Written Answers Nos. 75-85
75. Deputy Michael McGrath asked the Minister for Finance if the purchasers of Irish Bank Resolution Corporation mortgages are required to continue to honour the terms of restructuring agreements previously put in place with borrowers; if the new owners have approved or rejected proposed new repayment arrangements; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [22058/14]
Amharc ar fhreagraI have been advised by the Special Liquidators that the sale of a residential mortgage does not change the terms and conditions of the loan agreement in any way. Irrespective of who acquires the loan(s) they will be required to honour the legal terms and conditions of the existing loan agreement(s), including previous restructuring arrangements put in place as well as offers made to customers prior to the sale.
Borrower proposals continue to be considered by Irish Bank Resolution Corporation Limited (in Special Liquidation) in consultation with the new purchasers, and continue to be approved, rejected or amended in the normal course of business based on an assessment of the borrowers circumstances, as has been the case since the Special Liquidation commenced.
76. Deputy Michael McGrath asked the Minister for Finance if his attention has been drawn to any situations in which the purchasers of Irish Bank Resolution Corporation mortgages have cancelled revised repayment arrangements that had been put in place with borrowers in a manner that would leave the borrower in a worse financial situation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [22059/14]
Amharc ar fhreagraI have been advised by the Special Liquidators that they are not aware of any cases in which the purchasers of Irish Bank Resolution Corporation mortgages have cancelled revised repayment arrangements that had been put in place with borrowers.
78. Deputy Michael McGrath asked the Minister for Finance the annual yield from vehicle registration tax in each year from 2005 to 2013; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [22062/14]
Amharc ar fhreagraOn the basis of statistics provided to me by the Revenue Commissioners the total net receipts from Vehicle Registration Tax for each year between 2005 and 2013 are as follows:
|
Year |
Total Net Receipts |
|
2005 |
€1,148,783,152 |
|
2006 |
€1,287,407,855 |
|
2007 |
€1,406,055,634 |
|
2008 |
€1,120,777,384 |
|
2009 |
€375,402,902 |
|
2010 |
€383,485,187 |
|
2011 |
€388,353,746 |
|
2012 |
€379,345,821 |
|
2013* |
€437,308,610 |
*Figures are provisional and may be subject to change
79. Deputy Michael McGrath asked the Minister for Finance the approximate annual yield from VAT on new car sales in each year from 2005 to 2013; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [22063/14]
Amharc ar fhreagraI am informed by the Revenue Commissioners that the approximate annual yield from VAT on new car sales from 2005 to 2013 is as set out below. Please note that VAT receipts are estimated, as VAT returns do not require the yield from a particular sector or sub-sector to be identified.
|
Year |
Estimated VAT Yield €m |
|
2013 |
269 |
|
2012 |
260 |
|
2011 |
284 |
|
2010 |
250 |
|
2009 |
211 |
|
2008 |
520 |
|
2007 |
630 |
|
2006 |
560 |
|
2005 |
530 |
80. Deputy Michael McGrath asked the Minister for Finance the timescale he envisages for the appointment of a new Secretary General of his Department; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [22064/14]
Amharc ar fhreagraMr John Moran will remain in the post of Secretary General until his successor is appointed which we expect to take place in the next couple of months. Consideration is being given to the process of filling this post.
81. Deputy Sean Fleming asked the Minister for Finance the number of defibrillators that are located in Government offices and buildings under the remit of his Department and those under his aegis throughout the country; if these are available in emergency cases outside of office hours in the community in the locations where they are based; the number and cost of same; if he will consider putting some arrangement in place whereby these defibrillators can be located where the public can get access outside office hours in the interest of health and safety; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [22379/14]
Amharc ar fhreagraIn response to the Deputy's question there are currently nine defibrillators throughout the shared buildings occupied by staff of the Department of Finance and the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform, including our offices in Tullamore. The cost including VAT to install the defibrillators in 2011 came to €21,780. Currently there is no access to these defibrillators for emergency cases outside of working hours and there are no immediate plans to change the current arrangements.
In relation to bodies under the aegis of my Department I have been informed by the Office of the Revenue Commissioners that there are currently 6 defibrillators located in Revenue offices. The cost including VAT to install these was €13,343. These devices are not available for emergency cases outside of office hours. There are currently no plans to re-locate these to enable access outside of office hours.
The National Treasury Management Agency have advised me that they have 4 defibrillators that cost €1,600 each. They are not available for emergency cases outside of working hours.
