Written Answers Nos. 418-438
418. Deputy Patrick Nulty asked the Minister for the Environment; Community and Local Government if he intends to bring forward legislation to allow tenants in voluntary housing associations to be able to avail of tenant purchase as is the case with local authority housing. [42856/12]
View answerThere is no provision at present in the voluntary housing schemes for the purchase of individual houses by tenants. My Department is currently in consultation with the approved housing body sector regarding the development of an enabling regulatory framework to support the expanded role for the sector as envisaged in the Government’s 2011 Housing Policy Statement. I expect that this framework will provide support and assurance both to the sector itself and to its external partners and will underline its status as a viable and attractive investment opportunity for financial institutions.
In conjunction with the development of this framework, my Department will examine a range of issues around the long-term financing of the sector. How best to use the equity accrued in approved housing body housing stock to, for instance, leverage additional new supply will be considered and the sale of existing stock to tenants is one of a range of options in this regard.
419. Deputy Nicky McFadden asked the Minister for the Environment; Community and Local Government if he will provide an update on the matter of architectural technologists in relation to the Building Control Act; if architectural technologists (details supplied) will be permitted to certify building works without registering as architects or building surveyors; if he will meet with members of the Chartered Institute of Architectural Technologists; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [42861/12]
View answerFollowing a recent public consultation process I am currently finalising the Building Control (Amendment) Regulations 2012 for signature into law. The new regulations will provide , among other things, for the introduction of mandatory certificates of compliance by builders and designers of buildings confirming that the statutory requirements of the Building Regulations have been met in relation to the building concerned. In addition a building owner will be required to assign a registered professional to inspect the work during construction and also to certify that the completed building is in compliance with the requirements of the Building Regulations.
The roles of lead designer and assigned certifier may only be undertaken by competent persons who are included on the registers of Architects or Building Surveyors as provided for under the Building Control Act 2007 or who are Chartered Engineers. Depending on their own personal circumstances, it may be open to members of the Chartered Institute of Architectural Technologists (CIAT) to seek inclusion on one or other of the registers of Architects or Building Surveyors. My Department has had discussions with the executive of CIAT in relation to this matter and is willing to meet further with the Institute if required.
420. Deputy Simon Harris asked the Minister for the Environment; Community and Local Government if he will outline in tabular form the commitments in the Programme for Government pertaining to his ministerial portfolio; the current status of these commitments in terms of implementation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [42878/12]
View answerIn accordance with the Public Service Management Act 1997, my Department has published a Statement of Strategy 2011-2014, which is available on the Department’s website www.environ.ie.
A full list of Programme for Government commitments for which my Department has lead responsibility is included as an Appendix to the Statement of Strategy. The Strategy is fully aligned with the Government for National Recovery Programme 2011-2016 and the commitments contained in the EU/IMF Programme of Financial Support. By its nature, the Statement is a high level document setting out how the Department will, over the next three years, implement the Government’s high level policy objectives and Programme for Government commitments, and progress its longer-term policy goals, as set out in the relevant National Strategies.
The Department reported on progress in implementing its Strategy, including Programme for Government commitments, in its 2011 Annual Report, also available on www.environ.ie.
In addition, an integrated annual progress report, under the Public Sector (Croke Park) Agreement 2010-2014 for my Department and its agencies was published on my Department’s website in May 2012 and it reports progress on certain Programme for Government commitments.
My Department also contributes to central reporting on specific Programme for Government commitments. For example, my Department reported progress on implementing Programme for Government commitments in the Programme for Government: Annual Report 2012, Year 1: Stability, available on www.taoiseach.gov.ie.
In March 2013, the Government intends to publish its second Annual Report on progress in implementing the Programme for Government and my Department will contribute to this Report.
