Written Answers Nos. 174-191
174. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for Education and Skills if he will rectify a long-standing anomaly in relation to a PRSI overpayment and underpayment of pension contribution in respect of a person (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38782/16]
Amharc ar fhreagraI refer to the matter raised by the Deputy. Following consultations with the Department of Social Protection a protocol has been agreed to address the misclassification of PRSI and the underpayment of pension. The Department of Social Protection will refund the Employee PRSI for the statutory four year period and my Department will refund the employee PRSI for the relevant years prior to the four year statutory period (i.e. non statutory years).
Overpayments of PRSI for the entire period will be taken into account and balanced against the pension underpayment for the same period.
Officials in my Department are making arrangements to issue the relevant documentation regarding the misclassification of PRSI to the person referred to by the Deputy. When the required documentation has been received in my Department, the case will be processed as soon as possible. If any refund of PRSI is due when the balancing against the pension underpayment is completed, it will be issued to the person referenced.
175. Deputy Thomas Byrne asked the Minister for Education and Skills the funding schemes that are available to schools and preschools that need to acquire agility and sensory play equipment for students with special education needs. [38793/16]
Amharc ar fhreagraOn approval of a special class in a school my Department provides lump sum grant aid (€6,500 per class) towards the purchase of educational aids and equipment for special needs pupils enrolled in that class. My Department also provides lump sum grant aid (€7,000 per room) towards the purchase of equipment for schools with approval for a multi-sensory room. This funding is provided on a devolved basis and it is a matter for the school authority to decide on the items to be purchased.
Grant aid may also be made available to schools under the Loose Furniture & Equipment Scheme to fund the purchase of special items of furniture for special needs pupils. This scheme applies to all children who are diagnosed as having special needs.
Early childhood education and care services are delivered outside the formal education system by a diverse range of private, community and voluntary interests. Government investment in such provision is primarily implemented by the Department of Children and Youth Affairs.
176. Deputy John McGuinness asked the Minister for Education and Skills if he will consider the special circumstances in the case of a school (details supplied) and allocate a second teacher as one teacher is now in a class of 17 pupils spread over eight classes; and if he will expedite the matter. [38801/16]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe criteria used for the allocation of teaching posts for the 2016/2017 school year is set out in the Staffing Schedule (Circular 0007/2016) which is available on the Department website. The key factor for determining the level of staffing resources provided at individual school level is the staffing schedule for the relevant school year and pupil enrolments on the 30 September 2015. The staffing schedule also includes an appeals mechanism for schools to submit an appeal under certain criteria to an independent Appeals Board.
The school referred to by the Deputy submitted an application for consideration by the Appeals Board at its October meeting under the Small Schools criteria. The requirements set out in the staffing circular under this criteria state that the school must have the required enrolment on 30th September 2016 for the appointment of an additional teacher for September 2017 in order to be granted an appeal post for this school year. In the case of this school, an enrolment of 19 was required on 30th September 2016 to meet this criteria. As the school had an enrolment of 17 on that date, the Appeals Board determined that the appeal did not satisfy all of the published criteria as set out in Circular 0007/2016. The Appeals Board operates independently of the Department and its decision is final.
The measure announced in Budget 2017 provides a capacity for one teacher mainland schools to make an appeal to the Staffing Appeals Board for an extra teacher, where the single teacher has children across 6 or more class groups. Before a school can make an appeal to the Staffing Appeals Board it must have a minimum enrolment of 15 pupils. The detailed arrangements for this measure will be set out in the staffing schedule Circular for the 2017/18 school year i.e. the date this measure is effective from. The circular will be published early in 2017.
177. Deputy Kevin O'Keeffe asked the Minister for Education and Skills if he will ensure that consideration is given to students applying to SUSI for higher education grants where their family income has decreased significantly in 2016, and where the income of the previous year is normally taken into consideration (details supplied); and his views on whether changed financial circumstances in the current year must be reflected in the decisions. [38823/16]
Amharc ar fhreagraApplications for a maintenance grant are means tested based on the reckonable income from the previous tax year. However, article 32 of the Student Grant Scheme provides for a review of eligibility during the academic year, if there is a permanent change in circumstance in respect of certain criteria specified in the scheme. A drop in reckonable income which is likely to obtain for the duration of the approved course or for the foreseeable future, would be an example of a change in circumstance that can be reviewed under article 32.
