Written Answers Nos. 1509-1528
1509. Deputy Noel Rock asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the reason the decision was made not to install batteries on Luas trams in an effort to curb the use of overhead cables; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37026/17]
View answerThe National Authority (NTA) is responsible for the development and implementation of public transport infrastructure projects in the Greater Dublin Area (GDA) including the Luas Cross City Project.
In light of the NTA's responsibility in this area, I have forwarded the Deputy's question to the NTA for direct reply. Please advise my private office if you do not receive a reply within 10 working days.
1510. Deputy Noel Rock asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport his plans to bid to host a round of a competition (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37027/17]
View answerMy Department's role in relation to tourism lies in the area of national tourism policy. It is not directly involved in the management or development of individual tourism projects or events. These are operational matters for the Board and Management of Fáilte Ireland.
Fáilte Ireland's Event Ireland Team is tasked with identifying, bidding for and winning sporting, cultural and other events for Ireland in partnership with relevant stakeholders. They offer a range of practical and financial supports to assist with bid proposals, subject to eligibility criteria, such as the delivery of overseas visitors to Ireland, the securing of private sector investment in the bid, and demonstration of significant economic impact for the event location/region.
I have referred the Deputy's question to Fáilte Ireland for further information on this matter and for direct reply to the Deputy. Please contact my office if a reply has not been received within ten days.
1511. Deputy Noel Rock asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport his views on whether the detention of tourists at Dublin Airport will have a negative impact on the international view of Ireland as a tourism destination; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37028/17]
View answerAs the Deputy is aware, the Minister for Justice and Equality is responsible for immigration and border controls at our ports and airports. Such controls are a necessary and accepted feature of modern-day travel and I am not aware that the operation of these controls in Ireland is having a negative impact on Ireland's reputation as a tourism destination. It is my understanding that the Irish immigration system is one of the least burdensome for visitors. Fáilte Ireland's 2016 survey of overseas visitors attitudes towards Ireland did not identify this as an issue for visitors to Ireland.
1512. Deputy Joan Burton asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the amount of funding provided to Transport Infrastructure Ireland in 2017 for resurfacing of the national road network; the priority list for resurfacing of the network as determined by TII, by area and year; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37038/17]
View answerAs Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport, I have responsibility for overall policy and funding in relation to the national roads programme. The planning, design and implementation of individual national road projects is a matter for Transport Infrastructure Ireland under the Roads Acts 1993-2015 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 TII in accordance with Section 19 of the Roads Act.
Accordingly, I have referred the Deputy’s question to TII for direct reply. Please advise my private office if you do not receive a reply within 10 working days.
The referred reply under Standing Order 42A was forwarded to the Deputy.
1513. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport if he will address a matter regarding traffic calming measures in a village (details supplied) in County Kerry; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37049/17]
View answerAs Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport, I have responsibility for overall policy and funding in relation to the national roads programme. The planning, design and implementation of individual national road projects (including traffic calming) is a matter for Transport Infrastructure Ireland under the Roads Acts 1993-2015 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 TII in accordance with Section 19 of the Roads Act.
Accordingly, I have referred the Deputy’s question to TII for direct reply. Please advise my private office if you do not receive a reply within 10 working days.
1514. Deputy Pearse Doherty asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the obligations that are on taxi drivers to accept payment by card or other non-cash methods; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37053/17]
View answerThe regulation of the small public service vehicle (SPSV) industry, including fare payment methods, is a matter for the National Transport Authority (NTA) under the provisions of the Taxi Regulation Act 2013.
I have referred your question to the NTA for direct reply to you. Please advise my private office if you do not receive a response within 10 working days.
