Results 1-20 of 65 for 5 million speaker:Joe O'Brien

Seanad: Special Measures in the Public Interest (Derrybrien Wind Farm) Bill 2023: Second Stage (20 Feb 2024)

Joe O'Brien: ...of the wind farm in June 2003. However, work was stopped in October 2003 due to a peat slide that resulted in an ecological disaster polluting the local river, causing the death of approximately 50,000 fish and lasting damage to the fish spawning beds. At that time emergency works were undertaken to protect watercourses, roads and property. Construction of the wind farm was completed in...

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate: Schools Building Projects (1 Feb 2024)

Joe O'Brien: Under Project Ireland 2040, the Department of Education is investing well in excess of €5 billion over the period 2021-25 to add capacity and develop and upgrade school facilities across the country for the almost 1 million students and over 100,000 staff who learn and work in our schools every day. The Department of Education has a strong track record of delivery of school building...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Social Welfare Benefits (7 Dec 2023)

Joe O'Brien: That characterisation is inaccurate in terms of the expectation that people will be on €125 a week. The bottom level is €300. There are other aspects to the system as well. The logic of this is to follow European norms where we can avoid a cliff edge as regards the drop in income people face, if they are unlucky enough to lose their jobs. A recent classic example of that is...

Seanad: Social Welfare (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2023: Second Stage (7 Dec 2023)

Joe O'Brien: ...increases in basic rates of social welfare payments, we have once again secured a comprehensive set of one-off payments, including the Christmas bonus, which is being paid this week to over 1.3 million recipients. There will be another double payment for those recipients in January 2024 as well as one-off payments for recipients of working family payment, disability and carers' payments,...

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Departmental Funding (5 Dec 2023)

Joe O'Brien: ..., ring fenced fund. The campaign raised over €7m in support of Irish emergency aid agencies, local charities and organisations providing assistance to arrivals from Ukraine. My Department allocated €5 million to the Ireland for Ukraine Fund in June 2022. Grants were provided to four international partners working on the ground in Ukraine and elsewhere in eastern...

Select Committee on Social Protection: Estimates for Public Service 2023
Vote 42 - Rural and Community Development (Supplementary) (22 Nov 2023)

Joe O'Brien: ...level now, initially in response to the Ukraine situation but which are also now working with international protection applicants. Regarding the budget line, this is an additional €10 million. The beginning of it was 2022. After the initial inflow of people, we got an initial €5 million for SICAP and half a million for the volunteer centres for the second half of 2022....

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Flood Risk Management (7 Nov 2023)

Joe O'Brien: ...response agencies for their work in very difficult and challenging conditions during this flooding event. Last week the Minister, Deputy Heather Humphreys, announced that she has secured a further €3 million in funding for the humanitarian assistance scheme, which is administered by the Department of Social Protection. This scheme provides support to those living in properties...

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Departmental Programmes (25 Oct 2023)

Joe O'Brien: ...services. The number, by county, of organisations currently supported is set out in the table below. A new call for applications under the CSP was launched on 6thMarch last with a budget of €1 million in 2023. 197 stage 1 Concept Notes were received, following which 33 successful stage 1 applicants were invited to submit a full application under stage 2. Of these 33 organisations,...

Financial Resolutions 2023 - Financial Resolution No. 4: General (Resumed) (11 Oct 2023)

Joe O'Brien: ...development companies throughout the country. Their response was extraordinary but they needed more boots on the ground and, therefore, we were last year given an additional allocation of €10 million to employ additional people in 2023. I am glad to say that allocation has been continued into 2024, along with the allocation of an additional €1 million for the volunteer...

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Local Development Companies (20 Sep 2023)

Joe O'Brien: ...programme, enabled flexibility to respond to the needs presented as a result of the impact of the Ukrainian crisis. To assist in the community response to support people arriving from Ukraine, an additional €5 million was announced in 2022 to support the Local Development Companies, through SICAP. A further €10 million is also being provided under SICAP in 2023 to allow Local...

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Departmental Funding (20 Sep 2023)

Joe O'Brien: ...delighted to secure a 10% increase for SICAP for 2022, the largest increase since the programme was launched. For 2023 I secured a further increase of €1.3m. This represents a total increase of €5.3 million for the programme increasing its annual funding allocation to €44.4m. The arrival of Ukrainians to communities across Ireland has had a significant impact on...

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Departmental Schemes (23 Feb 2023)

Joe O'Brien: I propose to take Questions Nos. 26 and 56 together. On 28 April 2021, my department, in collaboration with the Department of Transport, announced the introduction of a three-year pilot initiative to develop a scheme for the provision of high quality up-cycled bicycles and e-bikes as an alternative to the Cycle to Work Scheme model, for those on low incomes and/or those who are most...

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Departmental Programmes (23 Feb 2023)

Joe O'Brien: ...annual budgetary estimates process. I was delighted to have secured a 10% increase for SICAP for 2022, the largest increase since the programme was launched. This year, I secured an increase of €1.3 million under Budget 2023, increasing the annual funding from €43 million to €44.3 million. In 2022, an additional €5 million funding was announced to support...

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Ukraine War (15 Dec 2022)

Joe O'Brien: ...SICAP so that its some 600 community development workers can contribute locally in responding to the needs of the people from Ukraine to help them settle in and engage with local communities. €10.5 million was announced by my Department earlier this year for the community response to support people arriving from Ukraine. €5 million funding was allocated to SICAP in...

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Ukraine War (10 Nov 2022)

Joe O'Brien: ...in relation to SICAP so that its some 600 community development workers can contribute locally in responding to the needs of the people from Ukraine to help them settle in and engage with local communities. €10.5 million was announced by my Department earlier this year for the community response to support people arriving from Ukraine. €5 million funding was...

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Departmental Programmes (27 Oct 2022)

Joe O'Brien: ...SICAP is subject to the annual budgetary estimates process and I was delighted to secure funding in Budget 2023 for the Social Inclusion and Community Activation Programme (SICAP) increasing from €44 million to €46 million in 2023. Earlier this year, an additional €5 million funding was announced to support the Local Development Companies, through SICAP, for the...

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Ukraine War (25 Oct 2022)

Joe O'Brien: ...SICAP so that its some 600 community development workers can contribute locally in responding to the needs of the people from Ukraine to help them settle in and engage with local communities. €10.5 million was announced by my Department earlier this year for the community response to support people arriving from Ukraine. €5 million funding was allocated to SICAP in...

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Ukraine War (12 Oct 2022)

Joe O'Brien: ...to SICAP so that its some 600 community development workers can contribute locally in responding to the needs of the people from Ukraine to help them settle and engage with local communities. €10.5 million was announced by my Department earlier this year for the community response to support people arriving from Ukraine. €5 million funding was allocated to SICAP in...

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Rural Schemes (15 Sep 2022)

Joe O'Brien: ...annual budgetary estimates process and I was delighted to have secured a 10% increase for SICAP for 2022, the largest increase since the programme was launched. Earlier this year, an additional €5 million funding was announced to support the Local Development Companies, through SICAP, for the community response to support people arriving from Ukraine. I recognise the vital...

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Departmental Schemes (14 Sep 2022)

Joe O'Brien: ...annual budgetary estimates process and I was delighted to have secured a 10% increase for SICAP for 2022, the largest increase since the programme was launched. Earlier this year, an additional €5 million funding was announced to support the Local Development Companies, through SICAP, for the community response to support people arriving from Ukraine. I recognise the vital...