Access to ATM cash ‘vitally important’ for rural communities says Michael Fitzmaurice T.D. and Senator Victor Boyhan
New legislation that aims to provide a guarantee of access to ATMs and cash services in rural communities is “long overdue” according to the Independent Ireland TD, Michael Fitzmaurice.
The Finance (Provision of Access to Cash Infrastructure) Bill 2024 has passed its final legislative stage in the Dáil and will now be sent to the Seanad.
Independent Senator Victor Boyhan also welcomed the passage of the bill which he believes has brought a “renewed focus on the importance of cash” for small personal and business transactions and will ensure people can access their own cash particularly for those living in rural communities.
“Not everybody wants or has access to online banking, many people prefer to draw out their cash from a local ATM and that’s fair enough and should be supported,” the senator said.
He said the bill “places certain obligations on the three main retail banks around the number of ATMs per 100,000 people”.
Senator Boyhan said that he would expect the banks to work collaboratively with each other and with retail operators who may have available space to ensure an equal distribution of ATM across the country.
“Banks can also join forces to provide shared access from the same ATM at each location.
“I look forward to the bill coming before Seanad Eireann where it will have my full support,” he added.
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Government wants local authorities to rezone a very significant additional amount of land for housing…
The Cabinet has approved the revised National Planning Framework (NPF), with Minister for Housing James Browne saying it will now be progressed through the Dáil and Seanad "in the coming weeks". The Minister said that once that process has been completed, "I will then give a direction to all the local authorities to open up their county development plans and to rezone a very significant additional amount of land so that land is available for builders to build the homes that people need across the country". The Government expects that rezoning process to "all be done by Christmas", he said, adding: "It can be done. It'll be up to the local authorities to move with speed, but it can be done." The revised NPF, which has been delayed for several months, includes targets of 50,000 new homes to be built each year to 2040.
Media Sources: RTE.ie Irish Examiner Irish Times Online TheJournal.ie Gov.ie
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Minister asked to defend ‘real progress’ remark while thousands await ACRES - Irish Examiner
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CLÁR 2005 applications for community funding now open
The budget for this year’s programme has increased to €11 million funding will be provided across three measures:
- Development of community facilities and amenities, including sports facilities, youth clubs, teenage spaces, playgrounds, sensory gardens, and walking tracks
- Support for community transport such as cancer care support, community first responders, Meals on Wheels vehicles, or for persons with reduced mobility
- Tailored funding for offshore island communities under the specific ‘Our Living Islands’ measure.
The level of funding for community facilities and amenities has increased from €50,000 to €65,000.
Local authorities can apply for funding of up to €100,000 for two larger-scale projects. Please talk to your Council Chief Executive about this option.
Areas targeted under the CLÁR Programme are parts of counties: Carlow; Cavan; Clare; Cork; Donegal; Galway; Kerry; Kilkenny; Laois; Limerick; Longford; Louth; Mayo; Meath; Monaghan; Offaly; Roscommon; Sligo; Tipperary; Waterford; Westmeath; Wicklow; and all of Co. Leitrim.
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The need for the Minister for Transport to make a statement on his proposal to establish a Transport and Security Force and are City and Councillors being considered, to be included in the Public Transport Safety Working Group.
Commencement Matter
2nd April 2025
Thank you, Cathaoirleach, and Senator Boyhan for your question. I welcome the opportunity to discuss this important topic with members of the House today, which I am taking on behalf of the Minister for Transport.
From the outset, I would like to clarify that the Minister for Transport has responsibility for policy and overall funding in relation to public transport, but neither the Minister nor his officials are involved in the day-to-day operation of public transport services. That being said, we are all aware that antisocial behaviour is a broad societal issue to which public transport is unfortunately not immune.
To help tackle this critical issue, there is a strong commitment under the Programme for Government to create a Transport Security Force under the National Transport Authority (NTA), which would operate and have similar powers to Airport Police and Customs Officers. I want to reassure the House that this is a priority for Government and work has already commenced in the Department of Transport around identifying the necessary legislative proposals to progress this matter.