421. Deputy John McGuinness asked the Minister for the Environment; Community and Local Government the position regarding an application for funding from Kilkenny County Council for the purpose of refurbishment work at a resource centre (details supplied) in County Kilkenny; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [42945/12]
View answerAn application for grant support under the Social Housing Investment Programme (SHIP) for refurbishment works at Newpark Close, Kilkenny was received in my Department from Kilkenny County Council . However, due to the high level of commitments under the housing programme for 2012 , it has not been possible to approve the project at this time.
Under the SHIP, local authorities are allocated funding each year in respect of a range of measures to improve the standard and overall quality of their social housing stock, including the regeneration of large social housing estates and flat complexes, estate-wide remedial works schemes, funding for extensions and adaptations to meet the needs of tenants with a disability etc. Funding is also provided by my Department for a programme of works aimed at improving the overall standard and energy efficiency of the housing stock. Earlier in 2012 I allocated a total of €338,360 to Kilkenny County Council for spending on remedial and retrofitting works on a county-at-large basis. It is a matter for the Council to determine the nature and scale of the refurbishment works to be undertaken.
422. Deputy John McGuinness asked the Minister for the Environment; Community and Local Government if he will approve an application from Kilkenny County Council for funding to provide modern and appropriate accommodation at an area (details supplied) in County Kilkenny; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [42947/12]
View answerIn accordance with the provisions of the Housing (Traveller Accommodation) Act, 1998, responsibility for the assessment of the accommodation needs of Travellers and the preparation, adoption and implementation of multi-annual Traveller Accommodation Programmes, designed to meet the accommodation needs of Travellers, rests with individual housing authorities. My Department’s role is to ensure that there is an adequate legislative and financial system in place to assist the authorities in providing such accommodation.
My Department issued approval in principle to Kilkenny County Council in July 2011 for the development of a Group Housing Scheme at St. Catherine’s Wetlands which will provide for the permanent redevelopment of this site. This proposal is the subject of correspondence between my Department and the Council and clarification on a number of outstanding issues is awaited from the Council. Funding for the construction of the scheme will be considered as soon as these issues have been addressed .
My Department has not received a proposal from Kilkenny County Council for temporary improvement works pending the permanent redevelopment of the site.
423. Deputy Dessie Ellis asked the Minister for the Environment; Community and Local Government the number of houses in the approved housing body sector; if the Housing Finance Agency provides mortgages before the balance sheet security of that sector is exhausted; and if lower than his expounds, the way that he will make up the shortfall. [42953/12]
View answer424. Deputy Dessie Ellis asked the Minister for the Environment; Community and Local Government the risk responses that the Housing Finance Agency has prepared to secure the approved housing body sector against losses and their consequent failure to meet the stringent requirements of the Charities Act. [42954/12]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 423 and 424 together.
Some 700 voluntary and co-operative bodies have been granted Approved Housing Body status by my Department. Of these, more than 400 bodies have completed one or more housing projects yielding a total in excess of 25,700 housing units to date.
Under section 17 of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2002, the Housing Finance Agency is empowered to lend directly to approved housing bodies. This new direct lending mechanism – which I anticipate will be a key source of social housing delivery in the years ahead – became operational in 2011. It comprises a two-stage process. Bodies must initially apply for Certified Borrower status. To date, 17 bodies have applied, 4 have gained Certified Borrower status, 8 applications have been declined, and further information is awaited in respect of the other 5 applicants. Only after obtaining Certified Borrower status can a body make an application for loan finance. A number of such applications have now been processed.
All applications, whether for certified borrower status or in respect of loan finance, are subjected to rigorous assessment by the Agency’s credit committee. The credit committee is also assisted in its deliberations by external consultants with considerable expertise in the area of social housing finance.
425. Deputy Dessie Ellis asked the Minister for the Environment; Community and Local Government the reason for the delay in the funding application for the regeneration of an area (details supplied) and if he will commit to seeing the funding on stream as soon as possible. [42990/12]
View answerMy Department currently supports an ambitious approach to regeneration through holistic programmes of physical, social and economic regeneration. This year, my Department is providing funding of over €40 million in respect of regeneration projects in Dublin city, some €15 million of which is earmarked for projects which were previously included in the City Council’s Public Private Partnership (PPP) programme, including Saint Teresa’s Gardens.