1515. Deputy Mary Lou McDonald asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the number of women and men respectively employed in his Department, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37076/17]
View answerThe information requested by the Deputy in relation to the number of men and women respectively employed in my Department is as outlined in the table as at 31 August 2017. As indicated the breakdown of the total headcount of 513 is 52% male and 48% female.
|
Men |
Women |
|
268 |
245 |
1516. Deputy Mary Lou McDonald asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the number of men and women respectively in his Department that hold posts (details supplied). [37087/17]
View answerThe information requested by the Deputy in relation to the number of men and women respectively that currently hold specific posts in my Department is as outlined in the table as at 31 August 2017.
|
Grade |
Male |
Female |
|
Secretary General |
1 |
0 |
|
Assistant Secretary |
3 |
2 |
|
Principal Officer |
12 |
10 |
|
Assistant Principal |
20 |
29 |
1517. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the status of an application for a sports capital grant by a club (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37090/17]
View answerThe 2017 round of the Sports Capital Programme closed for applications on the 24th February and I can confirm that an application has been submitted by the organisation. By the closing date, a record number of 2,320 applications seeking €155 million in grants were received. The total amount currently available to allocate under this round is €30 million. Accordingly, the allocation of grants will be particularly challenging.
All of the 2,320 applications received are currently being assessed by officials in my Department. I expect to be in a position to make an announcement regarding allocations in the coming weeks.
1518. Deputy Niamh Smyth asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport his plans to upgrade a road (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37099/17]
View answerThe improvement and maintenance of regional and local roads is the statutory responsibility of the local authority, in accordance with the provisions of Section 13 of the Roads Act 1993. Works on those roads are funded from the local authority's own resources supplemented by State road grants. The initial selection and prioritisation of works to be funded is also a matter for the local authority.
1519. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport if he will approve funding for the Macroom bypass (details supplied); if the project will be on the Government's revised capital projects list; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37146/17]
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 Transport Infrastructure Ireland under the Roads Acts 1993 to 2015 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 Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII) in accordance with Section 19 of the Roads Act.
The Capital Plan published in September 2015 outlined proposed transport investment priorities to 2022. The transport element of the Capital Plan does provide for some targeted investment in a number of new projects in the Munster region including the N22 Ballyvourney to Macroom scheme.
Noting the above position, I have referred the Deputy's questions to TII for direct reply. Please advise my private office if you do not receive a reply within 10 working days.
1520. Deputy Niamh Smyth asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the position regarding works which have been announced for a road (details supplied); the timeframe for same; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37164/17]
View answerAs Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport, I have responsibility for overall policy and funding in relation to the national roads programme. The planning, design and implementation of individual national road projects is a matter for Transport Infrastructure Ireland under the Roads Acts 1993-2015 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 TII in accordance with Section 19 of the Roads Act.
I have, therefore, referred the Deputy’s question to TII for direct reply. Please advise my private office if you do not receive a reply within 10 working days.
1521. Deputy Niamh Smyth asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport if a driving retest can be expedited for a person (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37165/17]
View answerThe operation of the driver testing service is the statutory responsibility of the Road Safety Authority. I have therefore referred the Question to the Authority for direct reply. I would ask the Deputy to contact my office if a response has not been received within ten days.
1522. Deputy James Browne asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport if his Department has examined the potential impact of Brexit on road hauliers; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37190/17]
View answerIn the context of both the Irish road haulage sector and our wider economy, it is vital to minimise the impact of Brexit by maintaining close trade between the UK and Ireland, minimising regulatory burden for goods transiting the UK and pursuing trade and investment opportunities arising from Brexit. My Department’s officials maintain a close, ongoing working relationship with their counterparts in the UK and Northern Ireland and will continue to regularly interact with them as the effects of Brexit develop to determine how these effects may be mitigated and to safeguard the interests of the Irish road transport sector. My officials also continue to liaise regularly with representatives of the Irish road haulage industry and will take account of their concerns in engaging with the UK authorities.
I can assure you that my Department’s officials and I will continue to work with our UK and EU counterparts to advance Ireland’s interests in this regard.
1523. Deputy Bobby Aylward asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the full cost of the non-statutory State inquiry report into the 2016 Rio Olympic Games ticket matter undertaken by a person (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37207/17]
View answerThe cost of the Moran Inquiry into the circumstances surrounding the receipt, distribution and sale of tickets for the Rio Olympic Games and ancillary matters is €312,765.
