Results 141-160 of 450 for does speaker:Paudie Coffey

Seanad: Urban Regeneration and Housing Bill 2015: Committee and Remaining Stages (17 Jul 2015)

Paudie Coffey: ...housing element, as bad as the situation currently is, imagine the serious crisis we would then have. We need an interim measure until we get our social and private housing output up. I know, as does the Senator, that Sinn Féin councillors on the ground are welcoming some of these housing developments in their communities. I see that in our constituency of Waterford. I welcome...

Other Questions: Building Regulations (16 Jul 2015)

Paudie Coffey: ...local authorities from applying conditions rather than having overall restrictive or prescriptive conditions in a county or city development plan. In other words, one has belts and braces when one does not need them because they will add to cost and restrict housing output, which is not something any of us wants to see.

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Planning Issues (16 Jul 2015)

Paudie Coffey: Planning legislation places no specific restrictions on the height of trees, nor does it make any particular provision for remedy from any other nuisance which may be caused by trees in an urban residential area. However there is currently a civil remedy available concerning branches or roots of neighbouring trees encroaching on a person’s property. The previous Minister of State for...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Tree Remediation (15 Jul 2015)

Paudie Coffey: Planning legislation places no specific restrictions on the height of trees, nor does it make any particular provision for remedy from any other nuisance which may be caused by trees in an urban residential area. However there is currently a civil remedy available concerning branches or roots of neighbouring trees encroaching on a person’s property. The previous Minister of State for...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Derelict Sites (14 Jul 2015)

Paudie Coffey: ...Act 1990 provides that local authorities are required to take all reasonable steps, including the exercise of appropriate statutory powers, to ensure that any land within their functional area does not become, or continue to be, a derelict site. To this end, local authorities have been given substantial powers under the Act in relation to any such sites, including powers to require...

Urban Regeneration and Housing Bill 2015: Report Stage (Resumed) (8 Jul 2015)

Paudie Coffey: ..., facilities or infrastructure to allow the development of more housing units. I brought forward an amendment on Committee Stage to give greater flexibility to local authorities so that the money does not have to be spent specifically on sites and can be spent in the vicinity of sites within local development plan areas. As such, we will oppose the amendments, because the Bill as drafted...

Urban Regeneration and Housing Bill 2015: Report Stage (Resumed) (8 Jul 2015)

Paudie Coffey: ..., we recognise that difficult circumstances are faced by individuals who bought these sites during the height of the boom and that there is no gain in applying a levy. As I outlined, however, this does not stop local authorities from engaging with owners to establish the latter's plans for their sites and to incentivise within the authorities' development plans through zoning and other...

Urban Regeneration and Housing Bill 2015: Report Stage (Resumed) (8 Jul 2015)

Paudie Coffey: ...interest of fairness, the Bill is drafted to ensure that if there are contaminated lands that require remedial work to that extent, the levy provisions are as fair and reasonable as possible. That does not preclude the local authority from engaging with the owners of those sites and does not preclude them from working with the owners to have those sites remediated, but it recognises that...

Urban Regeneration and Housing Bill 2015: Report Stage (Resumed) (8 Jul 2015)

Paudie Coffey: What Deputy Wallace proposes does not compare like with like. He compared the local property tax with the vacant site levy. To be clear, self-registration was an option for the local property tax because everyone was liable for the tax, whereas not everybody will be liable for the vacant site levy; it will only apply in certain cases, and selective criteria will apply. To expect everybody...

Urban Regeneration and Housing Bill 2015: Report Stage (Resumed) (8 Jul 2015)

Paudie Coffey: .... There will be further allocations to local authorities shortly. These are ambitious targets and there is a challenge for local authorities to respond. Deputy Ellis said the local authority does not have the money. Over 2,000 voids have been turned back into beneficial use in the past year and we expect another 1,000 to be put back into beneficial use in the coming year. That is...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Planning Issues (8 Jul 2015)

Paudie Coffey: Under Section 126 of the Planning and Development Act 2000-2014, An Bord Pleanála has a statutory objective to determine appeals within 18 weeks. Where the Board does not consider it possible or appropriate to reach a decision within 18 weeks (e.g. because of delays arising from the holding of an oral hearing), it will inform the parties of the reasons for this, and will indicate when it...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Planning Issues (8 Jul 2015)

Paudie Coffey: ...by planning authority and are available on my Department’s website at: www.environ.ie/en/Publications/StatisticsandRegularPublicati ons/PlanningStatistics/FileDownLoad,41081,en.pdf While this data does not include a breakdown of decisions by category, a breakdown of planning permissions granted by functional category e.g. residential, commercial, agricultural and industrial...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Derelict Sites (7 Jul 2015)

Paudie Coffey: ...Act 1990 provides that it shall be the duty of every owner and occupier of land, including a statutory body and a State authority, to take all reasonable steps to ensure that the land in question does not become, or does not continue to be, a derelict site. Section 10 of the Act further places a specific obligation on local authorities to take all reasonable steps to ensure that any land...

Environment (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2014: Report Stage (Resumed) (2 Jul 2015)

Paudie Coffey: Does the Deputy want us to cancel the grant?

Environment (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2014: Report Stage (Resumed) (2 Jul 2015)

Paudie Coffey: ...before the electorate in a plebiscite. That is provided for in the Bill. We have been accused of creating smokescreens, but using the red herring of privatisation is a smokescreen. This point does not refer specifically to the amendment, but that is where the focus should be. As I stated on numerous occasions yesterday during the debate on these amendments which took up almost four...

Environment (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2014: Report Stage (1 Jul 2015)

Paudie Coffey: ...paid directly to Irish Water from the local property tax. I absolutely refute that. The operational subvention to Irish Water in 2015 will be up to €399 million. The amendment we are speaking to does not change this in any way. It relates to a payment to the Exchequer, not to Irish Water. The Government indicated in November 2014 what the subvention to Irish Water would be...

Committee on Environment, Culture and the Gaeltacht: Select Sub-Committee on the Environment, Community and Local Government: Urban Regeneration and Housing Bill 2015: Committee Stage (30 Jun 2015)

Paudie Coffey: ...have a strong responsibility, on this issue. I believe that all public bodies, even if they are owners of sites, have a responsibility also. They need to make plans for those sites just as everybody else does. The amendment stands. I hope I have explained the rationale behind it. There are strict criteria, there is due process and there is an appeals system. It is not something...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Housing Issues (30 Jun 2015)

Paudie Coffey: ...procedures of banks in appointing receivers cannot affect the statutory or contractual rights of tenants.  The tenant continues to enjoy the same security of tenure.  The appointment of a receiver does not mean that a tenant loses their rights under the Residential Tenancies Act 2004. The Act sets out the procedures and notice periods that must be complied with when...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Private Residential Tenancies Board Enforcement (23 Jun 2015)

Paudie Coffey: ...for enforcement proceedings. It is also open to parties to pursue enforcement independently through the Courts, including the seeking of a garnishee order. It should be noted that going to Court does not of itself ensure successful enforcement and more particularly, recoupment of an award. In many cases the best option, and one which the PRTB facilitates, is for the parties to agree a...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Planning Issues (23 Jun 2015)

Paudie Coffey: I propose to take Questions Nos. 575 and 587 together. Under the Planning and Development Regulations 2001, as amended, a change from one type of shop to another that does not involve works is exempted development, unless the change would have land-use impacts such as in the case of, for example, the establishment of a funeral home, a restaurant, a public house, or a premises selling hot food...