Written Answers Nos. 250-260
250. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Education and Skills the options available to access a second level school place for the child of a person (details supplied) in County Kildare; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [5407/15]
View answerThe Educational Welfare Service of the Child and Family Agency (EWS) is the statutory agency which can assist parents who are experiencing difficulty in securing a school place for their child. The EWS may be able to offer assistance and advice on securing a school placement within the pupil's area. The contact details for the EWS is Educational Welfare Service of the Child and Family Agency, Tusla, Block 3, South Dublin County Council, Tallaght, Dublin 24, phone number 01-5313321.
The Deputy will be aware that the selection and enrolment of pupils in schools is the responsibility of the authorities of the individual school. My Department's main responsibility is to ensure that schools in an area can, between them, cater for all pupils seeking school places in an area. However, this may result in some pupils not obtaining a place in the school of their first choice. As schools may not have a place for every applicant, a selection process may be necessary. This selection process and the enrolment policy on which it is based must be non-discriminatory and must be applied fairly in respect of all applicants. Under section 15 (2) (d) of the Education Act, 1998, each school is legally obliged to disclose its enrolment policy and to ensure that as regards that policy that principles of equality and the right of parents to send their children to a school of the parents' choice are respected. Section 29 of the Education Act, 1998 provides for an appeal by a parent or guardian to the Secretary General of my Department, or in the case of an Educational Training Board (ETB) school to the ETB in the first instance, where a Board of Management of a school, or a person acting on behalf of the Board, refuses to enrol a student in a school, expels a student or suspends a student for 20 or more days in any school year. My Department has no authority to compel a school to admit a pupil, except in the case of an appeal under section 29 of the Education Act, 1998 being upheld. Application forms for taking a section 29 appeal are available on my Departments website at the following link http://www.education.ie/en/Parents/Services/Appeal-against-Permanent-Exclusion-Suspension-or-Refusal-to-Enrol/Section-29-Appeals-Application-Form.doc, or by contacting Section 29 Administration Unit, Friars Mill Road, Mullingar, Co. Westmeath, phone 0761 108588.
251. Deputy Sean Fleming asked the Minister for Education and Skills the number of staff from her Department or agency under her remit working out of a Government building at a location (details supplied) in County Laois; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [5588/15]
View answerThere are no officials at my Department or staff at any of the bodies under its aegis based at the Government Buildings offices mentioned in the Deputy's question.
252. Deputy Lucinda Creighton asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government the final date for eligibility to receive the water conservation grant application that persons must have registered with Irish Water; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5348/15]
View answer253. Deputy Barry Cowen asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government the date the water conservation grant application deadline will be set; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5412/15]
View answer254. Deputy Barry Cowen asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government if applicants for the water conservation grant will have to supply their PPS number in order to receive the grant; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5416/15]
View answer281. Deputy Lucinda Creighton asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government the new deadline that has been put in place by which households must register with Irish Water to avail of the €100 water conservation grant; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5349/15]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 252 to 254, inclusive, and 281.
I refer to my reply to Question No. 162 of 4 February 2015 which sets out the current position in the matter.
255. Deputy Seamus Kirk asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government the position regarding the exchange of information between the Revenue Commissioners and Irish Water regarding the registration for property tax and registration for water charges; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5182/15]
View answerSection 26 of the Water Services Act 2013 Act provides Irish Water with the power to obtain information from various sources, including the Revenue Commissioners, which is necessary for the performance of its functions. It is central to the e-Government strategy on improved data sharing and linking across the public service that data should be shared between Government Departments and Agencies, where such sharing is mutually beneficial. I have no function in relation to the performance by the Office of the Revenue Commissioners of its statutory functions.
256. Deputy Aengus Ó Snodaigh asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government when the regulations to provide full effect to the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2014 regarding evictions from local authority homes will be published. [5220/15]
View answerI refer to the reply to Question No. 570 of 3 February 2015, which sets out the position in this matter.