I consider that this expenditure represents extremely good value for the taxpayer. A number of important lessons have been learnt from the work of the Moran Inquiry, in particular the unacceptable prioritisation of commerce over competitors, the fact that Pro10 was a cover for THG, the de facto Authorised Ticket Reseller, and the chaotic nature of the service provided to athletes, their families and friends and also the general public. I fully share the Judge's conclusions regarding the lack of fitness for purpose of the service provided and the general absence of effective corporate governance procedures within the Olympic Council of Ireland (OCI).
In relation to the non-statutory nature of the Inquiry, I am satisfied that this was the correct course of action to follow. Even if the statutory option had been taken, inevitably at a much higher cost to the taxpayer, there is no reason to believe that those parties that chose not to co-operate would have adopted a different position. The case for the non-statutory approach is also supported by the foreign locations of most of those parties, which would have presented inevitable practical implementation difficulties. Moreover, Judge Moran was given the freedom to escalate to a full Commission of Investigation and his decision not to recommend same is one that I fully support.
In conclusion, the Moran Inquiry Report has performed the valuable service of shining a light on inappropriate behaviour with regard to ticket sales. It has achieved this objective in an efficient and effective manner. The commitment of the newly elected OCI Executive Board to undertake essential governance reforms is a most welcome development, which I believe will ensure a much improved climate for future Olympiad.
1524. Deputy Pearse Doherty asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the cost his Department incurred in each of the past five years due to debit and credit card payment services and banking fees; the financial institutions to which the payments were made; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37229/17]
View answerThe Deputy will note the Department makes a large amount of important and necessary banking payments to individuals and organisations in all corners of the island of Ireland. These include the tourism bodies and other public bodies in sports and transport, sports capital grants, and major Public Transport projects as well as safety and regulatory programmes for the Irish Coastguard, Aviation and Maritime services.
Given the large volume of payments (in excess of 20,000 individual bank transactions per annum) made by this Department, the costs are extremely low and represent excellent value for money on behalf of the taxpayer as highlighted in the table below. The Department actively takes proactive steps to manage our banking transactions with the objective of reducing fees.
We are also participating on a working group on Financial Shared Services in further reducing bank costs in order to deliver a world class service as part of the current Civil Service renewal process.
|
Year |
Ulster Bank (Euros) |
Bank of Ireland (Euros) |
Investec (Euros) |
|
2012 |
1,731 |
0 |
121 |
|
2013 |
2,010 |
1,351 |
0 |
|
2014 |
1,950 |
17 |
0 |
|
2015 |
2,190 |
0 |
0 |
|
2016 |
2,419 |
369 |
0 |
|
2017 (Jan-June) |
2,132 |
584 |
0 |
This Department also collects a number of payments in the course of its operations. Significant amounts of money are collected for the benefit of the Exchequer in the use of debit and credit card payment collection services. These Exchequer receipts are then used to provide vital public services and infrastructure.
In addition to outgoing payments the accounts above are used for certain of those payments receivable by this Department. However, the vast majority of payments receivable by this Department are related to online motor tax.
The Online Motor Tax service at www.motortax.ie incurs two types of fees, debit and credit card financial clearance charges to Realex Payments, and bank acquiring fees to Elavon. Both these services are provided under Office of Government Procurement (OGP) frameworks, and all agencies across the public service can avail of them.
The costs incurred by the Department’s online motor tax service for both these services are set out below, for the periods requested. Just over €21m has been paid for the period 2012 to 2017 inclusive. In that same period, over €3.8b has been collected by the service, meaning the charges incurred are just a little over a half of one percent.
New contracts put in place for both services since 1 July 2016 have resulted in significant savings for the Department, over 25% for financial clearance charges, and over 30% for bank acquiring charges, both over a full year. Furthermore, it should be noted that some of the bank charges incurred by the Department for the online service would previously have been incurred by local authorities, where the motor tax transaction was processed by a motor tax office and where a credit/debit card was used.
