Written Answers Nos. 46-54
46. Deputy Ruth Coppinger asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government his plans to acquire distressed properties from vulture funds for social and affordable housing; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18470/16]
View answerMy Department supports local authorities and approved housing bodies to acquire properties for social housing use through a range of funding methods and from a range of vendors.
In 2015, local authorities acquired over 1,000 new properties in transactions ranging from individual units to large blocks of units. In addition, with support from the Social Housing Current Expenditure Programme and the Capital Assistance Scheme, approved housing bodies acquired over 600 units that have been made available for social housing purposes either through outright purchase or long term lease arrangements with a range of local authorities.
This support for the acquisition of new social housing across all funding programmes is continuing in 2016 and delivers homes for immediate use for those on the waiting list.
47. Deputy Louise O'Reilly asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government his recruitment plans for the next five years across the State’s 31 local authorities. [18500/16]
View answerUnder 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 works closely with all local authorities to ensure the continued delivery of key services in the context of staffing and budgetary constraints. In considering sanction requests public safety, maintaining key front line services, and economic issues are given precedence.
My Department will continue to support all local authorities, to ensure that they are adequately staffed to carry out their functions and to provide the required services to the public, over the next five years.
48. Deputy Denise Mitchell asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government to report on his recent meeting with the Local Authority Members Association, LAMA; his position on the group's demands (details supplied); and if he will give LAMA a place on the Local Government Reform Committee. [18504/16]
View answerFollowing receipt of a request for a meeting, I met with representatives of the Local Authority Members Association (LAMA) on 21 June 2016. During the meeting the LAMA delegation set out its views relating to elected member workload, following the implementation of the 2014 local government reforms, financial supports and social insurance issues affecting its members, as well as LAMA representation on groups involved with reviewing the operation of the revised local government structures.
I advised the LAMA delegation that my Department has no function in relation to PRSI contributions. I understand that this matter is being considered by the Minister for Social Protection.
On the issue of workload and financial supports for elected members, I have noted the views put forward by the LAMA delegation and I will be giving this issue further detailed consideration.
In 2015, a process was established by my predecessor to review the operation of the revised local government structures. This involved a broadly based Advisory Group, consisting of members appointed in a personal capacity rather than as representatives of particular organisations, and a Local Government Forum for engagement with the Association of Irish Local Government, which is the statutorily recognised body to represent the collective interests of local authorities.
I will consider the question of a role for these groups in the development of potential measures regarding local government reform arising from the Programme for a Partnership Government. Subject to decisions in this regard, it would be open to the Advisory Group and the Forum to engage with representatives of LAMA in a stakeholder capacity, where appropriate, having regard to the different roles of that Association and the Association of Irish Local Government, as set out in sections 225 and 226 of the Local Government Act 2001, as amended by section 56 of the Local Government Reform Act 2014.
49. Deputy Joan Collins asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government if he investigated a recent funding from the European Investment Bank for a new Austrian housing bank that will finance the building of approximately 25,000 public rental housing units delivered via municipalities and non-profit providers; if so, if he is seeking a similar investment programme to enhance the proposals from the Oireachtas Committee on Housing and the Homelessness; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18301/16]
View answerFunding from the European Investment Bank is available for use in the provision of social housing in Ireland. In 2015, a €300 million fund for investment in social housing was put in place by the Housing Finance Agency, with the support of the Government. €150 million of this fund was provided by the European Investment Bank.
This funding is available to approved housing bodies for the upgrade and delivery of social housing. A 25-year fixed rate of 3.25% is charged. The Housing Finance Agency has reported that there has been significant demand for this funding.
50. Deputy Charlie McConalogue asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government for an update on the work to date of the expert panel set up to examine the Mica issue; when he expects the panel will be in a position to report its findings to his Department; to put a redress scheme in place to provide financial assistance to affected homeowners; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18296/16]
View answerThe expert panel on concrete blocks has met on three occasions since it was established in early April last and is continuing to review the information that has been made available to it in relation to the problems that have emerged in affected homes. Additional information has been sought from affected homeowners as well as from Donegal and Mayo County Councils, which will be of assistance in the research necessary to inform the preparation of the panel’s report.
The panel has also visited the owners of nine affected homes during the second week of May in order to view first-hand the problems that have emerged in those homes. Meetings with representatives from the Mica Action Group and with elected members and officials from Donegal County Council were also held in order to seek additional information on the nature of the problems that have emerged in the blockwork of the affected homes. Further meetings will be held with a broad range of stakeholders, other interested parties and elected representatives over the course of the panel’s investigations, including in particular with certain homeowners in Mayo, who are facing similar problems with their homes.
Early Iast week, I also held meetings with the elected members from Donegal County Council and with representatives from the Mica Action Group in order to hear their concerns directly. In addition, I visited three of the affected dwellings and spoke with the homeowners concerned on the very difficult and distressing situations they are facing due to the damage to their homes.
Ultimately, the panel’s terms of reference aim to establish the facts behind the problems that have emerged in Donegal and Mayo and to outline technical options for addressing the problems identified in order to assist affected homeowners. It is anticipated that the panel will require in the order of six months to complete their work. In this regard, I will await the outcome of the panel’s report before considering what further actions may be required to assist the parties directly involved in reaching a satisfactory resolution to the problems that have emerged in the two counties.
Question No. 51 answered with Question No. 30.
52. Deputy Thomas P. Broughan asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government the number of persons he expects to be accessing emergency homeless accommodation at the end of 2016; which of the recommendations of the Oireachtas Committee on Housing and Homelessness he plans to implement first; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18295/16]
View answerThe Programme for a Partnership Government includes a commitment to the preparation and publication of an ‘Action Plan for Housing’ within the first 100 days of Government. The Action plan will draw on the Report of the Special Committee on Housing and Homelessness, which was published on 17 June.
The Action Plan aims to address the challenges in the housing sector in a targeted and meaningful way, building on the considerable work already carried out or underway, including 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 facing most difficulty in accessing the housing and rental market. There will also be a focus on tackling, more quickly, the issue of those living in emergency accommodation by expanding and expediting solutions.
Importantly, the Action Plan will also set out measures to prevent homelessness and keep people in their own homes as far as possible, thereby making an important contribution to addressing the current homelessness issue.
A homelessness report is published on my Department’s website on a monthly basis providing details of individuals utilising State-funded emergency accommodation arrangements that are overseen by housing authorities. While it is not possible to forecast the number of persons who will be accessing homeless emergency accommodation at the end of 2016, the most recent report confirms that 3,993 adult individuals used State-funded emergency accommodation nationally during a week in May 2016, a slight decrease on the 4,068 recorded in respect of the previous month. These monthly reports are available on my Department’s website at the following link:
http://www.environ.ie/housing/homelessness/other/homelessness-data
53. Deputy Joan Collins asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government his views on the type of investigation that should be initiated into the waste industry in view of circumstances (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18302/16]
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 under the Waste Management (Collection Permit) Regulations 2007, as amended. Waste collection in individual local authority areas may also be subject to local bye-laws.
Waste collection is the statutory responsibility of local authorities. Under section 33 of the Waste Management Act 1996, as amended, there is a general duty on a local authority to either itself collect the household waste in its functional area or alternatively to arrange for its collection by third parties. I am precluded under Section 60(3) of the Waste Management Act 1996 from the exercise of any power or control in relation to the performance by a local authority, in particular circumstances, of a statutory function vested in under the Act.
While waste collection companies must comply with environmental and all other applicable legislation in the course of collecting waste, issues concerning the corporate structure of waste collection companies fall outside my remit as Minister.
