Written Answers Nos. 1262-1282
1262. Deputy Kevin Humphreys asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport if defibrillators are available on the trains of Irish Rail; if there are any plans to provide same; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [45888/13]
View answerThis is an operational matter for Irish Rail and I have forwarded the Deputy's question to the company for direct reply. Please advise my private office if you do not receive a reply within ten working days.
1263. Deputy Andrew Doyle asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport if he will ask the National Transport Authority to outline the funding available to the local authority to conduct works at a village (details supplied) in County Wicklow under traffic management, safety for cyclists and pedestrians over the past four years; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [45897/13]
View answerAs Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport I have responsibility for policy and overall funding in relation to public transport. Following the establishment of the National Transport Authority (NTA) in December 2009, the implementation and development of infrastructure projects in the Greater Dublin Area (GDA), including the projects outlined by the Deputy being funded under the Sustainable Transport Measures Grants Programme, comes under the remit of the NTA.
Noting this I have referred the Deputy's question to the NTA. Please advise my private office if you don't receive a reply within 10 working days.
1264. Deputy Patrick O'Donovan asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport in regard to the upcoming sports capital programme, I have been informed by a GAA club that this year the club would have to register for VAT on OSCAR; if he will advise on the position regarding clubs registering for VAT and applying for sports capital grants; if a club or other group will have to be registered for VAT in order to qualify to receive a sports capital grant; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [45994/13]
View answerIt is not a requirement that clubs and organisations wishing to register to use the online OSCAR system need to register for VAT. The new online system does require however that all organisations have a Tax Registration Number from the Revenue Commissioners. This number will be the unique identifier that organisations will use to log into the system in the future to make applications and draw down any grants.
Sports clubs and organisations can be known by several different names (Irish and English versions of names, names based on the location of the club or even a nickname). This can be problematic for the Department and confusing for organisations too. Using a unique identifier for the organisation removes any doubt.
The Department has decided to use the Revenue Commissioners’ Tax Registration Number as the unique identifier for a number of reasons, including the fact that it is easy to obtain, is genuinely unique, and is required in order to obtain a tax clearance certificate (the latter which is required by the Department for all grantees).
1265. Deputy Róisín Shortall asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the name, qualifications and current salary of each political staff member appointed by him. [46094/13]
View answerThe information requested is a matter of record with the Standards in Public Office as the body with responsibility for this information. In accordance with the Guidelines on the Staffing of Ministers' Offices, copies of both of my advisors contracts of employment were laid before the Houses of the Oireachtas and are available for inspection in the Dáil Library. For convenience, the details requested by the Deputy are set out in the table.
|
Adviser |
Date of Appointment |
Qualifications |
Current salary |
|
Special Adviser Brian Murphy |
16/11/2011 |
Fellow in the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Ireland |
€99,370 |
|
Press Adviser Nick Miller |
23/05/2011 |
Master of Commerce in Government and Policy (UCC) and BA (Hons) in Media Studies with English (De Montfort University, UK) |
€81,676 |
1266. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport his views on the impact that the centralising of the new driving licences and taking them away from the local post office will cause persons who live in rural areas who will have to travel long distances to renew and apply for their driver's license; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [46095/13]
View answer1286. Deputy Dara Calleary asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the person responsible for the selection of centres for the new National Driver Licence Service; if his attention has been drawn to the inconvenience being caused to drivers by the limited number of centres; the reason there is no centre in Ballina County Mayo when the Road Safety Authority has a large HQ building in the town; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [46875/13]
View answer1296. Deputy John Deasy asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport if his attention has been drawn to the inconvenience caused by the restriction of the new driving licence renewal technology to just 34 sites countrywide; if there are plans to increase the number of National Driver Licence Service identity verification locations; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [47097/13]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 1266, 1286 and 1296 together.