A draft schematic regeneration proposal was developed by the Council, in consultation with the Regeneration Board, for Saint Teresa’s Gardens and submitted to my Department in March 2012. This document explores a number of options for the redevelopment of the area. My Department is currently liaising with the Council to further develop these proposals for incorporation into an overall Masterplan. As soon as this process has been concluded it is expected that the City Council will be in a position to provide projected multi-annual funding requirements for the future regeneration of Saint Teresa’s Gardens.
In advance of the completion of the detailed Masterplan, my Department approved a programme of social inclusion initiatives for Saint Teresa’s Gardens to commence this year. It is also expected that the demolition of vacant flats will commence later this year.
426. Deputy Brendan Griffin asked the Minister for the Environment; Community and Local Government if he will explain the legal proceedings that are being taken in relation to a case (details supplied) in County Kerry; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43003/12]
View answerI refer to the reply to Question No. 489 of 22 May 2012. The position is unchanged.
427. Deputy Dessie Ellis asked the Minister for the Environment; Community and Local Government the action he is taking to ensure that local authorities pass on cuts to mortgages interest rates to their mortgage holders. [43048/12]
View answerInterest rates charged to local authority borrowers are determined by the Board of the Housing Finance Agency (HFA). In determining these rates, the Board of the Agency gives careful consideration to the fluctuating relationship between the rates at which it can borrow and its lending rates. The HFA is required to operate on a break-even basis and continues to provide extremely good value to local authority customers.
I am acutely conscious that a considerable number of local authority borrowers are facing difficulties in meeting their mortgage payments. However, local authority borrowers have benefited from very significant easing of mortgage costs in recent years. The effective rate for local authority borrowers is 2.75%. This has resulted in a differential of almost 1.5% between the rate charged to local authority borrowers and the average variable rate available from private lending institutions.
428. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for the Environment; Community and Local Government if he will supply the most recent and up-to-date national registration figures for those who have paid the €100 household charge; if he will supply these figures on a county basis; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43125/12]
View answer434. Deputy Joe Higgins asked the Minister for the Environment; Community and Local Government the current payment levels of the household charge nationally; and the figures by county. [43434/12]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 428 and 434 together.
The table shows, as of 5 of October 2012, in respect of each county and city council, the total number of properties registered, with payment, for the household charge and the total amount of payments received.
Household Charge Payments and Paid Registrations by Local Authority
|
Date: 05/10/2012 08:30 |
Levy Period Year: 2 012 |
Levy Period Year: 2 012 |
|
Local Authority |
Properties |
Total Payments |
|
Dublin City Council |
133,845 |
€13,575,619 |
|
Cork County Council |
87,003 |
€8,842,083 |
|
Dun Laoghaire Rathdown County Council |
61,919 |
€6,246,788 |
|
Fingal County Council |
57,384 |
€5,829,254 |
|
South Dublin County Council |
50,022 |
€5,071,861 |
|
Kerry County Council |
41,902 |
€4,265,231 |
|
Kildare County Council |
41,636 |
€4,227,841 |
|
Galway County Council |
39,448 |
€4,008,168 |
|
Mayo County Council |
35,702 |
€3,624,665 |
|
Meath County Council |
35,262 |
€3,579,452 |
|
Donegal County Council |
33,943 |
€3,462,051 |
|
Wexford County Council |
33,582 |
€3,417,305 |
|
Clare County Council |
31,354 |
€3,189,808 |
|
Wicklow County Council |
30,089 |
€3, 048,776 |
|
Limerick County Council |
29,954 |
€3,044,500 |
|
Cork City Council |
27,110 |
€2,759,244 |
|
Louth County Council |
23,383 |
€2,375,370 |
|
Kilkenny County Council |
20,105 |
€2,038,846 |
|
Galway City Council |
19,980 |
€2,035,256 |
|
South Tipperary County Council |
19,872 |
€2,016,425 |
|
Westmeath County Council |
19,615 |
€1,993,053 |
|
Sligo County Council |
17,082 |
€1,733,298 |
|
North Tipperary County Council |
