Written Answers Nos. 1035-1051
1036. Deputy Brendan Griffin asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government if he will allow houses that are not property tax compliant to become available to local authorities, on condition that the outstanding tax is diverted to Revenue for the initial renting period; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41615/14]
View answerDepartment of Finance Circular 44 of 2006 (Tax Clearance Procedures Grants, Subsidies and Similar Type Payments) sets down revised procedures to be followed in the operation of the tax clearance scheme for applicants for all grants from State and public sector bodies, which apply to all applications received after 1 January 2007. It is a requirement of the Rental Accommodation Scheme that landlords participating in the scheme be tax compliant and provide an appropriate tax clearance certificate to a local authority in order to demonstrate this compliance.
1037. Deputy Michelle Mulherin asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government the status of an application to Mayo North East Leader Development Company by an organisation (details supplied) in County Mayo; if it will be expedited in order that the essential work can commence; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41616/14]
View answerThe project referred to in the question has been evaluated and approved by the Local Action Group and, in line with the procedures currently in place, is now with my Department for a final eligibility review before the letter of offer is issued. This review will be completed as soon as possible.
1038. Deputy Sean Fleming asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government the position regarding an application for funding from a public body (details supplied) in County Laois; the number of properties on the list submitted together with the estimated cost of the urgent adaptation works; the overall amount of funds sought from the Department; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41622/14]
View answerMy Department provides funding to local authorities for adaptations and extensions to the existing social housing stock to meet the needs of tenants with a disability or to address serious overcrowding. I allocated funding to local authorities under this measure in September 2014 and funding to Laois County Council was based on their identification of 11 properties requiring urgent adaptation works at a cost of €53,957. It is now a matter for the local authority to prioritise the programme of works to be advanced within their allocation.
1041. Deputy Brendan Griffin asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government his plans to address problems arising from the implementation of SI No 9 of 2014 (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41736/14]
View answerOver 3,500 projects have advanced under the revised building control regulatory framework since SI No. 9 of 2014 came into effect on 1 March 2014. Oversight of building activity by industry and by local building control authorities is significantly improved and the online Building Control Management System (BCMS) is now firmly established as the standard means of building control administration. This gives local building control authorities ready access to detailed information in relation to all projects notified as commencing and means they are better equipped to identify risks and monitor activity. I am committed to reviewing the operation of S.I. No. 9 of 2014 after its first year in operation, in order to identify any further improvements that may be reasonable and appropriate. It is vital that effective controls are in place to ensure that the construction sector functions properly and acts responsibly and can thus play a key role in supporting recovery and growth in the wider economy.
My Department has no function in relation to the regulation or oversight of insurance providers or insurance based products. Given the widespread public concerns that have arisen in recent years in relation to defective and non-compliant buildings, it would be unusual if this did not have an impact on insurance arrangements within the construction sector. SI No. 9 of 2014, however, rebalances the situation and empowers competence and professionalism on construction projects while ensuring that owners, builders and designers are accountable for compliance with their statutory obligations. Better regulation of the construction industry in this way should ensure that risks are better managed and thus have a positive impact on insurance arrangements in the longer term.
1045. Deputy Terence Flanagan asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government his plans for dealing with homelessness; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41819/14]
View answerMy Department’s role in relation to homelessness involves the provision of a national framework of policy, legislation and funding to underpin the role of housing authorities in addressing homelessness at local level. Statutory responsibility in relation to the provision of accommodation and related services for homeless persons rests with individual housing authorities. My Department has no involvement in decisions on operational matters in addressing individual instances of homelessness.
1046. Deputy Michelle Mulherin asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government his plans to legislate to compel the payment by weight for both domestic and non-domestic waste disposal customers and to exclude the current payment option which is payment per lift; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41828/14]
View answerMy Department published a consultation document on the regulation of household waste collection on 28 November 2013 to guide the development of a new regulatory regime to strengthen and improve the regulation of household waste collection. Over 90 submissions were received from across a wide spectrum, including the waste industry, public bodies, public representatives and the general public. Taking account of that consultation process and the submissions received, I intend to introduce legislation early next year, to come into effect in July 2015, to significantly reform the regulation of household waste collection, including the introduction of measures to require collectors to have a customer charter in place and to meet certain minimum standards of customer service (for example, specified frequencies of collection). It will also become a statutory requirement for all collectors to operate the “pay -by- weight” system as a condition of their permit.
Research shows that a ‘pay per weight’ (per kg) form of charging is a more effective pricing system in terms of influencing household behaviour than alternative flat rate charges or ‘pay per lift’ / ‘pay per throw’ systems. I consider the general application of pay by weight by all household waste collectors to be an important measure to support the management of waste in line with national waste policy, the waste hierarchy, the polluter pays principle and to incentivise waste reduction and segregation by householders, giving them more direct control of their waste management charges. It is envisaged that some level of standing charge may also be permitted to cover administrative costs, including the provision of bins.
