asked the Minister for Local Government if he is prepared to give a full cost grant to applicants for houses who cannot provide a house for themselves.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Housing Grants and Loans.
62.
The financial aids available for the purchase or building of new houses include in addition to long-term loans, State and supplementary grants, remission of rates and exemption from stamp duty. Generally, these non-repayable aids have a total value, in cases where the special rate of grant provided for in section 16 of the Housing Act, 1966 applies, of about £1,400 and in other cases of about £1,250. Persons who are not able to provide houses for themselves even with these aids are eligible for local authority housing for which the rents payable are related to income and family circumstances. I do not consider that the giving of private housing grants equal to the full cost of a house could be justified on financial or other grounds.
63.
asked the Minister for Local Government if he has any proposals to increase the rate of grant available towards the reconstruction and improvement of existing houses; when the present level of grants was set; and if the cost of reconstruction works has increased since then and, is so, by how much.
64.
asked the Minister for Local Government if, in view of the marked increase in costs, he will review housing, water and sewerage grants.
With your permission, a Cheann Comhairle, I propose to take Questions Nos. 63 and 64 together.
With regard to an increase in the rate of reconstruction grants I would refer the Deputy to my replies to Question No. 120 of 16th December, 1971, and Question No. 57 of 18th November, 1971.
The present level of reconstruction grants become operative in respect of reconstruction commenced on or after 30th June, 1958. It is estimated that the cost of building materials and labour have increased by about 90 per cent since 1958.
The level of new house grants was fully considered in conjunction with the Housing Act, 1970, which became law on 5th August, 1970. I do not propose a further review of these grants at this stage.
I issued statements on 21st January, 1972, and 4th February, 1972, that the Government had agreed to increase the maximum grant for group water supply schemes from £60 per house to £100 per house. No further review of the water and sewerage grants is contemplated at present.
The Minister has stated that, in his opinion and in the opinion of his Department costs of housebuilding and reconstruction have increased by 90 per cent since 1958——
Building materials and labour.
——and building materials. It could be assumed, will the Minister not agree, that costs have increased by 300 per cent, in some cases, since 1968? If that is so, is it not about time that the new house grants and reconstruction grants were reviewed? In the case of new house grants the figure is still £325. Exceptions in certain cases bring the grants up to £450 Will he not agree that a reconstruction grant of £140 in 1958 is completely out of place in 1972?
Hear, hear.
Surely there is an unanswerable case for reviewing all housing grants in view of the steep increase in costs. Grants for water and sewerage should also be increased.
Hear, hear.
The reconstruction grants are under review at the moment.
In view of the fact that the subvention from the State in respect of local authority houses is the lowest in these islands on a percentage basis, if the Minister will not give an increased amount of money for local authority houses, will he consider giving increased grants for the other type of houses?
Is the Minister aware that, as a result of his failure to raise the reconstruction grant level in line with the increased cost of building, the number of houses being reconstructed per year has been halved over the past decade? They were reconstructing about 13,000 houses per annum at the beginning of this decade, and they are now down to about 7,000 houses per annum. This is a direct result of the Minister's failure to adjust the grants.
The Deputy cannot prove that. We were one of the first in Europe to introduce reconstruction grants and we have led the field in this aspect of housing. Quite a substantial number of houses have been reconstructed due to these grants.
A falling number.
It is not correct to imply that because the number has dropped in recent years that is related to the size of the grant. It could also be caused by the fact that such a large number of houses which had been in need of reconstruction have, in fact, already been improved by way of these grants. The percentage of houses in need of reconstruction in this country is probably the lowest in Europe and certainly the lowest in these islands.
Would the Minister not agree that houses deteriorate at a uniform rate and that therefore they should be reconstructed at a uniform rate and, if there is a drop in the rate of reconstruction, there is reason to suspect——
The two are not necessarily related. I told the House that we are keeping the level of these grants under review.
Would the Minister not agree that if £240 was a reasonable grant when it was introduced in 1958, having regard to the costs which obtained then, it is quite unreasonable at present since the average reconstruction cost is more than £1,000? Will the Minister say here in the Dáil today whether he intends to review the reconstruction grants in a month or in two months and the new house grants also? People are becoming very anxious and some have deferred applying for grants pending these increases.
The Deputy may not make an argument.
Has the Minister any further comments to make?
I have no further comments to add to what I have said already.
65.
asked the Minister for Local Government if he will consider raising the income limit for local authority housing loans from the present figure of £1,500 per annum.
The qualifying income limit for local authority house-purchase loans was increased last year from £1,200 to £1,500 a year for houses commenced on or after 1st March, 1971. Local authorities are free to advance house purchase loans without reference to the income limit to tenants of local authority houses who surrender their tenancies on getting such loans or to borrowers in areas where commercial agencies do not normally operate provided the loans are financed from sources other than the Local Loans Fund.
Since the limit was increased to its present level of £1,500 a year, the value of unpaid applications held by local authorities has increased from £11.8 million at 31st March, 1971, to £15.5 million at 31st December, 1971. I am satisfied, therefore, that the scheme is achieving its primary objective of helping people of modest means to buy their own houses but I am nonetheless keeping the income limit under constant review in the light of trends in incomes generally and other relevant factors.