CCTV Installations

Community groups and schools in Meath to benefit from CLÁR funding to enhance safety measures   €226,000 for North Meath Projects Fine Gael TD for Meath West has welcomed the announcement of funding for community groups and schools in Meath are to benefit from new Government funding through the CLÁR programme.   Minister English said: “The latest round of funding under the Clár Programme is being allocated for safety measures in schools and community groups. €226,000 has been allocated to schools and community groups in North Meath who successfully applied for funding in this round.   ‘The funding under this latest round of the Clár Programme will allow for the installation of safety measures such as pedestrian crossings, flashing lights and speed indicators in villages and adjacent to schools and community facilities.  These measures will help to keep not only our children, but all those who live in CLÁR areas, safe which is very welcome.   Cllr Sarah ...

Private Members’ Bill Seanad Éireann Short-term Lettings Bill 2018 Wednesday 20 th June 2018 Check Against Delivery Introduction Firstly, I wish to thank Senator Humphries for bringing forward this Bill and providing us with another opportunity to discuss short-term lettings which is a priority for this Government.   Policy Can I set out from the start that, “Home sharing” that is to say, people providing overnight and short-term accommodation in their own homes – is a good thing. It can be an important source of income, helping “home sharers” to meet the cost of mortgages, rents and other household expenses and hence support tenure security.  It also supports tourism and associated economic activity and even social and cultural exchange. This does not reduce the number of residential units available in the economy. Importantly, planning regulations have traditionally recognised that home sharing and overnight guest accommodation is permissible in certain circumsta...

CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY   Cathaoirleach, I am very pleased to be here today to provide an update on Marine Spatial Planning or MSP on behalf of the Government and my Department, following on from Senator O’Sullivan’s Motion last month on marine environment matters. All contributors to that debate appeared to agree that as an Island nation, our marine environment is a national asset that gives us many commercial and non-commercial benefits in terms, for example, of biodiversity, seafood, tourism, recreation, renewable energy, cultural heritage, and shipping. People are passionate about our seas and the future sustainable use, enjoyment and development of our marine area affects many people. Managing our ocean wealth requires an overarching national marine ‘spatial’ plan to a structure to help realise the full benefit of our ocean wealth and assist with managing our resources effectively and sustainably. The development of an overarching national MSP was identified as a Governme...

English encourages local communities in Trim and Navan to work closely with Meath County Council on applications for Urban Regeneration and Development Fund   Some €4 billion will be made available to cities and towns across Ireland through the Project Ireland 2040 Funds, including the towns of Trim and Navan in Meath West, local Fine Gael T.D. and Minister for Housing and Urban Renewal Damien English T.D. has said. As part of Project Ireland 2040, the Government is setting up four new funds to deliver better cities, better rural towns and communities, fund new technology and look at how we can combat climate change and effectively respond to the huge challenge it poses. The breakdown is: €2bn for urban regeneration, €1bn for the Rural Development Fund, €500m climate action fund and €500m disruptive technologies fund Minister English said: “This funding is great news for Trim and Navan, and for the wider county too. The new €2 billion Urban Regeneration and Development Fund wi...

Launch of Report: Evaluation Phase 1 of Dublin City Age Friendly Housing with Support Model Damien English, T.D., Minister for Housing and Urban Development Mansion House 4 May 2018 Opening Remarks Distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen. I am delighted to be with you for the launch of this report on age friendly housing. The report, which Dr. Kathy Walsh set out for us so clearly this morning, contains the results of an evaluation of the first phase of the Housing with Support Demonstration project. It is a key priority for Government under the Rebuilding Ireland Plan, with which I am very proud to be associated. I would like to congratulate Dr. Walsh for her hard work in producing this valuable report on this important issue. The evaluation of phase one and the toolkit that has been developed will provide a useful reference and guidebook for others who want to replicate this ‘housing with supports’ model in other parts of the country. I would like to thank Dublin City Co...

