Written Answers Nos. 148-162
148. Deputy Anne Rabbitte asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government if there is a legal obligation on all waste collection providers to furnish households with bins for black, brown and green waste collection; and the recourse households have if their provider refuses to provide one or more of these bins. [17835/16]
View answerWaste collection in Ireland is subject to compliance with applicable environmental and other relevant legislation, primarily the Waste Management Act 1996 (as amended) and conditions attached to each waste collector’s collection permit issued under the Waste Management (Collection Permit) Regulations 2007 (as amended). Where a permit holder collects household kerbside waste, the permit holder shall provide a separate receptacle for each waste fraction namely, residual, recyclables and, where appropriate, food and bio-waste.
Under the European Union (Household Food Waste and Bio-waste) Regulations 2015, household waste collectors are required to provide, or arrange for the provision of, a separate collection service for food waste from households in designated brown bin areas.
In accordance with the Regulatory Impact Assessment prepared for these Regulations, the roll-out of the brown bin has been phased in on a progressive basis, commencing on 1st July 2013. The timetable for when the regulations take effect is as follows:
- 1st July 2013 for population centres greater than 25,000 persons;
- 31st December 2013 for population centres greater than 20,000 persons;
- 1st July 2014 for population centres greater than 10,000 persons;
- 1st July 2015 for population centres greater than 1,500 persons, and
- 1st July 2016 for population centres greater than 500 persons.
By July of this year, brown bins will have been rolled out to most towns and villages across the country. Notwithstanding this fact, where it is technically and environmentally practical to do so, it is my intention, within the coming months, to introduce the measures required to ensure a brown-bin service is available to all householders wishing to avail of one, regardless of the size of the communities in which they live.
Issues concerning the enforcement of the Regulations are a matter for the local authorities, who have significant powers under the Regulations to secure compliance by both waste collectors and householders.
149. Deputy Paul Kehoe asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government the status of a scheme (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17855/16]
View answerSince 1 January 2014, Irish Water has statutory responsibility for all aspects of water services planning, delivery and operation at national, regional and local levels.
Irish Water has established a dedicated team to deal with representations and queries from public representatives. The team can be contacted via email to oireachtasmembers@water.ie or by telephone on a dedicated number, 1890 578 578.
150. Deputy Michael McGrath asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government the number and value of new local authority mortgage loans that have been advanced in each of the years 2011 to 2014 for each local authority in the country; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17857/16]
View answerInformation in relation to the number of new local authority loans advanced and associated total loan value, broken down by local authority for the years in question, is available on my Department’s website at: http://www.environ.ie/housing/statistics/house-prices-loans-and-profile-borrowers/local-authority-loan-activity.
151. Deputy Michael McGrath asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government the interest rate that now applies to local authority mortgage loans; the efforts his Department and individual local authorities are making to market this loan scheme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17858/16]
View answer152. Deputy Michael McGrath asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government the eligibility conditions that apply, by way of household income and so forth, of the local authority mortgage loan scheme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17859/16]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 151 and 152 together.
With effect from 1 July 2016, a cut of 0.25% will be applied to the variable mortgage interest rate charged to local authority borrowers. This cut will reduce the current variable rate of 2.55% to 2.30%. The interest rate applied to the Home Choice Loan scheme has also been reduced from that date, from 3.5% to 3.25%.
Further information in relation to this interest rate cut is available at:
http://www.environ.ie/minister-coveney-welcomes-reduction-variable-interest-rates-local-authority-mortgage-holders.
Information on local authority loans is publically available on the websites of:
local authorities at:
http://www.environ.ie/local-government/administration/local-authorities/links-local-authority-websites;
the Citizen Information Board at:
http://www.citizensinformation.ie/en/housing/owning_a_home/help_with_buying_a_home/local_authority_mortgages.html;
and on my Department’s website at:
http://www.environ.ie/housing/grantsfinancial-assistance/local-authority-loans/local-authority-loans.