If the students to which the Deputy refers, have experienced a reduction in reckonable income and can provide satisfactory documentation to confirm that the reduction in income is permanent, then they can request SUSI to review their applications under the change in circumstance article.
178. Deputy Jim O'Callaghan asked the Minister for Education and Skills when an application for additional accommodation in a school (details supplied) will be processed; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38882/16]
Amharc ar fhreagraI can confirm that the school referred to by the Deputy has submitted an application to my Department for additional accommodation. The application concerned is currently being assessed and a decision will be conveyed to the school authority in due course.
179. Deputy Danny Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government if he will extend the transitional agreements to allow pig and poultry farmers to spread their slurry and litter under the same terms as they are allowed to do up until the end of 2016 as the review of the nitrates regulations will not take place until 2017 (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38353/16]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe European Union (Good Agricultural Practice for Protection of Waters) Regulations 2014, as amended, give legal effect in Ireland to the Nitrates Directive and to our Nitrates Action Programme (NAP). The objective of the Regulations is to protect ground and surface waters, including drinking water sources, primarily through the management of livestock manures and other fertilisers. The current arrangement in Ireland’s Nitrates Action Programme, as negotiated with the European Commission, whereby the intensive sectors (pig, poultry and mushroom composts) are allowed to apply manures in excess of crop requirement is due to expire at the end of this year.
The arrangement was put in place in 2006 to assist the industry to comply with the regulations and has been moving the industry towards full compliance over the intervening 10 years. However, in order to allow time for all possible options to be explored during the forthcoming Nitrates Action Programme review, pig slurry imported in the closed period from 2017 and not applied by the year - end will be treated as inventory for application in the following year rather than being considered as applied in the year of importation.
My Department, in conjunction with the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, has commenced the process of review of the Nitrates Action Programme prior to formal engagement with the European Commission with a view to having a new Nitrates Action Programme in place by 2018 to run up to 2021. A request for a new nitrates derogation will be submitted to the Commission as part of the review process. A full consultation process will be carried out in early 2017 as part of this review and any issues raised by stakeholders will be considered as part of that process.
180. Deputy Clare Daly asked the Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government the amount of revenue that has been raised by commercial motor tax for each of the years 2012 to 2016 to date. [38501/16]
Amharc ar fhreagra182. Deputy Clare Daly asked the Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government the amount that has been lost in revenue by the introduction of cuts to commercial motor tax since budget 2015. [38503/16]
Amharc ar fhreagraI propose to take Questions Nos. 180 and 182 together.
Gross motor tax receipts from goods vehicles for 2012 through to 2015 and to the end of November 2016 are shown in the following table:
|
Year |
Gross receipts (€) |
|
2012 |
146.3m |
|
2013 |
163.8m |
|
2014 |
176.6m |
|
2015 |
173.2m |
|
2016 (to 30 November) |
128.0m |
The motor tax rates for goods vehicles announced in Budget 2016 took effect for vehicle licences taken out with a commencement on or after 1 January 2016. The reduction in receipts for the eleven month period to the end of November 2016 was €36m, compared to the same period in 2015 when receipts from goods vehicles were €164m.