Thursday, 26th April 2018 Minister for Housing and Urban Renewal, and Meath West Fine Gael T.D. Damien English, has welcomed the recent announcement by his Ministerial colleague Dr. Katherine Zappone of a €2m capital grant scheme for targeted staff-led youth projects and services across the country to fund small capital projects. The Scheme is to support purchase of equipment and to fund small scale projects including the upgrade of bathrooms and kitchens in youth services. Minister English stated: “I am delighted to welcome the launch of this Scheme. As in previous years, I am confident the grants will assist in improving the quality of the services to the benefit of young people involved. In particular, they will improve the physical facilities, many of which are in areas of disadvantage.” Eligible local services will be invited by their Education and Training Board (ETB) to apply for support. Minister English continued: “The provision of €2m in grants underscores th...

–          Up to 60% of total capital cost available, up to maximum grant of €40,000 –          Scheme remains open with funding of €1m available each year Thursday, 26th April 2018 The Minister for Housing and Urban Renewal, and Meath West Fine Gael T.D. Damien English, has encouraged groups in Meath and Westmeath to apply for the Community based CCTV grant-aid scheme established by the Justice Department to assist communities in the establishment of CCTV systems in their local areas. Under the scheme, community groups can apply for grant-aid of up to 60% of the total capital cost of a proposed system, up to a maximum grant of €40,000. Minister English stated: “I am very anxious to ensure that all interested groups, in both rural and urban areas of Meath West, take advantage of the availability of this grant-aid scheme. Full details of the grant aid package are available to download from the Justice Department website...

Saturday, 24th March 2018 Damien English T.D., the Minister for Housing and Urban Renewal, and the Fine Gael T.D. for Meath West has welcomed the announcement from his colleague the Minister for Education and Skills, Richard Bruton T.D. to sanction to expansion of the size of the student numbers at Trim Educate Together National School within its current school site owing to local demand. “While the current temporary site has a limited footprint, and there will be technical and planning issues to be dealt with by the school, this news from Minister Bruton is an important acknowledgement by the Department of Education and Skills of the huge work and commitment of the Principal,Staff, Board of Management and Parent’s For the pupils who wish to attend.  All of these different stakeholders have highlighted the need and demand for this school in Trim and its surrounding area” Minister English said. He continued: “As a local T.D. and Minister I supported and will continue...

CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY PLEASE Speech by Minister Damien English – Minister for Housing and Urban Development I wish to thank Deputies Connolly and Pringle for bringing this Private Members’ motion before the House today. While it is a motion that I cannot fully support, I think it is an opportune time to have a debate on this issue and I very much welcome this opportunity to listen to your views on this subject. In particular, I am anxious to hear your concerns regarding issues around traditional seaweed harvesting which is one of the central messages in the motion which we will debate today. At the outset of this debate, I would like to reiterate, as I have on a number of occasions in this House, my concern regarding issues relating to traditional seaweed harvesters. Indeed, it was for this specific reason that my Department placed “on hold” the applications we have received from various companies who sought to harvest seaweed until my Department has an opportunity to thoroughly re...

Minister for Housing and Urban Development Damien English TD, today 8 March, 2018 published the Sixth Annual Progress Report and seventh housing survey on tackling the issue of unfinished housing developments. This reveals a “91% reduction in the unfinished developments since 2010 from almost 3,000 to 256. 2017 saw the resolution of 165 developments”. Minister English was speaking at the launch of the report that includes the results from the 2017 National Housing Development Survey which tracks progress on unfinished housing developments since 2010. Among the key findings of this year’s survey are: 91% decrease in the number of unfinished developments over the last 7 years; 165 developments resolved in 2017; 256 unfinished developments remaining; 74% of local authority areas now contain less than 10 unfinished developments; and Four local authority areas have no occupied unfinished developments. Minister English indicated that his objective is to resolve all remaining unfini...

Monday, 5th March 2018 As the thaw well and truly sets in, and normal life begins to return for the majority of our people, it would be wrong not to reflect on the week gone by and thank those who did so much locally and nationally during the most raw demonstration of nature’s power in our generation. I want to acknowledge and thank the exceptional work of local emergency services like An Garda, Fire Services, Defence Forces and Reserve Defence Forces, Ambulance and Hospital staff last week. i also want to thank Meath and Westmeath County Councils – their staff, elected members and contractors, and all of those who kept our roads open when safe to do so, and who kept water and power supplies going or helped to restore them if lost. As a once in a generation event Storm Emma really pushed the resources of the State nationally and locally, and as a result so many local people, especially our local farming community stepped into the breach to our offer their expertise, ...