While the last few years have seen significant progress on investment in safety measures, antisocial behaviour remains a serious issue, and it is those who regularly use and work within our public transport network who are most directly impacted by any safety or security incidents on the network. The establishment of the Transport Security Force will play a central role in helping to tackle this important issue.
A great deal of work on tackling the issue of antisocial behaviour on public transport has already commenced, including the establishment of the Public Transport Safety Working Group to which the Deputy refers.
The Public Transport Safety Working Group was established in 2024 to identify measures to improve passenger and staff safety across the public transport network, and includes representatives from across the public transport sector, operating companies, unions, the National Transport Authority, An Garda Síochána, the Department of Justice, and passenger representative groups.
The main focus of the Group is the creation of a public transport safety charter, and progressing the NTA safety and security implementation plan.
I understand that it is intended that the members of the Public Transport Safety Working Group will help to inform policymakers on ways to reduce the number of antisocial behaviour incidents that we see happening on our public transport network.
The Department of Transport is continuing to work closely with industry stakeholders to identify measures to improve passenger safety across the public transport network and in this regard the Public Transport Safety Working Group will play an important role in the planning and implementation of the Government commitment to create a Transport Security Force. However, the Department will also be engaging with a number of other key stakeholders as this work progresses.
As outlined in the Programme for Government, it is envisaged that the Transport Security Force would operate in a similar manner and have similar powers to Airport Police and Customs Officers.
The continued work of the NTA and each of the public transport operators to promote safety and security for passengers and staff, maintaining strong links with An Garda Síochána, is vital to helping tackle this important issue.
I'm sure we can all agree that even one incident of antisocial behaviour is too many. Therefore, the Government, the Department of Transport, and all stakeholders will continue to develop new policies and mechanisms to increase safety, and decrease incidences of antisocial behaviour across the public transport network.
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Committed to working closely with the National Youth Council of Ireland
The National Youth Council of Ireland (NYCI) is the representative body for voluntary youth organisations in Ireland. Our member organisations work with, and for, up to 380,000 young people in every community in Ireland, with the support of 40,000 volunteers and 1,400 paid staff.
The work of NYCI is based on principles of equality, social justice and equal participation for all. In achieving these aims, the NYCI seeks the emergence of a society in which young people are valued and supported to achieve their full potential.
“I am fully committed to collaborating with the National Youth Council of Ireland to advance the interests and well-being of young people across Ireland to ensure that the needs, interests, and perspectives of young people are at the heart of policy-making.
“Their mission is to represent the collective voice of the youth work sector and build capacity, leadership, and influence to deliver better outcomes for young people, I want to play my part as an advocate with a parliamentary seat in Seanad Eireann to advance the vision of National Youth Council of Ireland”. – Senator Victor Boyhan
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Minister for Housing confirms €265m additional funding for housing acquisition.
Minister for Housing has approved an additional €265m capital funding for the Second-Hand Acquisitions Programme in 2025. The funding is to be targeted at those in emergency accommodation exiting to permanent housing and homelessness. Local Authorities will be asked to target priority needs like families, children, disabled individuals and older people.
Gov.ie
NOAC ‘Good Practice in Local Government’ seminar showcases outstanding work of local authorities…
The National Oversight and Audit Commission (NOAC) held its seventh annual ‘Good Practice in Local Government’ seminar on 13 February 2025.
Six local authorities presented projects from their areas as leading examples of good practice.
NOAC is the independent body providing oversight of the local government sector. NOAC hosted this seminar in collaboration with the Local Government Management Agency and the County and City Management Association.
The six projects featured include:
Clare County Council |
The use of technology to deliver effective tree management, cost savings and ensure public safety. |
Cork County Council |
Reinvigorating arts involvement and participation for Cruinniú na nÓg by enabling children, the end user, to programme it. |
Donegal County Council |
Applying new business practices and processes to replace manual processes, improve efficiencies and reduce costs under the Local Enterprise Office (LEO). |
Kildare County Council |
Development of an application to ensure accurate and timely payment of commercial rates. |
Meath County Council |
Livestreaming local elections to give real-time information, to be the primary source of information and to show citizens how local elections work. |
Dublin City Council |
Creating social housing by converting vacant office buildings into apartments, using an ‘Adaptive Reuse’ process/approach. |
The seminar was attended by Chief Executives and senior officials from the local authorities within Ireland, officials from the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, representatives of elected members and the regional assemblies, as well as a variety of other stakeholders in the local government sector.
