Results 17,321-17,340 of 27,055 for speaker:Darragh O'Brien

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Local Authority Housing (23 Sep 2020)

Darragh O'Brien: I propose to take Questions Nos. 94, 95 and 97 together. Cost information on the delivery of social homes through the local authority construction and turnkey programmes and through the Capital Assistance Scheme, is collated by my Department at development level rather than at granular or individual housing unit level. Disaggregating such development level information into individual unit...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Approved Housing Bodies (23 Sep 2020)

Darragh O'Brien: Capital Advance Leasing Facility (CALF) funding is capital support provided to Approved Housing Bodies (AHBs) by local authorities to facilitate the funding of construction, acquisition or refurbishment of new social housing units. This loan facility can support up to 30% of the eligible capital cost of the housing project, with the housing units provided to local authorities for social...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Local Infrastructure Housing Activation Fund (23 Sep 2020)

Darragh O'Brien: I propose to take Questions Nos. 98 to 100, inclusive, together. Given the critical lack of residential development, as an initiative of the Rebuilding Ireland Action Plan for Housing and Homelessness, the Local Infrastructure Housing Activation Fund (LIHAF) is primarily designed to fund the provision of public off-site infrastructure to relieve critical infrastructure blockages and enable...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Local Authority Housing (23 Sep 2020)

Darragh O'Brien: Under the Voids Programme funded by my Department, 10,162 vacant social housing homes were returned to productive use in the period 2015-2019. This figure does not include homes which were returned to productive use by local authorities using funding from their own resources. Between 2015-2019, Exchequer funding of approximately €146m was provided supporting local authorities in...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Environmental Impact Assessments (23 Sep 2020)

Darragh O'Brien: On 12 November 2019, the Court of Justice of the European Union issued its judgment in case C-261/18, which followed on from the judgment in case C-215/06. These judgments will be complied with when the Derrybrien Wind Farm, which is owned and operated by a subsidiary of the Electricity Supply Board (ESB), is subjected to a retrospective Environmental Impact Assessment - otherwise known as...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Septic Tanks (23 Sep 2020)

Darragh O'Brien: Under the Water Services Acts 2007 and 2012 (Domestic Waste Water Treatment Systems) Regulations 2012, the owner of a domestic waste water treatment system is responsible for its maintenance and renewal and shall ensure that its parts and components are fit for purpose, operational where appropriate and kept in good order and repair so as to prevent a risk to human health or environment. ...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Licence Applications (23 Sep 2020)

Darragh O'Brien: I am aware of some delays in my Department this year in processing deer hunting licence applications and I am aware that many deer hunters have not received their licenses yet this year. The delays arise as a result of the ongoing Covid-19 public health emergency and the effects this has had on travel and working arrangements. While staff in the unit that deals with the issuing of licenses...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Issues (23 Sep 2020)

Darragh O'Brien: My Department provides funding to local authorities, including Roscommon County Council, to support a broad range of social housing programmes, including the delivery of new social housing homes through build, acquisition and leasing and programmes which support maintenance, upgrades and improvement works to existing social housing stock. All local authorities, including Roscommon County...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Covid-19 Pandemic (23 Sep 2020)

Darragh O'Brien: My Department continues to make every effort to assist local authorities with the financial challenges they are experiencing since the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic, including cash flow support by bringing forward payments where possible, so that the vital services that local authorities deliver can be maintained. In early April an advance of €136m of LPT allocations was made to...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Property Tax (23 Sep 2020)

Darragh O'Brien: The Programme for Government – Our Shared Future, sets out a range of actions that relate to local authority funding. The Programme commits to bringing forward legislation for the Local Property Tax (LPT) on the basis of fairness and that most homeowners will face no increase. It also states that those counties with a lower LPT base will be adjusted via an annual national equalisation...