This is a very efficient way of collecting motor tax that is due to the State and is also very convenient for taxpayers. Data revealed by a December 2016 special report by the C&AG (no.97) suggests that the cost of processing an online payment is around half that of a physical motor tax payment.
|
Year |
Motor Tax collected (via Online Motor Tax Service) (€) |
Amount Paid to Realex (€) |
Amount Paid to Elavon (€) |
|
2012 |
533,330,921 |
296,000 |
3,071,000 |
|
2013 |
605,798,031 |
333,000 |
3,352,000 |
|
2014 |
705,284,514 |
400,000 |
3,625,000 |
|
2015 |
745,914,522 |
441,000 |
3,912,000 |
|
2016 |
739,320,867 |
363,000 |
3,195,000 |
|
2017 (Jan to August) |
522,661,937 |
216,000 |
1,909,000 |
|
Total |
3,852,310,792 |
2,049,000 |
19,064,000 |
The Road Transport Operator Licensing Unit also collect fees related to the issuing of licenses. This is an important regulatory function and again the resources are used to support the Exchequer in defraying the costs of that service and related functions.
This particular online licence fee payment service started in 2014, so there are no figures for previous years.
Between 2014 and November 2016 some fees were paid to the Local Government Management Agency; and from November 2016 to date, Realex has been paid for the service the LGMA had previously provided.
The contracts with Realex and Elavon are on similar terms to the contracts mentioned in the context of the motor tax online service. The volume of transactions in this case may be smaller but the comparative cost ratio helps to ensure that value for money in this operation is being achieved.
The figures shown below for annual fees income are for total income from both online and paper applications. It was not possible to present separate figures for fees collected online but you should note that online transactions account for approximately 60% of all applications.
|
Year |
Road Transport Operator Licensing fees (total) € |
Amount paid to LGMA (under contract effective April 2014 to October 2016) € |
Amount Paid to Realex (under contract effective November 2016 to date) € |
Amount Paid to Elavon € |
|
2014 |
828,180.00 |
160.00 |
****** |
4,826.89 |
|
2015 |
952,946.00 |
241.16 |
****** |
9,273.76 |
|
2016 |
1,286,955.00 |
213.29 |
23.47 |
12,116.47 |
|
2017 (Jan to August) |
824,514.00 |
****** |
88.71 |
6,901.82 |
|
Total |
3,892,595.00 |
614.45 |
112.18 |
33,118.94 |
1525. D'fhiafraigh Deputy Aengus Ó Snodaigh den Aire Iompair, Turasóireachta agus Spóirt an mbeidh na ceanglais chéanna maidir leis an dátheangachas atá ar Bhus Átha Cliath ar chuideachta (sonraí tugtha) a bhfuiltear tar éis 10% de ghnó bus na cathrach a bhronnadh uirthi. [37260/17]
View answerIs ábhar don Údarás Iompair Náisiúnta (UIN) an cheist a ardaíodh agus chuir mé ceist an Teachta ar aghaidh chuig an UIN le haghaidh freagra díreach. Tabhair comhairle do mo oifig phriobháideach mura bhfaighidh tú freagra laistigh de dheich lá oibre.
The referred reply under Standing Order 42A was forwarded to the Deputy.
1526. Deputy Jackie Cahill asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the average waiting time for applications for driving tests; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37301/17]
View answerThe operation of the driver testing service is the statutory responsibility of the Road Safety Authority. I have therefore referred the question to the authority for direct reply. I would ask the Deputy to contact my office if a response has not been received within ten days.
1527. Deputy Jackie Cahill asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the number of persons who have applied for a driving test but have not yet been tested in County Tipperary by month for the past two years, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37302/17]
View answerThe operation of the driver testing service is the statutory responsibility of the Road Safety Authority. I have therefore referred the question to the authority for direct reply. I would ask the Deputy to contact my office if a response has not been received within ten days.
The referred reply under Standing Order 42A was forwarded to the Deputy.
1528. Deputy Jackie Cahill asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the total number of tests completed by month in County Tipperary for the past two years; the number of fails monthly for the same period, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37303/17]
View answerThe operation of the driver testing service is the statutory responsibility of the Road Safety Authority. I have therefore referred the question to the authority for direct reply. I would ask the Deputy to contact my office if a response has not been received within ten days.
