JOINT COMMITTEE ON THE ENVIRONMENT, HERITAGE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT debate -
Tuesday, 2 Nov 2010

Business of Joint Committee

Vice Chairman

Apologies have been received from Deputy Eamon Scanlan.

The draft minutes of the meeting of 5 October 2010 have been circulated. Are the minutes agreed? Agreed.

The next item on our agenda is correspondence received by the joint committee and circulated since the last meeting.

Item Nos. 2010/986 refer to empty housing units in Dublin City Council area, 986(1) to local authority housing stock country wide, and 986(2) to vacant social housing units and a copy of the correspondence will be forwarded to Deputy Andrews. Item 2010/987 is a request from Focus Ireland to make a presentation to the committee. We will note it and consider it with the work programme. Item 2010/988 is the Annual Report 2009 of the Housing Finance Agency, which we will consider with the work programme.

Deputy Ciarán Lynch

The Vice Chairman is noting the correspondence to be considered with the work programme. We need to allow time to schedule the work programme as well. At present there are 14 items on the work programme and another two have been added. We need to set out a schedule for that.

Vice Chairman

Has the Deputy a suggestion?

Deputy Ciarán Lynch

It is the duty of this joint committee and not just the Chairman, to set out the schedule of the work programme. We, the members of the joint committee need to set time aside to deal specifically with the work programme between now and next summer.

Vice Chairman

Is that agreed? Agreed.

Item 2010/989 is the proposed regulation of the European Parliament and Council, which was circulated by e-mail and is to be noted. Item 2010/989(1) is the proposed regulation on the citizens' initiative which was circulated by e-mail and is to be noted. Item 2010/990 is a decision taken by the Joint Committee on European Scrutiny and is to be noted.

Item 2010/991 concerns local authority rates payable by hotels and was circulated by e-mail. Does the committee wish to bring the contents of the e-mail to the attention of the Irish Hotels Federation?

Deputy Ciarán Lynch

Yes.

Vice Chairman

We will do that. Item 2010/992 is a decision taken by the Joint Committee on European Scrutiny and is to be noted. Item 2010/993 is an e-mail of a letter of acknowledgement from the Office of the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government to the Irish Hotels Federation on local authority rates payable by hotels, which we have dealt with already and we will note it.

Item 2010/994 is an invitation to attend Urbact annual conference in Liege. I note Deputy Bannon may be interested in attending but he must have a confirmed pair. Has Deputy Bannon confirmed a pair?

Deputy James Bannon

No, I have not yet confirmed a pair but I will see what happens.

Vice Chairman

Item 2010/995 is an invitation to the European Policy Summit on Healthcare. We will note it. Item 2010/996 refers to the taxation of tractors, in response to a letter sent on the matter and we will note it. Item 2010/997 is an invitation to a workshop on environmental tax reform in October. We note that members could have attended it. Item 2010/998 is a response from the Department to a letter sent by joint committee on population targets for the eight regional authority areas and was circulated by e-mail. We will note that. Item 2010/999 is a response from the Office of the Minister to the request that he, the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government appear before the committee to discuss the severe weather report.

Deputy James Bannon

When we issued our report last July on the severe weather conditions, we requested that the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government should complete and publish its review of the management of the severe weather conditions. That should have been presented by 1 November. That deadline has passed and I wonder what is the function of the committee because at least three, if not four, invitations were issued to the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government to appear before the joint committee to discuss the report.

If this report was dealing with the River Liffey or any part of Dublin affected by severe weather, I am sure the Minister would have appeared at the joint committee before now. However, this affects rural areas, and the Minister has treated the committee with contempt. I demand that the Minister come before the joint committee immediately. I live in the Shannon catchment area, which suffers from severe flooding and people are scared in their homes. Nobody wants a repeat of what happened last November and December in this area. It is a major indictment on the Minister to ignore the report. He has had more than six months to deal with it and come before the joint committee, yet he has failed to do so. His shabby responses are not acceptable to the committee.

