Results 121-140 of 1,741 for speaker:John Cummins

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Scrutiny of Homeless Prevention Bill 2020, Tenancy Protection Bill 2023 and Dereliction and Building Regeneration Bill 2022: Private Members' Bills (14 Dec 2023)

John Cummins: My view is that what is being proposed here is unnecessary.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Scrutiny of Homeless Prevention Bill 2020, Tenancy Protection Bill 2023 and Dereliction and Building Regeneration Bill 2022: Private Members' Bills (14 Dec 2023)

John Cummins: I will put the counterargument and say we have had statutory underpinning for more than 12 or 18 months with affordable housing. Some local authorities are doing the business and others are not doing the business at all. This is with regard to statutory underpinning for affordable housing. It goes back to the original point made by Deputy Ó Broin that it still relies on the...

Seanad: Electoral (Amendment) Bill 2023: Committee and Remaining Stages (13 Dec 2023)

John Cummins: On what basis has it been ruled out of order?

Seanad: Electoral (Amendment) Bill 2023: Committee and Remaining Stages (13 Dec 2023)

John Cummins: Because it mentions the Seanad.

Seanad: Electoral (Amendment) Bill 2023: Committee and Remaining Stages (13 Dec 2023)

John Cummins: I have sympathy for the Labour Party amendment No. 5, which was ruled out of order. It suggested that the electoral area would suffice for the address that goes on the ballot paper. I note in his contribution on Committee Stage that the Minister of State, Deputy Noonan, said there was latitude in the process for returning officers to facilitate that. It is important that a note is made...

Seanad: Electoral (Amendment) Bill 2023: Committee and Remaining Stages (13 Dec 2023)

John Cummins: Will it be the commission or the Department?

Seanad: Finance (No. 2) Bill 2023: Report and Final Stages (12 Dec 2023)

John Cummins: I can certainly see the point the Senator is making on derelict properties. We have introduced a whole host of schemes to incentivise bringing properties back into productive use. Not only is there the refurbishment grant of €70,000, but also the repair and lease scheme and the buy and renew scheme. Some local authorities have used these schemes to great effect, while some have not...

Seanad: Finance (No. 2) Bill 2023: Report and Final Stages (12 Dec 2023)

John Cummins: I might slightly segue here, so I ask the Minister of State to give me a little leeway in that respect. Under the Finance Act 2022, relief from natural gas carbon tax was provided for in respect of the horticultural industry but it has not been commenced. I understand this has been debated inside out and upside down but it is very important for that sector and it has not yet been commenced....

Seanad: Electoral (Amendment) Bill 2023: Second Stage (7 Dec 2023)

John Cummins: I welcome the Minister of State to the House. I will not require the full ten minutes. This is very straightforward legislation. As the Minister of State said in his concluding comments, it is essentially about establishing the new constituencies for elections to Dáil Éireann and for the European Parliament elections which will take place in June of next year. We have a...

Seanad: Electoral (Amendment) Bill 2023: Second Stage (7 Dec 2023)

John Cummins: Next Tuesday.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Residential Tenancies (Right to Purchase) Bill: Discussion (Resumed) (7 Dec 2023)

John Cummins: I will try.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Residential Tenancies (Right to Purchase) Bill: Discussion (Resumed) (7 Dec 2023)

John Cummins: I missed the outset of the meeting but I know Deputy Ó Broin took up where I left off on Tuesday. I had a back and forth with IPAV and the IPOA on Tuesday. To be very clear, there is nothing to obligate the owner of a property to go back to the tenant if the offer is higher. That is very clear. That puts a lot of the concerns raised on Tuesday to rest. I asked would those bodies...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Residential Tenancies (Right to Purchase) Bill: Discussion (Resumed) (7 Dec 2023)

John Cummins: Are we going to require that in the legislation?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Residential Tenancies (Right to Purchase) Bill: Discussion (Resumed) (7 Dec 2023)

John Cummins: The officials also said they would look at it during last week's briefing but, to be perfectly honest, I want them to go further than that because it has to be there. There has to be a protection mechanism built into the eventual legislation in order that somebody cannot come back after the fact.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Residential Tenancies (Right to Purchase) Bill: Discussion (Resumed) (7 Dec 2023)

John Cummins: I am not telling Mr. Smyth how to draft it; I am telling him what needs to be in it. This absolutely needs to be there. That is my strong view in this regard. I certainly hope, when the Bill comes to both Houses, that will be the case. On the auction piece, which was also teased out, an assertion was made that this would essentially end any provision for an auction because of the fear...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Residential Tenancies (Right to Purchase) Bill: Discussion (Resumed) (7 Dec 2023)

John Cummins: Of course, the tenant could absolutely be at the auction and engage in that process. To continue from where my colleague, Deputy Higgins, left off with regard to the transfer or gift of a property, the Department says that head 5 is being removed. I want to tease that out a little bit further. To be clear, the Department is saying it does not want to introduce the transfer or gift of the...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Residential Tenancies (Right to Purchase) Bill: Discussion (Resumed) (7 Dec 2023)

John Cummins: That is the case if he moved out within the 12-month period but let us tease out the sale piece. Let us say the tenant of the property bids €300,000 for the property within the 90-day period.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Residential Tenancies (Right to Purchase) Bill: Discussion (Resumed) (7 Dec 2023)

John Cummins: I understand what Mr. Smyth is saying. That would not be the case, so the sale could proceed subsequently. If John moved into the property, of course, the sale could go through at a lower value because it was not done on a-----