Under the terms of the Road Safety Authority (Commercial Vehicle Roadworthiness) Act 2012, the Road Safety Authority (RSA) became the national driver licensing authority as of January this year. Also with effect from 19 January, the new plastic card form of driving licence was introduced in all EU Member States. Between 19 January and 25 October, local authorities continued to provide customer services relating to driving licences on behalf of the RSA.
On 29 October last, the RSA assumed full responsibility for the service. The RSA designed the new centralised driver licensing system around a central unit within the Authority and three outsourced contracts. The contracts include one for a front office service, which engages with the public; a second contract for a back office service, to process applications; and a third contract for the production of the plastic card licence. These contracts were awarded by the RSA following competitive procurement processes, in which neither my Department or I had any role. There is no suggestion of taking this business away from post offices as An Post never had any involvement in direct customer services for driving licences. They did tender for the service but were unsuccessful.
The RSA awarded the contract for front office services to SGS (Ireland) Ltd., who will operate 34 full-time and 2 part-time offices. The new network of offices will be open Monday through Saturday and have longer opening hours than the previous local authority operations to facilitate people who may not be able to apply for their licence during normal working hours. Furthermore, people will be able use any of the offices to apply/renew their licence rather than as previously, just the centre in their own county. The target is to process driver licence applications within 8 days.
It is important to also state that the requirement to attend in person only occurs once, when the person first receives their new plastic drivers licence when the person's image is captured through the SAFE 2 system and they have their identity verified. This is an important measure to prevent fraud. After attending once in person, people can renew their licence through the post and are not required to attend in person again.
1267. Deputy Seán Kenny asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the precise rationale behind the decision of Irish Rail to reconfigure the number of carriages assigned to DART services in the context of capacity; if he will provide a timetable of services that makes clear when this rationale will be in operation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [46112/13]
View answerI refer the Deputy to Minister of State Kelly's reply to the Topical Issue on this matter on Tuesday 22nd October last. The matter of the reduction of the number of carriages has been raised with the Chief Executive of Irish Rail. In some cases, Irish Rail have already responded and re-introduced larger carriages to accommodate passengers where this has been considered necessary. The CEO agreed to continuous monitoring of carriage levels to ensure they match passenger demand.
1268. Deputy Finian McGrath asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the reason Failte Ireland refused funding to the local committee commemorating the Battle of Clontarf in 2014 as it will boost Irish tourism; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [46226/13]
View answerThe matter raised is an operational matter for Fáilte Ireland. I have referred the Deputy's Question to Fáilte Ireland for direct reply. Please advise my private office if you do not receive a reply within ten working days.
1269. Deputy Seán Kyne asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport if there is a national policy regarding the erection and retention of signage along national and secondary routes for the purposes of advising persons of the locations of heritage, craft and tourist facilities; and if his attention has been drawn to plans by local authorities to remove such signage which may very well prove detrimental to organisations in rural regions. [46268/13]
View answerPolicy on the provision of tourist and leisure signage on the national primary and secondary road network is a matter for the NRA. The NRA published their revised 'Policy on the Provision of Tourist & Leisure Signage on National Roads' in 2011 and it is available on the NRA website (www.nra.ie).
In light of the above, I have referred the Deputy's question regarding plans by local authorities to remove such signage to the NRA for a direct response. Please advise my office if you have not received a reply within 10 working days.
1270. Deputy Seán Kyne asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the current age and number of rolling stock in use by Irish Rail on intercity railways outside the greater Dublin region. [46275/13]
View answerThis is an operational matter for Irish Rail and I have forwarded the Deputy's question to the company for direct reply. Please advise my private office if you do not receive a reply within ten working days.
1271. Deputy Seán Kyne asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport his plans to make public transport more accessible for persons with a disability. [46276/13]
View answerAccessibility improvements to public transport services are being advanced in the context of Transport Access for All , my Department's Sectoral Plan under the Disability Act 2005. The Plan, the latest edition of which was approved by the Houses of the Oireachtas in April 2013, sets out a series of policy objectives and targets for accessible public transport across all modes. The Plan is premised on the principle that through accessibility improvements to the public transport system for people with disabilities, access for all people will be improved. However, while significant progress has already been achieved, much remains to be done and work in that regard is on-going even allowing for the significant economic challenges facing us.
