Results 1-20 of 1,666 for at speaker:Pádraig Mac Lochlainn

Delivering Universal Healthcare: Statements (15 May 2024)

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn: 3 o’clock The Minister received correspondence late last year from more than 80 GPs and more than 20 consultants in County Donegal about their concerns with Letterkenny University Hospital. I know he met with them and heard face to face the serious concerns they had. As part of the correspondence, they revealed to him that Letterkenny is a model 3 hospital, but the reality is...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Defective Concrete Blocks: Discussion (Resumed) (14 May 2024)

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn: ..., do we not? We have until 6 o'clock. My first question is to Michael McGarvey of Donegal County Council. As a TD for Donegal I have worked with Michael for years. I want to clarify a comment that was made earlier. I am getting messages and people are very angry. I do not think it is truly representative of Mr. McGarvey's view so I am going to put it again. There were 800 people at...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Defective Concrete Blocks: Discussion (Resumed) (14 May 2024)

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn: Would Mr. McGarvey accept as a Donegal man who lives in the county and talks to people every day that the reality is that very large numbers, I would say the substantial majority of homeowners, cannot access the scheme because it will cost them tens of thousands of euro to do so. Would he accept there is a big discrepancy and that is why there were huge numbers at those public meetings?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Defective Concrete Blocks: Discussion (Resumed) (14 May 2024)

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn: In July 2022, almost two years ago now, Dr. Andreas Leemann, a recognised international expert on concrete products, testified before this committee on his findings on testing of blocks. He talked about iron sulphate attacks and pyrrhotite as being the dominant cause. I would have put those questions to the witnesses at that time. Can the National Standards Authority of Ireland confirm...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Defective Concrete Blocks: Discussion (Resumed) (14 May 2024)

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn: The NSAI was asked in November 2021 to review what was a desktop study. Be mindful that right now, families are being asked to remove the outer leaf of their homes and leave internal leaves intact that potentially contain defective products. They are being asked not to test their foundations, based on the desktop study. Taxpayers who are not affected at all are being asked to put forward...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Defective Concrete Blocks: Discussion (Resumed) (14 May 2024)

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn: I am from the Inishowen Peninsula, from Buncrana. It is literally the epicentre of what is called a slow-moving earthquake. In my age cohort, for pretty much all of my friends and family, it has utterly devastated their lives. They are lay people like me. Of the engineers who are trained up and are now representing families, I cannot think of one who believes in the current standard. I...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Defective Concrete Blocks: Discussion (Resumed) (14 May 2024)

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn: Last year, the NSAI said it would consider an interim recommendation if it was deemed necessary. As the witnesses know, since the legislation was drafted for the enhanced defective concrete blocks scheme and it was finally rushed through the Houses in July 2022, homeowners have repeatedly asked about this. Why have the foundations not been tested? Why has there not been an interim...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Defective Concrete Blocks: Discussion (Resumed) (14 May 2024)

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn: How can that be Ms Stapleton's understanding? I am just giving her absolute, clear feedback from my own county that there is a large number of homeowners in their sixties and seventies. I invited her colleague, Mr. Derek Rafferty. There are facilitators who work at the coalface for the Inishowen Development Partnership. They work for Donegal Local Development Company. Their job is to...

Europe Day: Statements (8 May 2024)

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn: As we are debating Europe Day and Ireland's place in the EU, I will take the opportunity to talk about one group for which the experience has been negative, our fishing and coastal communities. The issue relates to how the Common Fisheries Policy has been rolled out, interpreted and enforced in Ireland and how it has repeatedly gone unchanged. A 14-year-old girl has done more than most in...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Defective Concrete Blocks: Discussion (Resumed) (8 May 2024)

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn: So Mr. Rafferty is aware of the testimony given by the representatives from Engineers Ireland at last week's meeting.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Defective Concrete Blocks: Discussion (Resumed) (8 May 2024)

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn: Engineers Ireland gave evidence to the Oireachtas housing committee last year at a session chaired by Deputy Matthews, who is chairing this meeting. Is Mr. Rafferty aware of the evidence? The date was 13 July 2023. Mr. Rafferty said the representatives of Engineers Ireland have changed their position.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Defective Concrete Blocks: Discussion (Resumed) (8 May 2024)

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn: The witnesses should be aware of the Engineers Ireland submission to the committee on housing last year, some ten months ago. It states: Some engineers are of the opinion that IS465 is not fit for purpose as long as it does not consider sulphide oxidation in Donegal defective blockwork and the standard should be updated based on available research. Updated guidance on acceptable...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Defective Concrete Blocks: Discussion (Resumed) (8 May 2024)

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn: In Mr Wickham's opinion, why did that panel at that time rule out pyrrhotite or iron sulphate attacks? Why was that ruled out and excluded from IS 465 when evidence of the existence of this deleterious material was known about in the State for a significant period of time before that?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Defective Concrete Blocks: Discussion (Resumed) (8 May 2024)

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn: Does that concern Mr. Wickham? If we follow the logic of the existing scheme and if we look at the Q and A on the Department website, it assures people that the foundations are fine and that you can rebuild your new home on the existing foundations. This is despite international evidence that the existence of pyrrhotite in foundations means those foundations have to come out. I am thinking...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Defective Concrete Blocks: Discussion (Resumed) (8 May 2024)

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn: I thank Mr. Wickham and I appreciate his answers. I will revisit Mr. Rafferty's opening statement. I know some of our colleagues have already said it. I had an exchange with Mr. Rafferty's senior colleague, Mr. Fergal Quigley, about this at a previous committee. I appeal to him not to have anybody from the Department of housing come in here again to say the grant amount covers 100% of...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Defective Concrete Blocks: Discussion (Resumed) (8 May 2024)

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn: I will tell him why I think it is provocative. Mr. Rafferty is an intelligent man. I would say he is a very intelligent man. Why does he think 1,300 people turned up at a recent public meeting in the Inishowen Gateway Hotel in my hometown of Buncrana, County Donegal? Why does he think 500 people turned out at a meeting in County Mayo? If they were getting what Mr. Rafferty says is 100%...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Defective Concrete Blocks: Discussion (Resumed) (8 May 2024)

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn: Let us leave aside anecdotes. There are facilitators working at the coalface who are ultimately employed by the State. Mr. Rafferty can easily check this out. They work for the Inishowen Development Partnership and the Donegal Local Development Company. He should make it his business in the job he is doing to reach out to them in the next week, speak to both of them and ask them if they...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, and Taoiseach: Defective Concrete Blocks: Discussion (Resumed) (8 May 2024)

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn: I am based in Buncrana, and when I step out my front door and look up to my right, I can see the quarry that is predominantly responsible for what has happened. It is a societal disaster. That is the only way I can describe it. I am 50 years of age. The people of my generation have had their lives destroyed in terms of what has happened to them. Marriages have broken up and people have...