Results 281-300 of 3,510 for speaker:Martin Kenny

Written Answers — Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport: Public Transport (21 Nov 2023)

Martin Kenny: 163. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport to provide, in tabular form, a breakdown of spending on public transport for each county between 2017 and 2023. [51123/23]

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Departmental Staff (21 Nov 2023)

Martin Kenny: 352. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection if the vacancies in her Department's unit in Longford are being filled by the Public Appointments Service with external candidates; if transfers are available to current staff members; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [51124/23]

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Citizens' Assembly Report on Biodiversity Loss: Discussion (Resumed) (21 Nov 2023)

Martin Kenny: I thank the witnesses for their opening submissions. I have a couple of questions. Mr. O'Donnell spoke about the Shannon system and the navigation and said he feels additional legislation is needed to prevent invasive species being spread. I live in that part of the world and we have a lot of boats that go from the Shannon system into the Erne system via the canals and all of that....

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Citizens' Assembly Report on Biodiversity Loss: Discussion (Resumed) (21 Nov 2023)

Martin Kenny: I understand. It is something that needs to be addressed with some degree of urgency. The other issue I wanted to raise is in regard to the problems we have in some of our lakes, particularly with algae bloom and all of that. It is something I see all around me, particularly in the summertime. A lot of that is coming from nitrates, basically, and the overuse of nitrates, much of which is...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Citizens' Assembly Report on Biodiversity Loss: Discussion (Resumed) (21 Nov 2023)

Martin Kenny: In respect of the accidental thing, some of it can be quite deliberate but much of it is accidental. It is not intentional. Farmers spread slurry and nitrates at a time of year. A flood or a great deal of rain comes along and they do not intend that this activity has the impact it has. What can be done to ensure that we militate against those accidents happening? Is there more-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Citizens' Assembly Report on Biodiversity Loss: Discussion (Resumed) (21 Nov 2023)

Martin Kenny: How much of the pollution is coming from municipal or human waste?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Citizens' Assembly Report on Biodiversity Loss: Discussion (Resumed) (21 Nov 2023)

Martin Kenny: Has this happened with forestry and industry?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Citizens' Assembly Report on Biodiversity Loss: Discussion (Resumed) (21 Nov 2023)

Martin Kenny: Much of the forestry is not under Coillte control now. Some of it is moving to private ownership.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Citizens' Assembly Report on Biodiversity Loss: Discussion (Resumed) (21 Nov 2023)

Martin Kenny: We have issues on some of our mountain ranges where we have had very significant landslides and great difficulties in that regard. This has caused great pollution. We have had whole sides of a mountain bog wash into rivers, with very significant effects downstream from that. Some of the farmers are complaining. This issue is having very significant ecological effects.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Citizens' Assembly Report on Biodiversity Loss: Discussion (Resumed) (21 Nov 2023)

Martin Kenny: I thank Mr. O'Donnell.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Climate Action: Citizens' Assembly Report on Biodiversity Loss: Discussion (Resumed) (21 Nov 2023)

Martin Kenny: I thank our guests for their work and input. The question asked is quite valid: what do we do here? Basically, our job is to go through and examine the report produced by the citizens' assembly. We take in witnesses from various sectors of society and various players from the farming community, business and everywhere else, get their views on it and then ascertain from that what we can...

Science Week: Statements (16 Nov 2023)

Martin Kenny: I am delighted to be here to make a statement on Science Week and on the importance of scientific and technological advances in our economy and society. My mother was born in 1932. She had osteoporosis as a child and spent several years in Cappagh Hospital from when she was seven until she was 11. The medicines that were available then were very poor compared to those for a child in a...

Select Committee on Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Estimates for Public Services 2023
Vote 29 - Environment, Climate and Communications (Supplementary) (16 Nov 2023)

Martin Kenny: A future Minister is an unknown quantity. I thank the Minister of State for his opening statement and the detail he has gone into so far. I will go back to the business solar scheme, which there is great interest in. As the Minister of State said, a whole range of places, including even community centres, are looking at it. It is one of the things we can do that creates great buy-in...

Select Committee on Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Estimates for Public Services 2023
Vote 29 - Environment, Climate and Communications (Supplementary) (16 Nov 2023)

Martin Kenny: What rate is the grant?

Select Committee on Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Estimates for Public Services 2023
Vote 29 - Environment, Climate and Communications (Supplementary) (16 Nov 2023)

Martin Kenny: How much does an applicant have to put up? If a community centre wanted to put solar panels on the roof, how much of the cost can it draw down?

Select Committee on Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Estimates for Public Services 2023
Vote 29 - Environment, Climate and Communications (Supplementary) (16 Nov 2023)

Martin Kenny: If a project were to cost €30,000, how much would the applicants have to put up?

Select Committee on Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Estimates for Public Services 2023
Vote 29 - Environment, Climate and Communications (Supplementary) (16 Nov 2023)

Martin Kenny: They would get €7,000 and have to put up €23,000.

Select Committee on Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Estimates for Public Services 2023
Vote 29 - Environment, Climate and Communications (Supplementary) (16 Nov 2023)

Martin Kenny: For a business, that is fine, but it is not feasible for many community projects. I had a conversation with a community project that has a large roof area and was interested in this. It said the level of grant caused a difficulty for them. The low-interest loan is something it will have to consider. Is that available to projects such as that? It is only for residential.

Select Committee on Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Estimates for Public Services 2023
Vote 29 - Environment, Climate and Communications (Supplementary) (16 Nov 2023)

Martin Kenny: One of the difficulties is that when we get into the detail of some of these schemes, we see that people who really want to do it are excluded. Every scheme needs to have criteria, understandably. However, to give an example, a farmer would very easily run up a cost of €30,000 in putting a decent-size solar project on the roof of his or her sheds. The farmer would have to find more...