asked the Minister for the Environment if he will alter the regulations whereby the State grant of £2,000 for first time house purchasers could be paid with the consent of the individual assignee in the form of a block grant to a housing co-operative which is properly constituted and recognised by the local authority and by his Department for the purposes of housing construction; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Housing Grant Regulations.
5.
Eligibility for the £2,000 grant is confined to persons who are first time house purchasers and who comply with the statutory conditions of the scheme. It is open to any grant recipient to assign or authorise payment of their grant to a third party including a housing co-operative. I have no proposals to alter these arrangements.
The Minister will be familiar with the background to the question as a result of my contribution to the Second Stage debate on the Housing Bill. Will the Minister agree that the problem remains, that while individuals can assign in a limited fashion the block payment of four or five grants they are not facilitated in the way I am suggesting under the regulations?
That is correct.
Is the Minister sympathetic to the dilemma in which housing co-ops find themselves in regard to their cash-flow? If so, does he have any intention to add to the regulations the proposal I have outlined?
The Deputy made a case about this on Second Stage and I have not had time to consider his views since. I know what he is getting at, but he will understand that, under existing regulations attached to the £2,000 new house grant, the entitlement is dependent on the applicant complying with the conditions of the scheme. Applicants can assign such grants to banks, building societies, credit unions, contractors and so on, but I have not considered it appropriate to alter the regulations in the way suggested by the Deputy.