1272. Deputy Brendan Ryan asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the number of real time passenger information display units that have been placed in Fingal since March 2011; the locations of same; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [46283/13]
View answerI have responsibility for policy and overall funding in relation to public transport. Following the establishment of the National Transport Authority (NTA) in December 2009, the implementation and development of infrastructure projects in the Greater Dublin Area (GDA), such as Real Time Passenger Information, comes under the remit of the NTA. Noting this I have referred the Deputy's question to the NTA. Please advise my private office if you don't receive a reply within 10 working days.
1273. Deputy Brendan Ryan asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the number of bus shelters that have been placed in Fingal since March 2011; the locations of same; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [46284/13]
View answerThe issue of bus stop improvement is a matter for the National Transport Authority (NTA) in conjunction with the relevant transport provider and I have referred the Deputy's question to the NTA for direct reply. Please advise my private office if you do not receive a reply within ten working days.
1274. Deputy Michael Colreavy asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport his views on the current situation regarding the upgrading of the N4 between Castlebaldwin and Cloonamahon. [46290/13]
View answerAs Minister for Transport, Tourism & Sport, I have responsibility for overall policy and funding in relation to the national roads programme. The planning, design and implementation of individual road projects is a matter for the National Roads Authority (NRA) under the Roads Acts 1993 to 2007 in conjunction with the local authorities concerned.
Noting the above position, I have referred the Deputy’s question to the NRA for direct reply. Please advise my private office if you don’t receive a reply within 10 working days.
1275. Deputy Charles Flanagan asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport in view of regulations governing the maximum height of any vehicle on roads with particular reference to HGVs, if he will accommodate vehicles drawing vital fodder stocks from time to time to the west of Ireland, which height is to the order of 5 m; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [46414/13]
View answer1302. Deputy Charles Flanagan asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport if his attention has been drawn to the hardship that will accrue for farming and business interests if the maximum vehicle height is reduced to 4.65 meters; if he will extend the deadline beyond the set down date of 31 October; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [47130/13]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 1275 and 1302 together.
Statutory Instrument 366 of 2008 - Road Traffic (Construction and Use of Vehicles) (Amendment) Regulations, 2008 sets the maximum height limit of vehicles in this country at 4.65 metres. The derogation was introduced to allow a five-year period within which vehicles operating at heights in excess of the new limits could be withdrawn from use in Ireland or to allow for the necessary height reductions by operators. The derogation expired on 31st October 2013.
This maximum height limit was arrived at following a public consultation process undertaken in 2005. Following this, it was announced in January 2007 that a limit of 4.65m would be introduced. Originally it was proposed that there be a two year derogation for vehicles registered, licensed or in use prior to the introduction of such a limit. Subsequently, following representations from the haulage industry it was agreed that a five year dergoation would apply and this applies to those vehicles registered, licensed or in use prior to the 1st November 2008, when Statutory Instrument 366 of 2008 was signed into effect.
Extending this derogation would have the effect of penalising those operators who have adapted their fleet recognising that this derogation was coming to an end, and rewarding those that did not. It is more than six years since the 4.65m limit was announced and the industry has had more than adequate time to accomodate themselves to the new limit.
1276. Deputy Michael McGrath asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport his plans to undertake a national speed limit review; the type of roads that will be covered by such a review; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [46483/13]
View answerMy Department established a stakeholder group to progress a review of speed limits nationally. The Automobile Association, An Garda Síochána, the Road Safety Authority, the National Roads Authority, representatives of local authorities and the National Transport Authority accepted my invitation to participate in the Working Group. The Group is putting the final touches to its report and I expect to launch it before the end of this month.