A recording of all presentations will be uploaded to the NOAC website, www.noac.ie
For further information regarding the individual projects or the event, please contact
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The European Commission formally proposed that the EU seek to negotiate a youth mobility scheme with the UK in April 2024.
The Commission has proposed to the EU Council to open negotiations with the United Kingdom on an agreement to facilitate youth mobility. Such an agreement would make it easier for young EU and UK citizens to study, work and live in the UK and the EU, respectively.
The withdrawal of the UK from the EU has resulted in decreased mobility between the EU and the UK. This situation has particularly affected the opportunities for young people who want to experience life on the other side of the Channel and to benefit from youth, cultural, educational, research and training exchanges.
The proposal seeks to address in an innovative way the main barriers to mobility for young people experienced today and create a right for young people to travel from the EU to the UK and vice-versa more easily and for a longer period of time, subject to conditions.
The European Commission proposal was rejected by the then Conservative government. Sunak rejected the offer of youth mobility scheme between EU and UK.
UK Labour then in opposition also turned down European Commission’s proposal, which would have allowed young Britons to live, study and work in the EU.
UK Labour said that youth mobility schemes were “synonymous with freedom of movement”.
The now Labour government has reiterated that it has no plans for a youth mobility scheme with the EU and will not return to UK-EU freedom of movement.
Reports at the end of 2024 indicated that the EU was seeking to refine the proposal as a youth experience scheme or a cultural enrichment programme.
In evidence to the House of Lords European Affairs Committee in December 2024,(just 3 months ago) the Minister for EU Relations Nick Thomas–Symonds said that it was up to the EU to finalise any proposals it wanted to place on the table, and that the UK’s response would depend precisely on what was meant by youth mobility.
Progress will require a mindset that focuses on how to improve relationships and not on refighting old Brexit battles.
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Senator Calls on Government to Protect Journalists
Independent Senator Victor Boyhan called on the government to support journalists and local media by helping to protect revenue streams and reforming Irish defamation law.
NewsBrands Ireland and Local Ireland, the representative bodies for Ireland’s national and local news publishers, gave a special briefing entitled Journalism Matters, which focused on the challenges facing news publishers, including the impact of big tech and existing libel laws in Ireland.
Senator Boyhan spoke about the concerns the representative bodies highlighted about government advertising campaigns saying, “They monitor advertising in the national press, and they monitor advertising in the regionals, the provincials, and the locals…They could clearly demonstrate that the European Electoral Boundaries Commission advertisements and the general election constituency boundaries review advertisements did not feature in any of these local papers.”
The Senator discussed the concerns of news publishers and asked the Seanad to debate the concerns around libel laws saying, “A fair share for government advertising. A fair share of government supports. A fair deal with the big tech platforms. And finally, a fair regime for defamation. Now, I might have a different view on defamation than they might have, but I would ask that we schedule time to discuss the report on the pre-legislative scrutiny of the general scheme for the Defamation (Amendment) Bill.”
He concluded his speech by saying, “I'm supportive, in general, of the asks of these two organisations. I believe in supporting the national press, and the local, and the provincial, and the regional press.”
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2023 marked a milestone year for Co-operative Housing Ireland (CHI) as they celebrated 50 years in operation and delivered a record 849 new homes.
The Annual Review and Outlook for Agriculture, Food and the Marine 2024 provides up-to-date information and statistical analysis from a variety of sources, to give detailed overview of Ireland’s agri-food and an outlook for the future. The agri-food sector is Ireland oldest and largest indigenous exporting sector, extends across the country and reaches over 180 countries worldwide. The data and information included in this Annual Review and Outlook is intended as a resource to assist policy analysis over the next year.
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Timber in Construction Academic Survey – Core Research Final Report October 2024