Written Answers Nos. 670-690
670. Deputy Seán Kyne asked the Minister for Health if consideration will be given to directing that medications such as sumatriptan be available without prescription which will enable speedier access to treatment for persons suffering from migraine; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18006/14]
View answerSumatriptan is a medicine for the acute treatment of migraine. In Ireland it is currently subject to prescription but may be supplied by a pharmacist on an emergency basis without a prescription.
The Irish Medicines Board is currently conducting a review of a number of prescription medicines which may be suitable for supply in Ireland on a non-prescription basis. One of the focuses of this review is consideration of medicines currently available on a non-prescription basis in other EU member states. As sumatriptan is supplied as an "over the counter medicine" in pharmacies in the UK and in other member states it will be included in this review which is likely to be completed this year.
674. Deputy Jack Wall asked the Minister for Health the position regarding a surgical procedure in respect of a person (details supplied) in County Kildare; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18041/14]
View answerThe National Waiting List Management Policy, A standardised approach to managing scheduled care treatment for in-patient, day case and planned procedures, January 2013, has been developed to ensure that all administrative, managerial and clinical staff follow an agreed national minimum standard for the management and administration of waiting lists for scheduled care. This policy, which has been adopted by the Health Service Executive, sets out the processes that hospitals are to implement to manage waiting lists.
In relation to this particular query raised by the Deputy, I have asked the HSE to respond directly to him in this matter.
675. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Health the progress to date in the determination of an application for a medical card in the case of a person (details supplied) in County Kildare; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18063/14]
View answerThe Health Service Executive has been asked to examine this matter and to reply to the Deputy as soon as possible.
The Health Service Executive operates the General Medical Services scheme, which includes medical cards and GP visit cards, under the Health Act 1970, as amended. It has established a dedicated contact service for members of the Oireachtas specifically for queries relating to medical cards and GP visit cards, which the Deputy may wish to use for an earlier response. Contact information has issued to Oireachtas members.
676. Deputy John O'Mahony asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport his plans to recommence the proposed Narrow Water Bridge project to link County Louth and County Down; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17597/14]
View answerThe improvement and maintenance of regional and local roads is the statutory responsibility of each local authority, in accordance with the provisions of Section 13 of the Roads Act 1993. Works on those roads are funded from local authorities own resources supplemented by State road grants. The initial selection and prioritisation of works to be funded is also a matter for each local authority.
The Irish Government supported the original decision by the Special EU Programmes Body (SEUPB) to approve the allocation of EU funding to the Narrow Water bridge project and committed an upfront funding contribution of €3.9 million in January last year. The funding which was to be provided by my Department for the Narrow Water Bridge Project represented a significant commitment given the current financial circumstances. This funding contribution was due to be matched with a contribution from the Northern Ireland authorities in line with the agreed funding ratios for the Programme.
The Government was disappointed that the tender process resulted in a doubling of the initial costs budgeted for by the project partners for the construction of the bridge. While the Government indicated that it would be willing to help to address the shortfall in funding for the Narrow Water Bridge, this depended entirely on matching contributions from the other parties, including the Northern Ireland Executive. These commitments were not forthcoming within the timescale required for the Interreg IV programme.
As the Deputy will be aware, as part of the recovery programme that this Government has had to pursue to put the country back on its feet there is, unfortunately a further reduction in regional and local roads spending in 2014 of over €60 million. While it was unfortunate that it was not possible for the project to go ahead under the Interreg IV programme, this is a project that the Government would like to see delivered in the future and remains committed to. The Irish Government will continue to explore the funding opportunities that may present themselves in relation to this project.
677. Deputy Finian McGrath asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport if he will consider including Claremorris, County Mayo, in the TEN-T network; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17274/14]
View answerClaremorris is included on the TEN-T Comprehensive Network as the Dublin Mayo rail line and the N17 Tuam to Claremorris road are both included in the Comprehensive network. The new Trans-European Network for Transport (TEN-T) and the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) Regulations, covering the period 2014-2020 were proposed by the European Commission and ultimately agreed and signed into law in 2013 following discussions with the Council of Ministers and the European Parliament. These are focused on addressing bottlenecks and missing links in cross-border European transport infrastructure.
Previous regulations were considered ineffective as the network was too large and spread out over too many European cities, airports and ports. In order to address this issue the EU Commission proposed the concept of a Core Network linking the main nodes of the European transport system. The Core Network is a subset of a Comprehensive Network which feeds into these nodes. The Core Network has to be seen in the context of a strategic European network that creates European added value and represents the most important nodes and links across the EU. The Core Network links Core Nodes in a multimodal manner.
