asked the Minister for Local Government if his attention has been drawn to statements that the clawback on local authority tenants purchasing their houses in the Dublin area is not justified; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Dublin Tenant Purchase Houses.
11.
I am aware of statements made recently regarding the requirement that tenant purchasers should pay to the local authority a part of the profit made on the resale of their houses within a period of five years after purchase. My Department wrote recently to Dublin Corporation and I propose to issue a circular letter shortly to local authorities generally in this matter.
Would the Minister indicate to them that they do not have to insist on the clawback?
Deputy Moore must have a very short memory because in July, 1973, I made a new agreement with the tenants of local authority houses which allowed them to buy their houses in many cases at half what his party when in Government were charging.
That is not the question. Answer the question I asked.
Let me answer the question. Deputy Moore and another Fianna Fáil Deputy are members of the city commission which I have reinstated. They came to me with the deputation in the Custom House asking me to ensure that there would be a clawback for a period of five years.
Before we contradict the Minister on this—and I accuse him now of not stating the truth on this matter—we got the minutes of the meeting and contradicted him on it——
I sent them to you.
——and he still persists in saying it.
Order. This is leading to argument. It is not appropriate to Question Time.
I sent a copy of the minutes to Deputy Moore and his colleague for the purpose of pointing out that they were present when the deputation called on me to discuss, among other matters, the question of the clawback. The tenants' organisation also asked that there should be a clawback. The situation is that local authorities have the right to claim— and I think should—a clawback up to five years except where there are extenuating circumstances. Local authorities in many cases have had the opportunity of discussing this and considering it but they have not done so.
We have.
In addition to this, it is a question of people who were tenants of local authority houses throughout the country having to pay one-third of the entire price back under legislation introduced by the Deputy's party. He is now complaining because I put a perfectly reasonable provision into the section.
We do not want a sermon on it.
You do not like to hear too much about it and I do not blame you.
You got no claw-back there.
As one of the members who was not on the deputation I would ask the Minister who introduced the claw-back, now the crawlback, and I would say that the Miniister had no legal right——
A question, please, Deputy.
——to impose this deduction which we are discussing.
Of course I could revert to the pre-1973 position when the Fianna Fáil Government insisted on those who were selling their houses being able to buy them only at the cost of the replacement of these houses which was thousands of pounds more than it is at present. The two Deputies who have a question down today have a "hard neck" in trying to suggest that I am doing something wrong on these people when in fact they are being charged thousands of pounds less than they would be charged if Fianna Fáil were in power.
Will the Minister now assure the House that he will see that justice is done to local authority tenants and ensure that they can all purchase their houses at the same rate, the rate which the Minister considers is equitable and just? Will the Minister make sure that at this stage justice will be done to all local authority tenants?
It is interesting to hear Deputy Dowling saying that he considers that justice was not done to tenants who bought before 1973 because he is thereby admitting——
I am not admitting it.
——that he was a party to an unjust action. He knows well that a legal agreement was made which bound those tenants and the various local authorities prior to the 1973 agreement. If Deputy Dowling thought it was wrong, why was he not man enough to say so to his own Minister and suggest that he do something about it? Or, did he say so and was not listened to?
(Interruptions.)
A very brief supplementary from Deputy Dowling. I am passing on to another question.
Will the Minister now indicate whether local authority tenants will get a concession from the Minister as he indicated some time ago when he said that the matter was still under consideration?
All local authority tenants are able to purchase their houses under the 1973 Act if they wish to do so.
So you are not going to change it?
The Deputy does not know what he is talking about and so I cannot answer his question.
In view of the unsatisfactory nature of the Minister's reply I should like, with the permission of the Ceann Comhairle to raise this matter on the Adjournment.
The Chair will communicate with the Deputy.