181. Deputy Clare Daly asked the Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government the amount of revenue that has been raised by private motor tax for each of the years 2012 to 2016 to date. [38502/16]
Amharc ar fhreagraGross motor tax receipts from private vehicles for 2012 through to 2015 and to the end of November 2016 are shown in the following table:
|
Year |
Gross receipts (€) |
|
2012 |
873.2m |
|
2013 |
928.8m |
|
2014 |
952.6m |
|
2015 |
921.6m |
|
2016 (to 30 November) |
827.5m |
183. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government if Ministers and Deputies who sit on the Expert Commission on Domestic Public Water Services are paid extra for this; if so, the amount; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38532/16]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Expert Commission was made up of national and international experts whose experience covered areas such as environmental matters, law, economics, the customer perspective, the water sector and the regulatory system. The members of the Expert Commission on Domestic Public Water Services were:
- Mr Kevin Duffy, former Chairman of the Labour Court;
- Dr Xavier Leflaive of the Environmental Directorate of the OECD;
- Mr Peter Peacock, Chair of the Customer Forum for Water Scotland and former Scottish Minister;
- Mr Bill Emery, Chair of the Northern Ireland Utility Regulator;
- Mr Brendan O’Mahony, Chair of the National Federation of Group Water Schemes;
- Ms Sarah Hendry, academic lawyer specialising in water and environmental law, University of Dundee, Scotland;
- Dr. Andrew Kelly, founder and executive Director of EnvEcon; and
- Ms Gritta Nottelman, strategy consultant for Waternet, the only water company in the Netherlands that is dedicated to the entire water cycle.
There were no Ministers or TDs on the Expert Commission on Domestic Public Water Services.
184. Deputy Dessie Ellis asked the Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government if the funding for amalgamation works in senior citizen complexes will be continued for 2017 (details supplied); if there is a commitment to funding for particular amalgamation projects in the Dublin north west area which are expected to take place in the near future, namely, Glasanaon Court and Hampstead Court. [38315/16]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe amalgamation works in senior citizens complexes, known as the 2 into 1 programme, has continued over recent years and is regarded as very successful.
It is my intention to continue funding such works in 2017, subject to budgetary provision in the Revised Estimates Volume, due for publication later this month. I can advise the Deputy that proposals from Dublin City Council in respect of properties for amalgamation in Glasanaon Court and Hampstead Court are awaited.
185. Deputy Eoin Ó Broin asked the Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government if all pre-2011 RAS tenants are eligible to remain on their local authorities housing lists and have access to allocations from the primary housing list or choice based letting systems. [38362/16]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Housing Miscellaneous Provisions Act 2009 gives legislative recognition to rental accommodation availability agreements as a form of social housing support. Consequently, since 1 April 2011, RAS tenants are now considered to be in receipt of social housing support and should not generally remain on housing waiting lists for new applicants for social housing. In recognition that RAS tenants may have had reasonable expectations in regard to retaining access to traditional local authority rented accommodation, guidance issued by the Housing Agency in 2011 recommended that there should be a special transfer pathway for pre- 2011 RAS tenants to other forms of social housing support. The arrangement effectively allows these households to be designated as a ‘transfer’ applicant and to maintain their position for allocation as they had on the main waiting list.
Where a vacant property arises, it is a matter for individual housing authorities, in accordance with their allocation schemes, to determine whether the allocation is made to a household on the main waiting list, or to a transfer applicant, such as a household from RAS, and the method of such allocation. It is open to housing authorities to specify in their allocation schemes the proportion of allocations which will be reserved for transfers, and within this, how many may be reserved for households seeking transfers to other forms of social housing support.
186. Deputy Niamh Smyth asked the Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government if he will review the case of a person (details supplied); if there is a way in which he can intervene in this case; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38399/16]
Amharc ar fhreagraTo ensure effective targeting of limited resources, local authority house purchase loan finance continues to be available to first time buyers only. The Housing (Local Authority Loans) Regulations 2012 are kept under ongoing review. There are no plans, at this time, to alter the Regulations in this regard. The option currently available for non-first time buyers is to seek home loan facilities from one of the commercial lending institutions.
In relation to the specific case raised, I wish to advise that section 63(3) of the Local Government Act 2001 provides that, subject to law, a local authority is independent in the performance of its functions. Section 6 of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2009 specifically provides that my power as Minister to issue policy directions and guidelines to housing authorities in relation to their housing functions shall not be construed as enabling me to exercise any power or control in relation to any individual case with which a housing authority is or may be concerned.
