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Social and Affordable Housing

Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 29 June 2016

Wednesday, 29 June 2016

Questions (36)

Ruth Coppinger

Question:

36. Deputy Ruth Coppinger asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government his views on expanding the income limits for social housing to allow more low and middle-income workers to benefit from differential rents in tandem with a large-scale programme of direct building and acquisitions of vacant properties by the local authorities; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18474/16]

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Written answers

The Social Housing Assessment Regulations 2011 prescribe maximum net income limits for each housing authority, in different bands according to the area, with income being defined and assessed according to a standard Household Means Policy.

The income bands and the authority area assigned to each band were based on an assessment of income needed to provide for a household's basic needs plus a comparative analysis of the local rental cost of housing accommodation across the country. The limits also reflect a blanket increase of €5,000 introduced prior to the new system coming into operation, in order to broaden the base from which social housing tenants are drawn and thereby promote sustainable communities.

I am satisfied that the current income limits generally provide for a fair and equitable system of identifying those households unable to provide accommodation from their own resources. However, these limits will be considered in the context of the review of social housing assessment procedures currently being undertaken by my Department, as part of the broader social housing reform agenda outlined in the Social Housing Strategy 2020.

My Department is preparing an ‘Action Plan for Housing’ which aims to address the challenges in the housing sector in a targeted and meaningful way. The Plan will include actions to expedite and boost supply of all types of housing, including social housing, in the immediate, medium and longer-terms, focusing in particular on those experiencing most difficulty in accessing the housing and rental market at the moment.

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