The criteria for the inclusion of a Core Node are
Metropolitan European Growth Area (MEGA) cities according to European Spatial Planning Observatory Network Atlas 2006 (ESPON) with more than 0.5 million inhabitants
conurbations or city clusters which exceed 1 million inhabitants
cities or conurbations located at branching or crossing points on the TEN-T Core Network
ports with an annual transhipment volume of at least 1% of the total transhipment volume of freight by all EU seaports
The main city of NUTS 1 Island regions
This methodology has been applied on a European wide basis which means that on the island of Ireland the Core Network consists of
Airports = Dublin & Cork
Ports = Dublin, Cork & Shannon-Foynes and Belfast
Road & Rail = Cork-Dublin-Belfast (with a link to Shannon-Foynes Port)
Claremorris does not meet the above criteria to be considered as a Core Node. Moreover the cities of Limerick, Waterford, Galway and Derry did not meet the criteria to be Core Nodes.
678. Deputy Finian McGrath asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the position regarding an application for sports capital grant in respect of an organisation (details supplied) in County Sligo; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17275/14]
View answerI can confirm that an application has been submitted by the organisation referred to by the Deputy under the 2014 Sports Capital Programme and the Deputy's interest in the project is noted. I hope to announce allocations later this year.
679. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the position regarding road improvements in an area (details supplied) in County Kerry; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17277/14]
View answer681. Deputy Tom Fleming asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the position regarding funding in respect of roads (details supplied) in County Kerry. [17337/14]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 679 and 681 together.
The improvement and maintenance of regional and local roads is the statutory responsibility of each local authority, in accordance with the provisions of Section 13 of the Roads Act 1993. Works on those roads are funded from local authorities' own resources supplemented by State road grants.
The Department has allocated a total of €145 million to local authorities for the Restoration Improvement Grant Programme (RI) in 2014. Of this figure a total of €6.55 million has been allocated to Kerry County Council. The selection and prioritisation of works to be undertaken, taking into account available grant funding, is a matter for the local authority. Local authorities do have flexibility in relation to re-prioritising RI schemes as necessary.
It is, therefore, open to Kerry County Council to re-prioritise its RI programme to include these schemes, fund works from its Discretionary Grant or progress such projects through its own resources.
680. Deputy Michael Creed asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the restrictions in place regarding the transportation of ink toner cartridges in and out of Ireland; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17332/14]
View answerCivil aviation security in Ireland is governed by EU Regulations, in particular by Regulation No. (EC) 300/2008 and Commission Regulation (EU) No.185/2010 both of which have been adopted into Ireland's National Civil Aviation Security Programme. The Annex to Commission Regulation (EU) No.185/2010 contains a list of items that are prohibited from being carried in the hold of an aircraft and this list does not include ink toner cartridges.
I am aware that since the air cargo security incident involving such cartridges in 2010 that for example, An Post, do not allow these cartridges to be sent via mail out of Ireland. This appears to be as a result of a policy decision taken by a number of airlines to cease accepting such cartridges on board their aircraft. This decision was made by the relevant companies themselves and not as a result of any prohibition under EU or national aviation security rules on the carriage of such items.
682. Deputy Michael Moynihan asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the legal position in relation to cattle travelling on roads upgraded on the community involvement schemes; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17342/14]
View answerThe improvement and maintenance of regional and local roads is a statutory function of each road authority within its area, in accordance with the provisions of section 13 of the Roads Act, 1993. Works on such roads, including community involvement schemes, are a matter for the relevant local authority to be funded from its own resources, supplemented by State road grants. Section 13 (10) outlines the responsibility of individuals to ensure, where cattle frequently cross public roads, that dung or urine does not build up so as to cause danger to road users or indeed damage the public road itself. This section also states that where a person does anything in contravention of this, a road authority may remove any defacement, repair any damage, remove any material, and may recover from such person, as a simple contract debt in any court of competent jurisdiction, any costs reasonably incurred by it.
683. Deputy Niall Collins asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the total legal costs incurred by his Department in 2011, 2012, 2013 and estimated in 2014. [17364/14]
View answer684. Deputy Niall Collins asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the total external public relation costs incurred by his Department in 2011, 2012, 2013 and estimated in 2014. [17380/14]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 683 and 684 together.
The information requested by the Deputy is available on my Department's website at the following link http://www.dttas.ie/corporate/english/expenditure-external-services.
With regard to an estimated cost for 2014, internal departmental resources are used for such matters as much as is possible, however, occasionally external assistance maybe required. Therefore it is not possible to provide an estimated cost at this time.
My Department's website is updated regularly with this information.
685. Deputy Seán Ó Fearghaíl asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport if under the new taxi licensing laws, where a person holds a licence, he or she does not have the right to pass this on to a family member or other upon retirement but a company may use its collection of licences as it sees fit with regards to succession, his views on whether this is unfair to individual holders of licences; his plans to remedy same; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17386/14]
View answerSection 14 (1) of the Taxi Regulation Act 2013 prohibits the transfer of a small public service vehicle (SPSV) licence.
Furthermore, where a company holds a licence and there is a change in control of the company as defined in the Act, the licence stands revoked.
The only exception to the prohibition on transfer of a licence arises in the event of the death of a licence holder where a nominated representative of the deceased licensee may become the holder of the licence. The only exception to the revocation of a licence on a change in control of a company is where the change in control arises from the death of a member of the company.
