Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 24 March 2015
859. Deputy Brian Walsh asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government if the counties in which 35,000 new social housing units will be developed have been identified; if these units will be built directly by local authorities or through Part V and public private partnership schemes; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11099/15]
View answerUnder the relevant actions of the Social Housing Strategy 2020, national targets for delivery of social housing on a local authority by local authority basis for 2015 are to be agreed, and work on targets for subsequent years initiated, by quarter 1 2015.
This process is well underway and all local authorities have submitted delivery proposals, across all delivery mechanisms, for the years 2015 to 2017. These have been examined in my Department and the final targets are being prepared.
Pillar 1 of the Social Housing Strategy targets the delivery of 35,000 new social housing units over the period to 2020 with 1,500 targeted under a Public Private Partnership model.
In October 2014, I announced major reforms of the planning system as part of the forthcoming Planning and Development (No.1) Bill. The Review of Part V of the Planning and Development Acts has been completed. The legislative changes required on foot of the Review have been incorporated into the General Scheme of the Bill which was published in November 2014 and is available on my Department's website at: http://www.environ.ie/en/Publications/DevelopmentandHousing/Planning/FileDownLoad,39512,en.pdf
The new Part V proposals will require developers to provide up to 10% of their housing units for social housing and the legislation will remove the ability of developers to account for their social housing commitments through cash payments to local authorities. The proposals will furthermore ensure that the social housing units will be located predominantly on the site of the original developments. Under these plans, it is estimated that in the region of 4,000 additional social housing units will be delivered through the Part V mechanism by 2020.