The Housing (Local Authority Loans) Regulations 2012 prescribes, in detail, the terms and conditions applicable to local authority housing loans. Key eligibility criteria provide that a loan applicant must be a first time buyer and must be able to show their local authority that they cannot get a loan from a bank or building society. Also, the gross income (before tax) of a single income household in the last year must be €50,000 or less and the combined gross income (before tax) of a two income household in the last year must be €75,000 or less.
In 2009, a Credit Policy, in accordance with the Housing (Local Authority Loans) Regulations 2009, was issued to all housing authorities. Decisions on all housing loan applications must be made in accordance with this statutory Credit Policy in order to ensure prudence and consistency in approaches.
All applicants must complete a housing loan application form which can be downloaded from the relevant local authority’s website. As part of the loan application procedure, the Housing Agency provides an underwriting and support service to all local authorities. This shared central service processes loan applications, carries out credit checks and issues a recommendation to the local authority on each loan application in accordance with the credit policy. The final decision on loan approval is a matter for each local authority and its credit committee on a case-by-case basis. Accordingly, the local authority issues the loan and the Housing Agency provides an underwriting and support service to the local authority during the loan application process.
153. Deputy Michael McGrath asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government the number and value of mortgage loans issued under the home choice loan scheme for first-time buyers since 2011 and in 2016 to date by year and by local authority in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17860/16]
View answerThe information requested is set out in the table. The Home Choice Loan (HCL) is a mortgage for first time buyers provided by local authorities. The terms and conditions of this loan are set out in the specific regulations – the Housing (Home Choice Loan) Regulations 2009 – a copy of which is available at http://www.irishstatutebook.ie/eli/2009/si/544/made/en/print.
Further details in relation to the Home Choice Loan can be found at http://www.homechoiceloan.ie/.
Home Choice Loans are advanced and administered by four lead local authorities - Dublin City Council, Cork City Council , Kilkenny County Council and Galway County Council - that operate on behalf of all other local authorities. To support local authorities in operating the HCL in a consistent and efficient manner, the Housing Agency provides a central underwriting service to local authorities. The final decision on loan approval is a matter for the relevant local authority and its credit committee on a case-by-case basis and in accordance with the statutory Credit Policy that underpins the scheme.
I will continue to keep the operation of the HCL under review.
|
Year |
2011 |
2012 |
2013 |
2014 |
2015 |
2016 |
||||||
|
Local Authority |
Total loan value |
No. |
Total loan value |
No. |
Total loan value |
No. |
Total loan value |
No. |
Total loan value |
No. |
Total loan value |
No. |
|
Cork City |
€143,400 |
1 |
€193,200 |
1 |
€0 |
0 |
€0 |
0 |
€0 |
0 |
€0 |
0 |
|
Dublin City |
€410,875 |
2 |
€483,200 |
3 |
€276,000 |
1 |
€318,000 |
2 |
€0 |
0 |
€0 |
0 |
|
Galway |
€0 |
0 |
€100,000 |
1 |
€0 |
0 |
€0 |
0 |
€0 |
0 |
€0 |
0 |
|
Kilkenny |
€0 |
0 |
€0 |
0 |
€0 |
0 |
€0 |
0 |
€0 |
0 |
€0 |
0 |
154. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government how many local authorities employ an arts officer; if posts are vacant whether they are subject to an embargo; if so, what locations do not have an arts officer because of the embargo; if so, if he is in dialogue with the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17896/16]
View answerAs announced in Budget 2015, the moratorium on recruitment has been lifted throughout the Local Authority Sector.
Under section 159 of the Local Government Act 2001, each Chief Executive is responsible for the staffing and organisational arrangements necessary for carrying out the functions of the local authorities for which he or she is responsible. In this regard, it is a matter for each individual Chief Executive to recruit and assign staff to specific divisions.
My Department does not maintain information on specific vacancies or recruitment within local authorities.
155. Deputy Carol Nolan asked the Minister for Social Protection his views on proposals to link child benefit payments to school attendance rates; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17708/16]
View answerChild Benefit as a universal payment to help families with the cost of raising children and plays an important role in tackling child poverty. It does not rely on a means test or social insurance contributions and is paid to the parents of qualified children up to the age of 18 years.