257. Deputy Brendan Smith asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government the funding allocated for community alert programmes in 2014; the funding provided for 2015; if his Department will continue to administer this scheme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5224/15]
View answerMy Department manages the Seniors Alert Scheme which encourages community support for vulnerable older people in our communities by providing grant assistance towards the purchase and installation of personal monitored alarms to enable older persons, of limited means, to continue to live securely in their homes with confidence, independence and peace of mind. The scheme is administered by local community and voluntary groups with the support of my Department. My Department undertook to consider new approaches to the Seniors Alert Scheme in 2014 and arising from this, it was decided that the scheme be managed by Pobal, given that organisation’s significant experience delivering programmes on behalf of Government.
These new arrangements are designed to reduce the administrative burden for the many hundreds of community and voluntary groups registered under the Scheme, who provide an excellent service for the elderly. It will enable the groups to concentrate on the main purpose of the Scheme, namely to support and interact with the elderly in the local community.
The funding allocated for the Seniors Alert Scheme in 2014 was €2.35m, of which €1.7m was drawn down. This met the needs of all 7,120 qualifying applicants under this demand-led scheme during the year. The allocation for 2015 has been maintained at the 2014 level of €2.35m.
258. Deputy Sean Fleming asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government his plans and discussions held in relation to recovering some of the extra costs that will now be incurred by the State as a result of the Mahon tribunal in relation to costs that will have to be paid to third parties; if he has examined the possibility of recovering some of these amounts from the professionals who were employed by the Mahon tribunal who should have had professional indemnity insurance in view of the fact that some important material relevant to the tribunal was wrongly withheld; the action he is taking to protect the taxpayer arising from this; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5228/15]
View answerSimilar to the practice with other previous Tribunals of Inquiry, my Department is involved in recouping the final third-party costs of witnesses to the Mahon Tribunal. This process involves the assessment of claims by legal cost accountants acting on behalf of the State prior to the submission of final claims to my Department. Assessments, and reductions, of costs claimed by witnesses to the Tribunal are determined in the first instance by the Chairman of the Tribunal and subsequently by legal cost accountants and my Department has no role in these matters.
I have been advised by the Mahon Tribunal that the costs that now will be paid to a small number of third parties arising from issues that have arisen with certain adverse findings made by Mr Justice Flood in his Second and Third Interim Reports in 2002 and 2003, respectively, are costs which had these adverse findings not been made would have been properly payable to the said third parties at that time.
The implications of the outcome of the relevant legal challenges against the Tribunal are being considered by my Department. Legal advice is being sought with a view to informing that consideration.
259. Deputy Róisín Shortall asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government the 2015 housing targets that have been agreed for each of the four Dublin local authority areas by the Dublin social housing delivery taskforce. [5233/15]
View answerUnder the relevant actions of the Social Housing Strategy, national targets for delivery of social housing on a local authority by local authority basis are to be agreed for each year. Action 1 of the Strategy requires the agreement of national targets for delivery of social housing on a local authority by local authority basis this year and in subsequent years. Action 4 of the Strategy requires the 4 Dublin local authorities to agree similar targets. Action 1 will be delivered by the Project Board while Action 4 is the responsibility of the Dublin Social Housing Delivery Taskforce. Both actions will be delivered in quarter 1 2015.
260. Deputy Sean Fleming asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government the funding allocations approved for each local authority in 2014 and the amount paid to each of these local authorities in 2014; the funding allocated to these local authorities in 2015; the amounts paid to the local authorities to date in 2015 following the Government decision of 11 February 2014 to allocate funding for the clean-up, repair and restoration works in relation to public infrastructure that was damaged in the period 13 December 2013 to 6 January 2014; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5244/15]
View answerThe Government decided on 11 February 2014 to allocate funding of up to €69.5 million to local authorities in the areas worst affected by the first phase of severe weather in respect of the damage caused between 13 December 2013 and 6 January 2014. This was intended to support communities by restoring roads, coastal protection, amenities/facilities and other public infrastructure which had been damaged. It was agreed that the funding would be made available via the Votes of the appropriate Departments, viz Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport; Department of Agriculture, Food and Marine; the Office of Public Works and my own Department. While my Department had an initial role in collating details and costs of damage in the immediate aftermath of the severe weather, based on returns and estimates provided by local authorities, the other Departments and Offices listed above liaise directly with the local authorities on funding which falls under their remit.