Monday, 26th February 2018 We are looking at very unusual weather events this coming week according to local Meath West Fine Gael T.D. and Minister for Housing and Urban Renewal Damien English.  He is urging local residents to prepare now, and to keep a close eye and ear on Local and National media, and Social Media. According to Met Eireann it is likely Tuesday evening will see bands of rain turning to snow with further accumulations for the rest of the week. Some of the snow showers will be of prolonged duration.  The forecasts are for extremely low temperatures this week.  High winds, up to gale force strength later in the week could cause blizzards. Make arrangements now “This will be a very significant weather event and people need to start making arrangements now to prepare for it. The advice to people is to start preparing their homes now, so have extra batteries, fuel and enough food in stock for the coming days. Please look in on older or more vul...

Monday, 26th February 2018 Beaufort College Navan is among the 80 secondary schools nationwide, to be part of the first phase implementation of Physical Education (PE) for Senior Cycle programmes and has been congratulated by local T.D. and Minister Damien English. The Minister for Housing and Urban Renewal, and Meath West Fine Gael T.D. welcomed the news saying: “I am delighted that Beaufort College Navan is included in the pilot scheme for schools to study Physical Education at Senior Cycle. This means Navan students will be among the first in the country to take the Leaving Cert exam in PE.” 80 schools will implement either the examinable Physical Education Leaving Certificate subject or the new Senior Cycle Physical Education Framework which is not for examination, or both. It will be rolled out to all schools from 2020 so all students in Meath will benefit from this before too long. “Students taking the new Leaving Certificate subject from September 2018 will sit t...

‘Project Ireland 2040’, launched today, is a key element in how we plan and build for the Meath/Westmeath and the Ireland of 2040 and beyond.  I am delighted that encouraging local jobs near to where people live, and providing vital infrastructure – both social and transport, are the key drivers of this new investment plan. As one of the Ministers responsible at the Department of Housing, Planning and Local Government for the National Planning Framework , which forms a crucial component of this plan, I welcome this jobs focussed and sustainable vision.  This marks a major re-balancing of previous failed Fianna Fail plans. Some of the highlights of the plan include: Rural Regeneration and Development Fund Locally, in Meath West I welcome specifically the Rural Regeneration and Development Fund. Investment projects in towns and villages with populations of less than 10,000 in Meath and Westmeath will be in a position to benefit from a new Rural Regeneration and De...

Minister of State with Special Responsibility for Housing and Urban Development, Damien English, T.D., today (8 February 2018) signed three new sets of exempted development regulations. The Planning Act provides that the Minister may make regulations to provide that certain classes of development be exempted from the requirement to obtain planning permission, thereby streamlining and creating efficiencies in the planning system but also reducing the regulatory and administrative burden on those undertaking such works. As required under the Planning Act, the regulations received a positive resolution from both Houses of the Oireachtas on 25 January 2018. The new regulations now provide for the following exemptions: development by Irish Water related to the provision of water services and the undertaking of normal day to day activities relating to same, such as maintenance type works, the change of use , and any related works, relating to the conversion of vacant commercial premis...

CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY PLEASE Introduction Good morning ladies and gentlemen. I am delighted to be here this morning to officially launch the new enhanced arrangements for long term leasing of private property, to provide additional social housing homes. This important initiative is just one of a large number of actions being taken to implement Rebuilding Ireland , the Government’s Action Plan for Housing and Homelessness . As I am sure you are aware, Rebuilding Ireland is the Government’s Plan to deal with the housing shortage in this country. Taken together, it comprises a €6 billion, multi-annual action plan, which seeks to increase the overall supply of new homes to 25,000 per annum by 2020; deliver an additional 50,000 social housing units in the period to 2021; and meet the housing needs of some 87,000 households through the Housing Assistance Payment (HAP) scheme. Strong progress on the implementation of this plan is already being made. On the social housing construction f...