187. Deputy Marc MacSharry asked the Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government the reason some local authorities still have health and safety officers on the old clerical pay grades, in particular, Dublin City Council which has nine health and safety officers on the old grades; when these health and safety officers will be moved to the grade commensurate with their title of health and safety officer in line with the provisions of his Department’s circular which states that new entrants should be on the appropriate pay scale of a senior executive officer (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38418/16]
Amharc ar fhreagraUnder section 159 of the Local Government Act 2001, each Chief Executive is responsible for staffing and organisation arrangements necessary for carrying out the functions of the local authorities for which he or she is responsible.
In early 2010, my Department sought to standardise arrangements for the Head of Health and Safety post across the local government sector. My Department issued circular LG(P) 05/10 in this regard which declared the qualifications for the post of Health and Safety Officer.
Confirmation was subsequently issued by the Local Government Management Agency (Local Government Management Services Board, as it was then) that the salary scale for the Head of Health and Safety post was that of Senior Executive Engineer. It should be noted that this applied only to the post of Head of Health and Safety. Other staff engaged in health and safety were to be graded according to the nature of their duties and the level of responsibility attending to their particular role and the application of their role and responsibilities reflecting the size and diversity of the activities being undertaken by an individual local authority.
I understand, in respect of Dublin City Council, that this matter is currently the subject of a conciliation hearing with the Workplace Relations Commission and is therefore being dealt with by the appropriate industrial relations mechanisms of the State.
188. Deputy Clare Daly asked the Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government further to Parliamentary Question No. 28 of 17 November 2016, if his attention has been drawn to the fact that the pyrite report specifically recommended prioritising properties with a damage condition rating of one with progression and two when combined with certain infill test results and not as is consistently stated, that the scheme provides for only properties with a damage condition rating of two and one with progression in exceptional circumstances; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38436/16]
Amharc ar fhreagraOne of the key recommendations of the Report of the Pyrite Panel (June 2012) was the development of a protocol which would facilitate the testing and categorisation of dwellings in order to establish if there is reactive pyrite in sub-floor hardcore material and whether it has caused pyritic heave. In response to this particular recommendation, I.S. 398-1:2013 - Reactive pyrite in sub-floor hardcore material – Part 1: Testing and Categorisation was published by the National Standards Authority of Ireland in January 2013. I.S. 398-1:2013 is a national standard which provides the means by which dwellings, which may be affected by pyritic heave, can be tested and categorised; it is this standard, not the Report of the Pyrite Panel, which introduced the concept of Building Condition Assessments and the means by which Damage Condition Ratings could be assigned.
In this regard, the definition of significant pyritic damage as set out in section 4 of the Pyrite Resolution Act 2013 is also consistent with the meaning provided in I.S. 398-1:2013 and with the traffic light system used by the Pyrite Panel as a means of prioritising pyrite remediation works in recognition of the expensive and intrusive nature of pyrite remediation and the unpredictability of pyritic heave. Dwellings with a Damage Condition Rating of 1 (with progression), which is consistent with pyritic heave and where the hardcore is susceptible to significant or limited expansion, fall within the meaning of significant pyritic damage as do those with a Damage Condition Rating of 2. This is equivalent to the “red category” used by the Pyrite Panel to signal that remediation works should be carried out.
The Act provides the statutory framework for the establishment of the Pyrite Resolution Board and for the making of a pyrite remediation scheme to be implemented by the Board with support from the Housing Agency. The pyrite remediation scheme is a scheme of “last resort” and is limited in its application and scope. In this context, section 14(4) of the Act explicitly provides that the Board may exclude dwellings with a damage condition rating of 1 (with progression). This ensures that, having regard to available resources, the focus of the scheme is on dwellings which are most severely damaged by pyritic heave.
189. Deputy Eoin Ó Broin asked the Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government if he sought legal opinion from the Attorney General on whether the strategic housing section of the Planning and Development (Housing) and Residential Tenancies Bill 2016 complies with Ireland's EU and international obligations under the Aarhus Convention; and if so, if he will publish this advice. [38444/16]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs with all legislation, my Department has worked in conjunction with the Office of the Attorney General in the preparation and drafting of the Planning and Development (Housing) and Residential Tenancies Bill 2016.
