Vol. 221 No. 14
asked the Minister for Local Government the cause of the delay in appointing contractors for the erection of 46 specific instance cottages in County Donegal which have been tendered for and marked under consideration by the Donegal County Council.
16.
asked the Minister for Local Government what is the cause of the delay in the sanctioning of loans applied for by Donegal County Council in respect of (a) four cottages to be erected at Moness, (b) eight cottages to be erected at Muff, and (c) cottages to be erected at Cockhill; if he is aware that the contract documents have been prepared and that none of the schemes can be advertised until loans have been sanctioned by his Department; and if he will state the total amount involved.
17.
asked the Minister for Local Government the cause of the delay in advertising forty-eight specific instance cottages for tender for erection by Donegal County Council.
With your permission, a Leas-Cheann Comhairle, I propose to take Questions Nos. 15, 16 and 17 together. The various loan and tender proposals for local authority housing projects before my Department from Donegal County Council have been under consideration in conjunction with the housing capital allocations for the coming financial year. The council have now been notified of these allocations and they have been asked to decide the order of priority of the works to be carried out within the allocation. As soon as the council's reply is received, a decision will be given on the appropriate loan or tender proposals before my Department.
The prior approval of my Department is not normally required to the issue of advertisements for tenders. I understand that in some cases the council did not invite tenders, pending a decision in regard to the capital allocation for 1966-67. The position in regard to these cases will be reviewed by them in the light of their decisions in regard to the use of the allocations notified to them.
How does the Minister reconcile this reply with his indication recently that more houses would be built this year than in previous years? He now indicates that there has been an allocation of capital to each local authority.
This relates to Donegal.
Arising out of the Minister's reply——
Now we have Donegal.
——would the Minister give the House an assurance that the manager of the Donegal County Council is permitted to advertise houses for tender, without having first to await instructions. The manager has publicly stated that he will not do so until he is sure the loan will be forthcoming. In his reply, the Minister stated he had asked the council for a list of priorities. I now ask the Minister is he aware that in the housing report submitted to each member of the local authority, 46 houses have been appearing under the heading "under consideration and awaiting tenders" during the past six months? Will the Minister not admit the reason is that he is refusing sanction and Donegal County Council cannot get on with the work?
I have already stated in my reply that the allocations for the year have now been notified to each local authority. This has been done in the past couple of days. This circular went to each local authority. Where there are tenders of a value greater than the amount of the allocation of money, as notified, I have decided that instead of my Department making any priority listing of what we feel should be done, it would be fairer to the councils to send the schemes back to them and ask them to indicate their priorities. On receipt of the indication of their priorities, sanction will be forthcoming forthwith from my Department up to the amount of the allocation as notified.
In relation to Question No. 15, 46 cottages have been tendered for and contractors have been appointed or are about to be appointed. Surely the Minister will agree that the reason for the delay in the building of this group of houses is that some time in October, 1965, the Donegal County Council applied to the Department for sanction to a loan but have not yet received that sanction. To whom does the buck pass now?
Could the Minister say if this affects every local authority?
The question does not arise. This relates to a specific county.
It applies generally.
The squeeze has become a crunch.
More houses will be built this year than last year.
Would the Minister care to reply to my last supplementary?
I have called Question No. 18.
I have asked a supplementary——
The Deputy has asked at least six supplementaries.
It is not fair not to allow the Minister to reply.
18.
asked the Minister for Local Government the cause of the delay in giving keys to tenants allocated to Raphoe new housing scheme, County Donegal.
I am not aware of any delay in this matter. I understand that the tenancies of the houses were allocated in anticipation of the completion, in the near future, of work on the scheme.
The tenants have been appointed to these houses two and, perhaps, three months ago. Is it not a very unusual thing for houses to be completed and for the contractor to be sending an odd workman occasionally to attend to some very minor detail, while tenants await the keys of the cottages? To contradict rumours circulating in the area, would the Minister make a comprehensive statement in this regard?
The Comprehensive statement is that the houses are not yet finished.
They are finished. I can see them from my bedroom window. I know more about them than the Minister. I know the Money is finished.
In so far as the procedure of appointing tenants so much in advance of the completion of the houses is concerned, that is something over which I have no control. It is a matter for the council.
The reason is that the money is done.
The houses are not finished and they are not, therefore, being handed over.