82. Deputy Finian McGrath asked the Minister for Education and Skills if his attention has been drawn to the damage to our second level schools after three years of cuts (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21880/14]
Amharc ar fhreagraI acknowledge the challenges faced by schools in managing the overall impact of budgetary measures in recent years. However the change must be seen in the context of the major challenges we have as a Government in trying to shelter public services to the greatest extent that we can in these exceptional times. The net impact on overall teacher numbers in our schools has been minimised to the greatest extent possible. The Government has protected frontline services in schools and there will be no reduction in teacher numbers in second level schools for the 2014/15 school year as a result of budget 2014. The DEIS scheme for disadvantaged schools is also fully protected with no overall changes to staffing levels or funding as a result of the budget. When the moratorium on the filling of posts of responsibility was introduced the Government exempted Principal and Deputy Principal posts in all primary and post-primary schools and these posts continue to be replaced in the normal manner. I have also provided alleviation arrangements at AP level. These arrangements are set out in Circular 0004/2014 which provide a floor by which schools acutely affected at AP level by the impact of the moratorium can fill their AP vacancies as they arise to the level of the thresholds set out in that circular. It continues to be a matter for each individual school authority to re-organise and prioritise the appropriate duties for post of responsibility holders in the context of implementing the moratorium. Schools have autonomy on how best to prioritise their available resources to meet their requirements in relation to guidance and the provision of an appropriate range of subjects to its students. Decisions on how this is done will be taken at school level and I am confident that schools will act in the best interest of students when determining precisely how to use the teaching resources available to them.
83. Deputy John O'Mahony asked the Minister for Education and Skills the provisions that are in place in County Sligo for gaelscoileanna; and if he will consider increasing funding to allow for the provision of Irish language schooling for families in County Sligo; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21881/14]
Amharc ar fhreagraThere is currently one Gaelscoil in County Sligo. Enrolments in the school are relatively stable. This is reflective of the overall demographic situation in County Sligo where enrolments are expected to remain stable up until 2019 at least. As the Deputy will be aware, the over-riding objective of Education capital expenditure is to meet the demographic challenge facing the education system, whereby total pupil enrolment in both primary and post-primary schools is expected to grow by around 107,000 additional pupils between 2012 and 2019 - over 70,000 at primary level and over 35,000 at post primary - and will continue to rise at post primary level to the year 2026, at least. A priority, therefore, for my Department is to ensure that schools in an area can, between them, cater for all pupils seeking places. In areas of stable demographics, my Department is not in a position to develop one school sector where this may negatively impact on schools in other sectors. However to assess further the pupil enrolment trends in the Sligo area, my Department will be contacting the school authorities of the 13 primary schools in the Sligo feeder area in relation to pupil enrolment data including information on school pre-enrolments for the 2014/2015 academic year. This data, when obtained and reviewed, will also assist my Department in further assessing the issue of overall demand for education through the medium of Irish in the area.
84. Deputy Joe Carey asked the Minister for Education and Skills if he will convene a meeting of post primary schools in Ennis, County Clare, with a view to resolving the severe pressure in terms of securing a secondary school place of choice in Ennis; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21893/14]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs the Deputy may be aware, 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. It is important that school size is monitored and that a balance is preserved among all the schools in catchment areas. My Department is not in a position to develop one school where this may negatively impact on other schools in the area. I am aware that this may however result in some pupils not obtaining a place in the school of their first choice.
As you will appreciate there is also a responsibility on schools to manage their own enrolment policies to ensure that they operate within the level of accommodation available to them. As the patron and school authorities in the Ennis area are in ongoing liaison with my Department, I do not consider that convening a meeting as proposed would be beneficial at this time.
85. Deputy Anthony Lawlor asked the Minister for Education and Skills the reason schools that applied for funding under categories 7, 8, 9 and 10 of the summer works scheme were not approved for funding in 2014; the reason a distinction was made in respect of categories 1 to 6; if funding will be available for categories 7 to 10 in 2015; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21897/14]
Amharc ar fhreagraI wish to advise the Deputy that commensurate with the level of funding set aside for the 2014 Summer Works Scheme, applications were assessed on a top down basis in accordance with the prioritisation criteria outlined in the Circular accompanying the scheme. Given the level of funding available, it was not possible to grant aid all applications. At a time of limited resources, it was necessary to prioritise works in this manner. Nonetheless, in the current financial climate, grant approvals of over €70m for the 2014 Summer Works Scheme have been made to over 772 primary and post-primary schools to undertake improvement works which represents a significant investment in the existing school stock. These improvement works represent applications submitted for categories 1 to 6 in order of priority.
I wish, however, to advise the Deputy that applications for works in categories 7 to 10 will be retained for consideration should funding become available to this Scheme at a later stage.
