Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 1 July 2015
265. Deputy Robert Dowds asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government if he will confirm that his Department has instructed local authorities to allocate no more than 50% of available housing to persons who are designated as homeless; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26500/15]
View answerUnder a Ministerial Direction, which issued on 27 January 2015 and is time bound for a six-month period until 26 July 2015, key local authorities are required to prioritise homeless and other vulnerable households in the allocation of tenancies under their control in accordance with Section 22 of the Housing Act 1988. In the case of the four Dublin local authorities, the minimum proportion of all available dwellings to be allocated to this cohort is 50%, while in the case of the local authorities in Cork, Galway, Limerick and Waterford, the figure has been set at 30%. It is expected that during the timeframe at least 500 homes will be provided to prioritised households in the Dublin Region with a similar total for the other areas combined. The operation of the Direction is kept under ongoing review and I will decide, in due course, on the question of extending the Direction's operation beyond 27 July 2015.