It is paid to around 624,000 families for almost 1.2 million children with my Department spending this year an estimated €2 billion on Child Benefit.
It is not linked to school attendance for children under 16 and the Social Welfare Acts do not require monitoring of school attendance for under 16s. There is no power in the Act to do so.
For older children aged 16 and 17 years, an annual declaration is required from parents, signed by their school, that their children attend school or they have a disability.
The monitoring of children's attendance at school is an important child welfare issue and is monitored by TUSLA under the Education (Welfare) Acts on a statutory basis on behalf of the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs. Any issues concerning school attendance including the operation of the monitoring systems are a matter for TUSLA and the Department of Children and Youth Affairs.
My Department operates control programmes on all departmental schemes, designed to ensure that payments cease where there is no longer an entitlement. Child Benefit operates a very effective and efficient control programme, ensuring that payment is only paid to families who continue to have an entitlement.
156. Deputy Carol Nolan asked the Minister for Social Protection the number of schools at primary and post-primary level that currently avail of the school meals programme; the number of these that are under the Delivering Equality of Opportunities in Schools scheme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17716/16]
View answer157. Deputy Carol Nolan asked the Minister for Social Protection the number of schools that have previously applied to his Department for funding under the school meals programme and have been refused; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17717/16]
View answer158. Deputy Carol Nolan asked the Minister for Social Protection if funding for the provision of school meals is currently available to schools outside of the Delivering Equality of Opportunities in Schools scheme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17718/16]
View answerIt is proposed to take Questions Nos. 156 to 158, inclusive, together.
The school meals programme provides funding towards the provision of food services to schools and organisations at a cost of €42 million in 2016. There are two schemes operated under the school meals programme. The first is the school meals local projects scheme through which funding is provided directly to participating schools and local and voluntary community groups who run their own school meals projects. The second scheme is the urban school meals scheme which is operated by local authorities and part-financed by my Department.
There are currently over 1,200 primary schools and 350 post primary schools availing of the school meals local project scheme. Of the total, 780 schools are part of the Department of Education and Skill’s initiative for disadvantaged schools, Delivering Equality of Opportunity in Schools or DEIS, of which over 75% are primary schools (over 590) and the remaining post primary.
The scheme is available to support disadvantaged school children and the schools that joined the scheme prior to the introduction of DEIS would have done so under the various educational disadvantaged programmes in place at the time. These schemes included School Completion Programmes, Giving Children an Even Break, Home School Community Liaison Scheme, Designated Disadvantaged, Early Start and Breaking the Cycle.
Priority for increased funding or new applicants under the scheme is given to schools which are part of DEIS in line with the National Policy Framework for Children and Young People, Better Outcomes Brighter Futures. There is a particular focus on the provision of breakfast clubs in DEIS schools which provide very positive outcomes for vulnerable children in terms of their school attendance, punctuality and energy levels. Statistics are not maintained on the number schools that previously applied for the school meals scheme and the outcome of the application.
In addition, there are some 300 primary schools participating in the urban school meals scheme. Some of these schools may also be receiving funding under the school meals local projects scheme, for example, a breakfast club under one scheme and an afternoon snack under the other. The decision on eligibility of schools for the urban scheme rests with the local authorities subject to this Department’s approval. A breakdown of the number of these schools in DEIS is not available.
159. Deputy Willie Penrose asked the Minister for Social Protection the position of an employee, whose employment was terminated due to the business not being able to discharge wages due, and where this business has now closed permanently, and is insolvent, and whereby the employees are seeking redundancies, pursuant to the insolvency fund, and where a delay arises in furnishing the necessary documentation from the employer to prove the insolvency situation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17783/16]
View answerThe redundancy payments scheme, administered by the Department of Social Protection, compensates workers, under the Redundancy Payments Acts 1967 to 2013, for the loss of their jobs by reason of redundancy in situations where their employer is unable to make the redundancy payment, including situations of insolvency.
To process a claim under the scheme, a signed RP50 (claim form) must be sent to the Department. A letter is also required from an accountant/solicitor confirming there are no funds to pay the former employees and that the company is aware of their liability to the social insurance fund.