16,931 |
€1,722,525 |
|
Waterford County Council |
15,783 |
€1,604,165 |
|
Roscommon County Council |
15,370 |
€1,564,448 |
|
Cavan County Council |
15,071 |
€1,530,593 |
|
Laois County Council |
14,931 |
€1,515,543 |
|
Offaly County Council |
14,031 |
€1,424,078 |
|
Limerick City Council |
13,468 |
€1,371,456 |
|
Monaghan County Council |
12,816 |
€1,303,426 |
|
Carlow County Council |
11,094 |
€1,128,534 |
|
Waterford City Council |
9,941 |
€1,014,454 |
|
Leitrim County Council |
8,745 |
€889,933 |
|
Longford County Council |
7,954 |
€810,119 |
|
Total |
1,046,327 |
€106,264,163 |
429. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for the Environment; Community and Local Government the assistance he will provide to a person (details supplied) in County Kildare who is not in a position to pay the household charge in a single instalment but who is willing to pay in a number of instalments; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43165/12]
View answerThe Local Government (Household Charge) Act 2011 provides the legislative basis for the household charge. Under the Act, an owner of a residential property on the liability date of 1 January 2012 is liable to pay the household charge, unless otherwise exempted or entitled to claim a waiver. The household charge is on a self-assessment basis and it is a matter for an owner of a residential property on the liability date to determine if he or she has a liability and, if so, to declare that liability and pay the household charge. The Local Government Management Agency (LGMA) administers the household charge system on a shared service/agency basis for all county and city councils. The option to pay by instalments was available by direct debit only where a person had registered their details with the LGMA before 1 March 2012. This deadline was necessary in order to meet banking requirements for direct debit arrangements.
The Local Government (Household Charge) Act 2011 places the collection of the charge under the care and management of the local authority concerned and specifically provides for a number of exemptions and waivers from payment of the household charge. I am examining the possibility of introducing guidance, similar to that applying to the NPPR, under the care and management provision of the legislation.
430. Deputy Brendan Griffin asked the Minister for the Environment; Community and Local Government his views on a matter (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43188/12]
View answerI refer to the reply to Question No. 166 of 4 October 2012 which sets out the position in regard to this matter.
431. Deputy Clare Daly asked the Minister for the Environment; Community and Local Government if he has had contact with the Housing Finance Agency with regard to whether, as suggested by the pyrite panel, they will be considering providing money or resources for testing homes for heave inducing pyrite, when such homes have been provided through funding by the agency under council affordable housing schemes. [43189/12]
View answerMy Department is currently progressing the implementation of the recommendations in the pyrite report and, as part of the implementation process will consider what role, if any, that the Housing Finance Agency may have in assisting homeowners who have purchased homes under the affordable homes scheme. However, it should be noted that the Housing Finance Agency does not provide retail loan finance nor is it a member of the Irish Banking Federation, and the recommendation in the pyrite report refers to mortgage providers who are members of that body.
432. Deputy Brendan Griffin asked the Minister for the Environment; Community and Local Government the action a homeowner should take when they have no waste water treatment system, such as when an outpipe goes directly into a stream; if they should register with their local authority; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43282/12]
View answerThe Water Services (Amendment) Act 2012 requires the owners of premises connected to a domestic wastewater treatment system to register their systems with their local authority. Homeowners who are connected to a public sewer or who have no treatment system are not required to register. However, in the latter case, homeowners should be aware that section 3 of the Water Pollution Act 1977 provides that a person must not cause or permit any polluting matter to enter waters. Consequently, it is an offence to pipe untreated domestic wastewater directly into a stream.