Deputy Ciarán Lynch

I have a copy of correspondence from Mr. Eddie Kiernan, the private secretary to the Minister, so an official, on behalf of the Minister, has been communicating with the committee. The Minister has not been communicating with the committee. I wish to draw to the attention of members to two points in the letter. In paragraph 2, Mr. Kiernan states that the Minister regrets that he is unable to attend the meeting on 21 September. My recollection and perhaps the record need to be examined, is that the Minister was not stating at that time that he regrets that he cannot come before the committee, he was stating that he was not coming before the committee. Perhaps we are witnessing a change in position. In paragraph 4, Mr. Kiernan states that as suggested in the committee's report, the Minister has asked the Department to complete its own review of the weather events before 1 November 2010. As Deputy Bannon indicated, the 1 November has passed, the report, to my knowledge, has not been completed but the clerk may clarify that for us this afternoon, and it is on the basis of the report being completed that the Minister is now giving an indication that he may come before the committee. I propose that the clerk contact the office of the Minister to find out if the report has been completed on 1 November, and if not, the date the report will be completed, and on the basis that the report will be published in the next couple of days, that the Minister's report and our report would set the agenda for that meeting with the Minister.

Vice Chairman

Is there a seconder for that proposal?

Senator Dominic Hannigan

I second that.

Vice Chairman

Is that agreed? Agreed.

Item 2010/1000 is a request from Scally's SuperValu of Clonakilty to make a presentation to the committee. It is noted and we can consider this when discussing the work programme. Item 2010/1001 is a request from a person to support his application for social housing. This is noted, but it is a matter for Clare County Council.

The next items are statutory instruments. First, SI 477 of 2010 Planning and Development (Amendment) Act 2010 (Commencement) (No 3) Order 2010. Second, SI 481 of 2010 European Communities (Birds and Natural Habitats) (Restrictions on Use of Poison Bait) Regulations 2010. Third, SI 442 of 2010 Genetically Modified Organism (Contained Use) (Amendment) Regulations 2010. Fourth, SI 483 of 2010 Housing (Interest on moneys owed to Housing Authorities) (Amendment) Regulations 2010. All statutory instruments were went to members by e-mail.

We will deal with the circulars. WP 22/10 of 4 October 2010 refers to a declaration of deductible VAT on grant claims for waste infrastructure. Circular WP 24/10 of 4 October 2010 refers to Guidance on the Waste Management (Management of Waste in the Extractive Industries) Regulations 2009, SI 556 of 2009. Circular 11/10 refers to county and city development board economic development sub-committee expansion to include business interests together with updated guidelines. Circular 14/2010 refers to training for civil defence officers issued by the policy and planning unit of the civil defence board in the Department of Defence.

Circular LG 12/10 plus appendices is on recoupment of revitalising areas by planning, investment and development, RAPID, co-ordinator salaries for 2010 issued by the local government policy section. Circular WP 25/10 plus appendix is on subvention of operating costs of recycling facilities which issued to local authorities from the waste policy division of the Department. Circular LG 14/10 of 21 October 2010 is a questionnaire related to the work of county and city development boards social inclusion measures groups, issued by the local government policy division.

Circular No. S.6/2010 of 22 October 2010 refers to the local government superannuation scheme annual report for 2009, issued by the superannuation section. Circular LG 13/10 refers to social inclusion units, setting out the procedure for submitting salary claims for 2010 to the Department. Circular S.7/2010 refers to added years for superannuation purposes ad hoc added years, issued by the superannuation section of the Department. All the circulars have been sent to members by e-mail.

Deputy James Bannon

Perhaps we could have a further explanation of the recoupment of RAPID co-ordinators' salaries. Are special personnel being taken on in the area? I understood there is an embargo within the public service.

Vice Chairman

I am unable to answer that but I will find out for the Deputy and revert to him.