding of land for social housing purposes. The primary purpose of the Scheme was to assist in the gradual unwinding of loans taken out by housing authorities to purchase land for the social and affordable housing investment programme. Applications to the value of some €163 million in loans...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Irish Water Funding (16 Apr 2015)

Alan Kelly: With effect from 1 January 2014, Irish Water is responsible for public water services. The Water Services (No. 2) Act 2013 provided for a range of matters consequent upon the transfer of functions in relation to public water services from local authorities to Irish Water. This includes the mechanisms for the transfer of assets and liabilities from local authorities to Irish Water. In...