1277. Deputy Lucinda Creighton asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport his views on the attached correspondence (details supplied) regarding Dublin Bus. [46494/13]
View answerI have noted the comments in the correspondence attached to the Deputy's question. The Government attaches great importance to the continued operation of Dublin Bus, which is so important to so many of our citizens and to the successful operation of the Irish economy.
I have been engaged almost constantly over the past 18 months in dealing with the financial situation in CIÉ and the subsidiary companies, including Dublin Bus, to ensure a return to financial stability in order that they can continue to provide an essential service to the public. Dublin Bus has incurred accumulated losses of €75m over the period 2007 to 2012, a position which is unsustainable.
The attempts to agree cost reduction measures at Dublin Bus have clearly been long and difficult, the process having started in June 2012. All sides understand and have accepted that the financial challenges facing CIÉ require cost savings that are fundamental to the Group continuing to fund its activities and service its borrowings. The issue of VAT compliance is a matter for my colleague Mr. Michael Noonan, T.D., Minister for Finance. The Free Travel Pass scheme comes under the remit of my colleague, Ms. Joan Burton, T.D., Minister for Social Protection.
The issues raised in the correspondence relating to revenue protection measures and the internal structure of Dublin Bus are matters for the company in the first instance.
1278. Deputy Joanna Tuffy asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport his views on the need for a public swimming pool for Lucan, County Dublin; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [46626/13]
View answerThe current round of the Local Authority Swimming Pool Programme was closed to new applicants on 31 July 2000.
Under the current round of the Programme 58 applications were received, of which 49 projects have been completed and opened to the public, and 9 other projects are at various stages of development. The priority now is to work with the relevant Local Authorities in completing the remaining 9 pool projects, which are included in the current round.
No decision has been taken on the timing of a new round of the Programme. If the Programme re-opens it would be open to each Local Authority to submit an application under the terms that would apply at that time.
1280. Deputy Finian McGrath asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport in relation to the Taxi Regulation Bill, section 52.DI, if he will confirm if the words "exclusive right" are open to a legal challenge; if Dublin Bus is being set up on this matter; if it is legal for a private security firm to enter a premises without a Garda present; if he received full legal advice on these matters; and if he will provide this Deputy with a copy of same. [46660/13]
View answerThe provisions of the Taxi Regulation Act 2013, as is the norm in the process of preparing draft legislation for presentation to the Oireachtas, were subject to review by Advisory Counsel of the Office of the Attorney General. Any legal challenge would be a matter for determination by the Courts.
The Taxi Regulation Act 2013, under Section 74, amends Section 52 of the Dublin Transport Authority Act 2008. The amendment allows for the direct award of public service contracts to a public transport operator. In particular this will allow for the continued provision of services under the rural transport programme in areas where there is a public transport gap that is not currently being met by other public transport service providers, including Dublin Bus and Bus Eireann. The direct award of public service contracts for public transport is governed by EU Regulation 1370/2007.
Section 40 of the Taxi Regulation Act 2013 provides for warranted authorised persons under the Act, including personnel operating in accordance with service agreements with the National Transport Authority, to enter a premises or place where activities associated with small public service vehicles (SPSV) are being carried out, for the purpose of enforcing compliance with the SPSV Regulations. However, Section 40 also requires that an authorised person cannot enter a private premises without the consent of the occupier unless in possession of a search warrant from a judge of a District Court.
1282. Deputy Jerry Buttimer asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport his plans for the evolution of traffic routes into and out of Cork; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [46854/13]
View answerAs Minister for Transport, Tourism & Sport, I have responsibility for overall policy and funding in relation to the national roads programme. The planning, design and implementation of individual road projects is a matter for the National Roads Authority (NRA) under the Roads Acts 1993 to 2007 in conjunction with the local authorities concerned.
Noting the above position, I have referred the Deputy’s question to the NRA for direct reply. Please advise my private office if you don’t receive a reply within 10 working days.