433. Deputy Seán Kyne asked the Minister for the Environment; Community and Local Government if he can confirm whether a directive has been issued in relation to reducing the number of polling stations for the forthcoming referendum; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43425/12]
View answerUnder the Electoral Act 1992, returning officers are responsible for the provision of a sufficient number of polling stations. No directive has issued to returning officers regarding reducing the number of polling stations. However, I understand the returning officers have had discussions with the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform about the need to achieve savings where feasible, in keeping with the Government’s overall objective of delivering public services more efficiently and with less resources. Arising from these discussions, I understand that returning officers have been examining polling station requirements in their constituencies with reference to the fact that only one poll will be taken on 10 November 2012.
435. Deputy Dessie Ellis asked the Minister for the Environment; Community and Local Government if the funding for works at a location (details supplied) in County Wicklow has been specifically targeted for a particular type of work; or if it is at the council's discretion to use the funds for whatever works it deems necessary to the housing in this area. [43455/12]
View answerI refer to the reply to Questions Nos. 365 and 366 of 2 October, 2012.
It is a matter for the local authority to determine the exact nature and extent of the works to be carried out on the houses in the Oldcourt Estate under the remediation programme being funded out of internal capital receipts.
436. Deputy Pearse Doherty asked the Minister for Justice and Equality the cost of extending the property price register to sales in calendar years 2006, 2007, 2008 and 2009. [42683/12]
View answer438. Deputy Pearse Doherty asked the Minister for Justice and Equality the consideration that has been given by him or by the Property Services Regulation Authority to commercialising the property price register. [42685/12]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 436 and 438 together.
Section 86 of the Property Services (Regulation) Act 2011 provides that the Property Services Regulatory Authority shall prepare and maintain a register of residential property prices in the State. The purpose of the Residential Property Prices Register is to provide up to date sale prices of residential properties sold in Ireland. The production of sale prices for properties sold in 2006, 2007, 2008 and 2009, which represent the “boom” years for house prices, would serve no useful purpose in this regard. Accordingly, I am advised that the Authority has no proposals to include such prices from those years in the Register.
The Residential Property Price Register cannot be commercialised by the Authority as it is required under the provisions of Section 86 of the 2011 Act to make the information contained in the Register available free of charge.
437. Deputy Pearse Doherty asked the Minister for Justice and Equality the estimate of the cost of operating the Property Services Regulation Authority in 2012. [42684/12]
View answerThe Property Services Regulatory Authority was established on a statutory basis on 3 April 2013 in accordance with the provisions of the Property Services (Regulation) Act 2011. The functions of the Authority are extensive and include: Control, supervision and regulation of Property Services Providers (i.e. Auctioneers/Estate Agents, Letting Agents and Management Agents); Operation of a comprehensive licensing system covering all Property Services Providers (PSPs); Setting and enforcement of standards for the grant of licences to PSPs (e.g. educational/training standards; levels of professional indemnity insurance), and standards to be observed in the provision of property services by PSPs (e.g. technical standards; appropriate ethical standards); Establish and administration of a system of investigation and adjudication of complaints against PSPs; Conducting audits and inspections of PSPs as part of the general compliance and enforcement function; Enforcement of the legislation through the imposition of sanctions (which include fines of up to €250,000 and the revocation of licences) and initiating court prosecutions as appropriate; Promotion of increased consumer protection and public awareness of property services in general and the cost to consumers, risks and benefits associated with the provision of those services; Establishment, maintenance and administration of a Compensation Fund to compensate parties who lose money as a direct consequence of the dishonesty of a PSP; Establish and maintenance of a Public Register of Property Sales Prices; Establishment and maintenance of a Commercial Leases Database; Establishment and maintenance of a Public Register of Licensed PSPs; Production of and enforcement of Codes of Practice for Property Services Providers; Production of guidance material for the industry and the public.
The cost of the Authority in 2012 is estimated at €738,000. It should, however, be noted that under section 25 of the 2011 Act, the Authority is required to be self-financing. It is anticipated that the amount of fees which will be taken in by the Authority in 2012 will more than cover the costs of operation of the Authority.