In this regard, my Department has obtained legal advice from the Attorney General to that effect that the proposed arrangements relating to the strategic housing development provisions are compliant with the requirements of the UNECE Convention on Access to Information, Public Participation in Decision-making and Access to Justice in Environmental Matters, commonly referred to as the Aarhus Convention, with Directive 2003/35/EC on Public Participation and Access to Justice in Certain Environmental Matters and Directive 2011/92/EU on the assessment of the effects of certain public and private projects on the environment, commonly referred to as the EIA Directive.
As the Deputy will appreciate, under the terms of the Freedom of Information Act 2014, legal advice obtained by Government Departments is not released or published as it is legally privileged.
190. Deputy Pearse Doherty asked the Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government the treatment of pension related deductions from local authority staff with regard to the funding of local authorities; the changes that have taken place in this treatment; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38494/16]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest Act 2009 (FEMPI) introduced the pension related deduction (PRD) for public servants. Local authorities deduct PRD from the salaries of their employees and to date have retained the amounts collected as part of their income, using this income to help fund the services they provide. This approach was adopted by agreement in the interests of administrative efficiency and to avoid creating a circular flow of funds to and from the Exchequer.
The Lansdowne Road Agreement introduced changes to the PRD exemption thresholds, resulting in a reduction in PRD income being retained by local authorities and, therefore, impacting the overall level of funding available to the local government sector. It is expected that €18.6m in dedicated funding will be paid to the local government sector in 2016 as a once-off measure to mitigate the impact of reduced PRD income.
For 2017 onwards, an adjustment is being made to the Local Property Tax (LPT) baseline of each local authority, which will now include an additional amount equivalent to the PRD income retained by local authorities in 2014. The inclusion of PRD in increased LPT funding baselines helps protects local authority income in the future. It means that, from 2017 onwards, local authorities will no longer retain PRD locally, thus reversing the previous approach. I am satisfied that this decision reduces the risk to local government funding that would otherwise arise from declining PRD income.
191. Deputy Dessie Ellis asked the Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government if the working group established to deliver a new urban renewal scheme to regenerate central urban areas has considered a site (details supplied) which is now under a CPO for inclusion in any further renewal scheme. [38496/16]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs outlined in the reply to Question No. 77 of 17 November 2016, the Urban Renewal Working Group has been established to identify a series of specific actions as early as possible, aimed at facilitating the regeneration of our urban centres, many of which have been adversely impacted by our recent economic difficulties. It is intended that the new measures will complement the existing regeneration programme under my own Department’s Social Housing Capital Programme, as well as other social regeneration initiatives already under way.
The Working Group will seek to deliver a new urban renewal scheme to regenerate central urban areas in our cities and towns, which will address urban decay and associated issues relating to social housing, poverty, segregation, unemployment, crime, anti-social behaviour, etc. The Group’s deliberations are continuing, but proposals for specific regeneration measures have yet to be developed.
With regard to the site in question, I understand that Dublin City Council acquired the leasehold interest in the Ballymun Shopping Centre in 2014, and a Compulsory Purchase Order was made to acquire the interest in several units in the Centre. The Order was lodged with An Bord Pleanála who advised the Council on 23rd November 2016 that it could proceed to confirm the CPO. I gather that the notice of that confirmation will be advertised in a national paper in the coming weeks.
I understand the purpose of the CPO is for the renewal and regeneration of Ballymun in line with its designation as a key district centre in the Dublin City Development Plan 2011-2017. However, as the Deputy will be aware, as Minister, I am specifically precluded under section 30 of the Planning and Development Act 2000, as amended, from exercising any power or control in relation to any particular planning case with which a planning authority, including An Bord Pleanála, is or may be concerned. The handling of the planning application is a matter for the relevant planning authority, Dublin City County Council in this instance, and I have no function or remit in this regard.