These provisions of the Taxi Regulation Act 2013 were commenced with effect from 6th April 2014. The provisions are fair and balanced and, insofar as practicable, seek to ensure that the prohibition on transfer of licences cannot be circumvented by the use of corporate structures.
686. Deputy Dan Neville asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the position regarding consultations with the National Roads Authority, Limerick County Council, the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport and local Oireachtas Members in connection with progress on the Adare national road bypass in County Limerick. [17391/14]
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.
Within its capital budget, the assessment and prioritisation of individual projects is a matter in the first instance for the NRA in accordance with Section 19 of the Roads Act.
In December 2013 I attended a meeting with local Oireachtas members, Limerick County Council and the NRA regarding the Adare Bypass. My understanding is that alternative options will have to be considered by Limerick County Council and the NRA prior to any resubmission of the scheme to An Bord Pleanála.
687. Deputy Terence Flanagan asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport his plans to establish a forum to whom taxi drivers can refer complaints (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17399/14]
View answerThe regulation of the small public service vehicle (SPSV) industry is the responsibility of the National Transport Authority (NTA) under the provisions of the Taxi Regulation Act, 2013. The NTA is also the lead agency with responsibility for the implementation of the recommendations contained in the Taxi Regulation Review Report, 2011.
The Taxi Regulation Review Report recommended measures to facilitate and improve consultation with the taxi industry. Action 34 of the Report recommended that taxi industry representative groups may make a referral to the Taxi Advisory Committee in relation to the introduction of industry regulations. Action 35 recommended the formation of a sub-committee of the Taxi Advisory Committee to act as a forum for the taxi sector when considering issues of particular concern to the sector. Both of these actions have been implemented.
Action 33 of the Taxi Regulation Review Report 2011 recommended the introduction of a review process within the NTA for certain categories of decisions particular to individuals, without prejudice to any statutory appeal provision. This action has also been implemented.
You may also be aware that the NTA, was one of over 180 public bodies which were brought under the remit of the Ombudsman Office with effect from the 1st of May 2013. It is a matter for the Ombudsman’s Office as to what investigations may be undertaken by or on behalf of a reviewable agency in the exercise of its functions.
688. Deputy Thomas P. Broughan asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the proposed actions that may be taken when the expert review into the Irish aviation superannuation scheme is concluded on 14 April 2014; and the timeline for any proposed action that may be taken in this regard. [17407/14]
View answerAs Minister for Transport Tourism and Sport I do not control the IAS Scheme. This is primarily a matter for the trustees, the members of the scheme, the companies participating in the scheme and the regulator of such pension schemes - the Pensions Authority.
The Expert Panel, established to carry out an urgent investigation of how a final resolution of the industrial relations issues relating to the Irish Airlines Superannuation Scheme (IASS) can be secured, gave update on Friday last (April 11th) to officials of my Department , the Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, Ibec and Congress on progress to date. The Panel confirmed that:
It is continuing to concentrate its efforts on engagement with DAA, Aer Lingus and the trade unions involved on critical issues which are being explored by the Panel with the parties through an outline of positions from the employers and the development of responses now being coordinated through Congress on behalf of the unions.
It will be continuing its engagement with the parties over the coming weeks to complete its investigation of how a final resolution of the complex industrial relations issues concerning the IASS can be achieved.
These discussions are taking place in the context of the separate Labour Court Recommendations in May 2013 in the cases of DAA and Aer Lingus, the IASS Trustee Proposal in February 2014 and the stated position of the parties
The Panel will report again in early May.
The purpose of the Expert Panel is to identify the critical issues and facilitate the parties to find a solution. In circumstances where this work is still underway and is at a critical juncture, it would be inappropriate to pre-empt the outcome or speculate on the outcome. It is important that these deliberations be allowed proceed over the coming weeks without interference so that a resolution might be found to this long-standing issue.
The significant deficit in the IAS scheme has arisen over the years as the companies and the members did not put enough into the scheme to match the benefits that were expected/promised. Resolution of the issues will involve contributions from all the parties involved.
689. Deputy Dara Murphy asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport his plans to hire additional enforcement officers in respect of the new taxi regulations announced last week; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17438/14]
View answerThe regulation of the small public service vehicle (SPSV) industry, including enforcement, is the responsibility of the National Transport Authority (NTA) under the provisions of the Taxi Regulation Act 2013, which was commenced with effect from 6th April 2014. The NTA carries out enforcement activities nationally in conjunction with An Garda Síochána, whose members are also authorised persons for the purposes of enforcement of the regulations governing SPSV services.
As a result of new powers under Section 40 of the Taxi Regulation Act 2013, for the NTA to enter into agreements with service providers to carry out enforcement functions, 15 additional Compliance Support Officers are in place to enforce the new SPSV regulations introduced by the NTA with effect from 7th April 2014.
690. Deputy Derek Nolan asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the salaries, including pensions and any other bonus-related addition such as company cars, of chief executive officers of commercial State bodies under the remit of his Department; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17443/14]
View answerThe information requested by the Deputy is set out in the Annual Reports and Accounts of the individual commercial State bodies. In accordance with Government policy, no bonus related payments are being made to chief executives.