Written Answers — Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht: Heritage Schemes (22 Sep 2020)

Darragh O'Brien: My Department provides financial support for the protection of heritage buildings and historic structures through two grant schemes, which are, in the main, administered by the Local Authorities. These are the Built Heritage Investment Scheme (BHIS) and the Historic Structures Fund (HSF). Both schemes are run on an annual funding cycle and, in general, all funds must be drawn down and claimed...

Written Answers — Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht: Commercial Rates (22 Sep 2020)

Darragh O'Brien: I propose to take Questions Nos. 322 and 328 together. Local authorities are under a statutory obligation to levy rates on any property used for commercial purposes in accordance with the details entered in the valuation lists prepared by the independent Commissioner of Valuation under the Valuation Acts 2001 to 2015. The levying and collection of rates are matters for each individual...

Written Answers — Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht: Planning Issues (22 Sep 2020)

Darragh O'Brien: There are no specific criteria for anaerobic and biogas systems facilities under the planning code and it is a matter for planning authorities or An Bord Pleanala, as appropriate, to assess applications for such projects in line with the Planning and Development Act 2000, as amended (the Act), and the Planning and Development Regulations 2001, as amended. I am aware that the Irish Bioenergy...

Written Answers — Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht: Heritage Projects (22 Sep 2020)

Darragh O'Brien: In November 2019, funding of €5m was awarded under the Rural Regeneration and Development Fund to Waterways Ireland and its partners, Kildare and Laois County Councils to progress the Barrow Blueway from Lowtown to Athy. Waterways Ireland commenced construction of the Barrow Blueway in early August 2020. The construction work is being undertaken by Waterways Ireland’s direct...

Written Answers — Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht: Heritage Projects (22 Sep 2020)

Darragh O'Brien: My Department provides financial support for the protection of heritage buildings and historic structures through two grant schemes which are, in the main, administered by the local authorities. These are the Built Heritage Investment Scheme (BHIS) and the Historic Structures Fund (HSF). To date, a combined sum of over €4.3m has been allocated to 450 built heritage projects across...

Written Answers — Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht: Rent Supplement Scheme (22 Sep 2020)

Darragh O'Brien: Across the period 2016 to 2021, we are working to meet the housing needs of more than 138,000 additional households. This includes 50,000 long term supports in build, bought or leased homes, being delivered by both local authorities and Approved Housing Bodies (AHBs) and also congoing support under the Housing Assistance Payment (HAP) scheme and the Rental Accommodation Scheme (RAS). The...

Written Answers — Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht: Water and Sewerage Schemes (22 Sep 2020)

Darragh O'Brien: Section 70B(13) of the Water Services Act 2007 (No. 30 of 2007), as inserted by Section 4 of the Water Services (Amendment) Act 2012 (No. 2 of 2012), and the Domestic Waste Water Treatment System (Registration) Regulations 2012 (No. 222 of 2012)provide that all owners of houses served by an individual domestic waste water treatment system, have the system entered into the register maintained...

Written Answers — Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht: Grant Payments (22 Sep 2020)

Darragh O'Brien: Under the Water Services Acts 2007 and 2012 (Domestic Waste Water Treatment Systems) Regulations 2012, the owner of a domestic waste water treatment system is responsible for its maintenance and renewal and shall ensure that its parts and components are fit for purpose, operational where appropriate and kept in good order and repair so as to prevent a risk to human health or environment. ...

Written Answers — Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht: Hare Coursing (22 Sep 2020)

Darragh O'Brien: I propose to take Questions Nos. 331 and 358 together. On 16 September last my Department issued licenses under the Wildlife Acts to the Irish Coursing Club on behalf of its affiliated clubs to net and tag hares for the forthcoming 2020/2021 coursing season.

Written Answers — Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht: Local Authority Housing (22 Sep 2020)

Darragh O'Brien: There are over 135,000 social housing homes nationally in the ownership of local authorities. My Department has been funding an Energy Efficiency Retrofitting Programme for these properties since 2013. The Programme has two phases: Phase 1, which comprises the bulk of the work undertaken to date, has focused on the lower cost improvements such as cavity wall and attic insulation, while...