In cases where an employer does not sign the RP50 form, employees can apply to the Workplace Relations Commission (previously the Employment Appeals Tribunal) for a judgement in the matter. A favourable judgement will enable a redundancy payment to be made under the scheme.
There is a comprehensive guide to the redundancy payments scheme on www.welfare.ie , including frequently asked questions. The redundancy section of the department is also available to answer specific queries that employees may have on accessing their statutory entitlements.
160. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Social Protection the status of a query by a person (details supplied) regarding how the misuse of rent allowance payments is prevented. [17834/16]
View answerRent supplement plays a vital role in housing families and individuals, with the scheme supporting approximately 55,000 people for which the Government has provided approximately €267 million for 2016.
Under the legislative provisions governing rent supplement, the Department’s relationship is with the tenant; the tenant makes the application for rent supplement and payment is made to the tenant to assist them with their accommodation needs. There is no direct contractual relationship between the landlord and the Department in the administration of the scheme.
Social welfare legislation provides for the payment of a rent supplement to a nominated payee such as a landlord on behalf of the tenant. This arrangement is entered at the tenant’s request and subject to the consent of the Department. Recent figures show that direct payments to nominated payees are made in approximately 12,300 cases (22% of cases). In these cases the rent supplement recipient must continue to make arrangements to pay their minimum contribution required under the scheme directly to their landlord.
The Department’s strategic policy direction is to return rent supplement to its original purpose of being a short term income support by transferring responsibility for persons with long term housing needs to the local authorities under the Housing Assistance Payment Scheme (HAP). The efficiency of the rent supplement scheme would be significantly affected if all payments were to be made directly to landlords, for the provision of a short term support. Under HAP the local authority pays the full rent directly to the landlord with the HAP recipient required to make a differential rent contribution to the local authority. HAP is currently operational in 19 local authority areas with payments being made in respect of over 10,370 tenancies.
It remains open to the landlord to bring to the attention of this Department any instance where they suspect that a tenant is receiving rent supplement and is not paying their rent. Where the Department becomes aware that a person is not using rent supplement to meet the accommodation costs, payment of the supplement is suspended and the matter investigated.
The Department’s policy is to ensure that overpayments are prevented, and if they occur, they are regarded as a debt to the Exchequer and every effort is made to recover the amount over paid. If the Deputy has details of a particular case where they suspect misuse of rent supplement, the details should be provided to my Department for review.
161. Deputy Clare Daly asked the Minister for Social Protection to ensure that his Department releases the rent supplement for a person (details supplied). [17655/16]
View answerThe person concerned was awarded a rent supplement under the rent supplement initiative in May 2014. In September 2015 the accommodation on which the rent supplement was payable went into receivership. The claimant was requested, as is required in such circumstances, to submit a rent supplement application form completed by the new landlord, the receiver. This application was not received from the claimant and no further contact or explanation was received by the department.
It is understood that a new landlord is now in place for this property and the person concerned wishes to restart their rent supplement payment. For this, a rent supplement application form will have to be completed by both the claimant and the landlord. A rent supplement application form has issued to the person concerned and once it is returned, with any supporting documentation required, it will be processed as soon as possible.
I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
162. Deputy Jim Daly asked the Minister for Social Protection if jobseekers who are referred to JobPath and also found to be eligible for the EmployAbility service, due to illness, injury, mental ill health or disability, are not best placed to determine whether the JobPath programme is able to provide the additional supports they need, and that if the jobseekers perceive a need for both services or one service over another, then the jobseekers' needs and wishes will govern the referral process; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17656/16]
View answerWhere it transpires that a person on JobPath requires additional supports that are not available on JobPath but such supports are available under the EmployAbility Service then the JobPath provider will contact the Department so that arrangements may be made for the person to avail of the EmployAbility Service. A jobseeker who wishes to avail of the EmployAbility Service must apply to the Department’s local Intreo Centre and must provide suitable medical evidence. A decision as to whether or not a person may avail of the Employability Service will have regard to the medical evidence furnished in support of the case.
I hope this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