1048. Deputy Lucinda Creighton asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government in view of the change in the Housing (Standards for Rented Houses) Regulations 2008 relating to bed-sits, the number of residents his Department believe are living in bed-sits that do not conform with the new regulations; his plans to address this while ensuring that the homelessness crisis is not further exacerbated; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41852/14]
View answerRegulations 6, 7 and 8 of the Housing (Standards for Rented Houses) Regulations 2008 came into effect for all residential rented accommodation on 1 February 2013. The purpose of Regulation 6 is to ensure that each rental property has exclusive access to its own sanitary facilities and that those facilities are contained within the dwelling unit. Regulation 7 relates to effective heating which can be independently managed by the tenant, while Regulation 8 provides for sole access to adequate facilities for the hygienic storage, preparation and cooking of food. The 2008 Regulations came into effect generally on 1 February 2009 but allowed a four year phasing-in period to facilitate any improvement works that needed to be carried out in respect of Regulations 6, 7 and 8. All landlords have a legal obligation to ensure that their properties comply with the regulations and responsibility for their enforcement rests with the local authorities , funded from part of the proceeds of tenancy registration fees collected by the Private Residential Tenancies Board (PRTB). Since 2005, over 149,000 inspections have been carried out by local authorities on properties in the sector.
Census 2011 indicated that there were approximately 4,500 bed-sits across the country – the majority of which are found in Dublin – accounting for 1% of households in the private rented sector. A recent report from Dublin City Council found that the majority of dwellings selected for inspection (which were pre-1963 multi-unit buildings and more likely to be in this category of accommodation) were non-compliant with the regulations on initial inspection. However , a significant number of these had achieved compliance on re-inspection, following enforcement action. Dublin City estimates that the living conditions of over 3,000 tenants were improved as a result of this inspection programme alone. The Council continues to pursue compliance including through the serving of prohibition notices and legal action.
On 20 May 2014, the Implementation Plan on the State's Response to Homelessness was published in which the Government's approach to delivery on its objective of ending involuntary long-term homelessness by the end of 2016 was outlined. A copy of this plan is available on my Department's website at http://www.environ.ie/en/DevelopmentHousing/Housing/SpecialNeeds/HomelessPeople/.
The plan sets out a range of measures to secure a ring-fenced supply of accommodation to house homeless households within the next three years and mobilise the necessary supports.
Finally, Budget 2015 made provision for the Home Renovation Incentive (HRI) scheme to be extended to include landlords who are subject to income tax. It will apply to repairs, renovations or improvements to rental properties carried out on or after 15 October 2014.
1049. Deputy Thomas P. Broughan asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government if full approval has been granted by his Department for a housing project (details supplied) in Dublin 17 to proceed to construction; when it is expected the new houses will be fully completed; and if any social employment clause will apply to this and similar social housing projects. [41862/14]
View answerMy Department recently received a proposal from Dublin City Council in relation to this project, following their tendering of the work, and this proposal is now under consideration. Subject to my Department’s approval, it will be a matter for the City Council to advance this project to construction. As the contract period is 18 months, it is expected that works will be completed in 2016.
The details of the specific contracts, including employment clauses, will be matters for the respective Councils in this and other similar projects. However, there is an overall total of 56 social housing construction projects that were announced by my Department in March 2014, with an overall value of €68 million. It is intended that these housing projects would, in addition to addressing housing need, also generate economic activity and support jobs in the labour intensive construction and materials supply areas as well as spin-off employment and activity in related areas.
1050. Deputy Robert Dowds asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government if he will provide in tabular form, the number of vacant private housing units in the Dublin City, Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown, Fingal and South Dublin local authority areas. [41865/14]
View answerWhile my Department collates and publishes a wide range of housing statistics, the full extent of which can be viewed at htttp://www.environ.ie/en/Publications/StatisticsandRegularPublications/HousingStatistics/, it does not collect the data sought on the number of vacant private housing units by local authority area. The most recent information relating to vacant residential units can be found in the 2011 census data which is available on the Central Statistics Office’s website, www.cso.ie.
1051. Deputy Robert Dowds asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government if he will provide in tabular form, the number of vacant local authority housing units in the Dublin City, Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown, Fingal and South Dublin local authority areas. [41866/14]
View answerWhile my Department collates and publishes a wide range of housing statistics, the full extent of which can be viewed at http://www.environ.ie/en/Publications/StatisticsandRegularPublications/HousingStatistics/ it does not collect the data sought on the number of vacant local authority housing units by local authority area. However, information relating to vacant local authority housing is available in the Annual Service Indicators in Local Authorities Reports which are prepared by the Local Government Management Agency (LGMA). The most recent report, in respect of 2012, and reports for previous years are available on the LGMA website at the following link: http://www.lgcsb.ie/en/publication-category/service-indicator-reports-2004-2010.