In the case of funding requirements which fall under the remit of my Department, viz, tourism infrastructure funded by the local authorities, certain piers, harbours and other facilities in the charge of the local authorities, current costs totalling €4 million and capital costs totalling €13.1 million were originally estimated for the period in question. For the 2nd phase of severe weather, from 27 January to 17 February 2014, local authorities originally estimated current costs of €3.5 million and €8.5 million in capital costs. By year end €7.859 million was in fact disbursed by my Department to local authorities in respect of current costs and €5.994 million in respect of capital costs in 2014. Provision has been made in my Department’s Vote for a further €10 million in respect of capital costs to be incurred by local authorities in 2015 on repair and remediation projects. No funding has been drawn down from my Department by the local authorities to date in 2015. The 2015 funding position will be kept under review over the course of the year.
Full details of the allocations and drawdowns by local authority are contained in the table.
|
Local Authority |
Current Allocation |
Current Drawdown 2014 |
Capital Allocation |
Capital Drawdown 2014 |
|
Carlow |
215,000 |
215,000 |
- |
- |
|
Cavan |
65,021 |
65,021 |
- |
- |
|
Clare |
1,388,748 |
1,388,053 |
6,279,248 |
1,020,928 |
|
Cork County |
1,388,700 |
1,388,700 |
1,138,900 |
|
|
Cork City |
262,625 |
285,625 |
43,000 |
20,000 |
|
Donegal |
235,500 |
150,000 |
678,750 |
115,171 |
|
Dublin City |
180,000 |
57,802 |
- |
- |
|
Dun Laoghaire R/D |
- |
- |
- |
- |
|
Fingal |
5,000 |
- |
- |
- |
|
Galway County |
481,250 |
478,000 |
3,011,755 |
338,297 |
|
Galway City |
221,000 |
220,698 |
612,875 |
1,134,825 |
|
Kerry |
520,475 |
486,975 |
1,045,340 |
935,861 |
|
Kildare |
2,174 |
- |
- |
- |
|
Kilkenny |
411,000 |
329,411 |
55,000 |
70,296 |
|
Laois |
351,000 |
351,000 |
- |
- |
|
Leitrim |
112,633 |
80,650 |
- |
- |
|
Limerick City & County |
794,500 |
794,500 |
430,000 |
- |
|
Longford |
21,000 |
15,000 |
15,000 |
- |
|
Louth |
64,000 |
69,731 |
4,675 |
- |
|
Mayo |
509,000 |
509,000 |
784,000 |
189,900 |
|
Meath |
113,121 |
113,121 |
2,500 |
2,500 |
|
Monaghan |
- |
- |
- |
- |
|
Offaly |
28,500 |
28,500 |
15,000 |
15,000 |
|
Roscommon |
20,810 |
20,810 |
- |
- |
|
Sligo |
174,350 |
174,290 |
397,700 |
230,686 |
|
South Dublin |
- |
- |
- |
- |
|
Tipperary |
896,069 |
45,503 |
- |
- |
|
Waterford |
352,000 |
352,000 |
4,890,000 |
1,920,049 |
|
Westmeath |
146,953 |
134,762 |
- |
- |
|
Wexford |
33,500 |
33,500 |
2,222,000 |
- |
|
Wicklow |
49,329 |
71,727 |
61,168 |
- |
|
Total |
9,043,258 |
7,859,379 |
21,686,911 |
5,993,513 |
