Results 1-20 of 71 for long speaker:John Cummins

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (23 Apr 2024)

John Cummins: I join others in welcoming and acknowledging the families of the 48 victims of the Stardust nightclub fire in 1981, before I was born. To think it has taken this long to get to where we arrived last week in respect of the verdict and this week with regard to the State apology is unimaginable, as is the trauma those families have had to endure over such a protracted period. Our thoughts and...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2024: Discussion (23 Apr 2024)

John Cummins: ...I wish to take up Ms Wall on the last point she made about eligibility for HAP. To go back to the point made by Senator Fitzpatrick, we are trying to determine the emergency response versus the long-term response. There are discrepancies across the country in how some local authorities view HAP compared with others. In Waterford, for example, which is where I come from, HAP is not...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2024: Discussion (23 Apr 2024)

John Cummins: Regarding the residency requirement in general and to go back to the point made by Senator Fitzpatrick, if people who do not intend to reside in the State for the long term are up against, for want of a better phrase, other people who are on the list and absolutely intend to remain in the State for their lifetime, surely it can be seen that this is what is trying to be captured in this...

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: ...holding of a hearing of a tribunal from 21 days to ten days. That is being done to try to bring about more efficiency and to speed up the process. To be quite frank, that is worthless because how long the follow-on piece will take is anyone's guess. I would be delighted with the reduction of the notice period if there was a guarantee of a three-month process on the other side of the...

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Hospital Services (6 Dec 2023)

John Cummins: ...the Minister of State for taking this Commencement matter this morning. The need to expand cardiac services at University Hospital Waterford is a topic that we are both very passionate about. Along with Oireachtas colleagues past and present, we have both campaigned long and hard for it over many years. On the majority of items which affect Waterford and the wider south-east region, we...

Seanad: Finance (No. 2) Bill 2023: Committee Stage (5 Dec 2023)

John Cummins: ...its members want to remain in the market but that there is simply not enough in it for them to do so.There has been a vilification of landlords by people in this Chamber and in the other House for far too long. The narrative out there that landlords are awash with money and able to make significant sums is simply not the case. In a report commissioned as part of Housing For All, CSO data...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Residential Tenancies (Right to Purchase) Bill: Discussion (5 Dec 2023)

John Cummins: ...encountered difficulties subsequent to making that bid. How quickly does the estate agent determine that I cannot ultimately come up with the €350,000? I know it is different for every person but how long would that take in a typical case? It does happen. It happens to estate agents. I know many of the IPAV's members.

Seanad: Housing For All: Statements (7 Nov 2023)

John Cummins: ...% on 2014. These numbers represent an absolute step change. If we look at those in opposition, and I know that the Minister has called them out in recent times, but I have been doing that for a long time with regard to the lack of an actual policy on housing. My understanding is that there could be something appearing this week. If that is the case, I certainly look forward to...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Analysis of Private Rental Sector Discrepancies: Discussion (10 Oct 2023)

John Cummins: -----that will not be there. I suggest that there is a significant cohort in that space. That is along with what the Chair spoke of with AHBs and licences in terms of rent-a-room and so on. I think that will get you a long way towards the figure. Dr. Byrne mentioned a sample size of 146 and he accepted Senator Fitzpatrick's point. It is a very small sample of 0.04% or 0.06%, depending on...

Seanad: Access to Third Level Places and Student Accommodation: Statements (4 Oct 2023)

John Cummins: ...been made to the apprenticeship system in the context of access and how apprenticeships are presented in the context of this CAO system. I am not too old - I am only 36 - to remember that not so long ago if a person wanted to do an apprenticeship, they were dealt with separately. The process was completely separate from the CAO process, whereas now they have been integrated. This change...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (12 Jul 2023)

John Cummins: ...;200,000. The maximum grant for regional projects will increase from €300,000 to €500,000 and there are new rules on providing equal access to facilities for men and women which is hugely welcome and long overdue. It is a huge opportunity for sports clubs, community groups and organisations to apply for funding to support projects they have been working on that will improve...

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Septic Tanks (11 Jul 2023)

John Cummins: ...and Communications, Deputy Eamon Ryan, on this matter. I welcome the opportunity get some clarity on the matter because the discrepancies around the septic tank grants have existed now for too long. On 27 June this year, the Environmental Protection Agency, EPA, issued its latest report on domestic wastewater treatment systems. There are nearly half a million systems, mainly septic...

Seanad: Local Government Matters: Statements (28 Jun 2023)

John Cummins: ...to be empowered with independent advice to be able to carry out effective scrutiny. The fact that the LPT is determined independent of the budgetary process is an issue I have been raising for a long time. That councillors are asked to make a decision on lowering or raising the property tax independent of the wider budgetary context is a completely false analysis. This has to be done by...

Seanad: Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters: Social Welfare Eligibility (27 Jun 2023)

John Cummins: ...contributions, albeit for a different class, namely, class A, can be looked at over a three, four or five-year period, rather than just looking at 2020 and 2021. This individual and others have a long track record of contributions but because of the issues in 2021 they are being penalised for getting ill in 2023.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: General Scheme of the Land Value Sharing and Urban Development Zones Bill 2022: Discussion (4 May 2023)

John Cummins: We could keep going on this for a long time. I want to ask one more question before I conclude. For social and affordable housing, the LVS tax does not apply. The Department does not see a potential issue in encouraging solely social developments or affordable developments in areas where a mix may be appropriate. A mix is the most appropriate of all, particularly where we have a mix of...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Resumed) (25 Apr 2023)

John Cummins: ..., in favour of the leasing that was there because it was having a positive impact on the delivery of social homes. I have said countless times nobody can say it is not better to have a family in a long-term lease property of 25 years than to have them in a hotel room tonight. Nobody can justify the converse. I therefore ask that the 1,000 unit targeted leasing scheme be looked at with a...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (18 Apr 2023)

John Cummins: ...mistake to withdraw leasing as a method of delivery. I am on record as having said that. I disagree with the decision. Nobody can justifiably tell me that it is not better to have a family in a long-term, secure rental property for 25 years than it is to have them in a hotel room. All the bodies that came before us concurred with that view. We have opened up an element of leasing - an...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (18 Apr 2023)

John Cummins: I was calling for that for a long period at meetings of this committee, so I welcome the fact that it has happened. Feedback we got from the sector, including from Dublin City Council, Cork County Council and Limerick City and County Council, highlighted the fact they felt as though the €60,000 figure per unit was too low. That is direct feedback from the local authority sector; it...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Tenant In Situ Process: Discussion (21 Mar 2023)

John Cummins: Weeks could be too long. What I am trying to get at is that we need a streamlined process. Those of all parties and none agree that we need to move quickly in this space. The local authorities have a large role to play in streamlining and the Department has a role to play in enabling them to do so. The arrangement should be loosened in order that the sales can be completed outside the...