Written Answers Nos. 268-289
270. Deputy Niamh Smyth asked the Minister for Education and Skills the steps he is taking with the Department of Education and Skills on research and development at institutes in Counties Cavan and Monaghan on initiatives to attract jobs to these counties; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [22663/17]
View answerBoth Cavan Institute and Monaghan Institute are operated by Cavan Monaghan Education and Training Board (CMETB). CMETB works closely with both local authorities in Cavan and Monaghan as well as the local enterprise offices to ensure that the skills set is available in both counties to permit the growth and development of indigenous industry and meet the skills needs of those seeking to invest in the region.
In association with the Local Enterprise Office in Cavan, CMETB has supported the development of a Cavan employers HR and Skills Network Forum.
The Regional Skills Forum Manager facilitates ongoing collaboration between employers and education and training providers in the region, with the view to providing targeted skills development opportunities that are relevant to the needs of learners, society and the economy. This has the effect of increasing the supply of skills to the labour market, thereby addressing skills shortages, supporting job creation and overall economic growth and development in Cavan and Monaghan.
CMETB facilitated a skills audit in Cavan and Monaghan and are responding to the needs identified in that audit. CMETB Training Services are working closely with the Agri-Food industry in Cavan and Monaghan to meet identified skills needs in food preparation and manufacturing. It is consulting with the Hospitality sector including the Restaurant Association of Ireland and a number of employers in the local hospitality sector with a view to establishing a Professional Cookery traineeship to support the local food industry.
There are currently 166 registered employers of apprentices in Cavan and Monaghan and 334 registered apprentices. CMETB Training Services are also involved in the development of a number of new apprenticeships and is leading out on the development of two new programmes in the areas of engineering and HGV driving.
CMETB is engaging with indigenous companies and employers in the region to encourage up-skilling and development which will equip companies to grow. This function is delivered through its Training Services with courses based at Monaghan Education Campus and Monaghan Institute and also in the new Cavan Further Education and Training Campus.
Facilities in the new Cavan FET campus include general classrooms, IT rooms as well as an electrical installation classroom, delivering courses on smart technology, multimedia, IT support, healthcare and electrical installation. The army garage building has been upgraded to deliver a welding and fabrication course.
Additional provision in the area of skills for work, adult literacy and basic skills services are also provided by Cavan Institute and Monaghan Institute supporting workforce development in line with national skills policy. CMETB through Cavan Institute and Monaghan Institute is also providing bespoke training to a range of companies in Cavan and Monaghan.
Cavan Institute and Monaghan Institute are also providing an extensive range of post-leaving certificate courses to over 1,600 learners comprising school leavers and mature learner in a broad range of provision aimed at providing suitably qualified graduates for the local jobs market in a broad range of sectors. Both colleges work closely with employers through their work experience programmes.
The very broad range of activity and engagement by CMETB with learners, employers and enterprise demonstrates its commitment to ensuring the delivery of high quality training and skills to attract and retain investment and job opportunities for the region.
271. Deputy Brendan Griffin asked the Minister for Education and Skills the criteria and application process for an autistic unit in a primary school with vacant class rooms; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24685/17]
View answerThe National Council for Special Education (NCSE) is responsible, through its network of local Special Educational Needs Organisers (SENOs), for allocating resource teachers and special needs assistants to schools to support students with Special Educational Needs, including Autism. It is also the role of the NCSE to make appropriate arrangements to establish special classes in schools in communities where the need for such classes has been identified.
Special classes are part of a continuum of educational provision that enables students with more complex special educational needs to be educated, in smaller class groups, within their local mainstream schools and are for students who have a recommendation for a special class placement in their professional reports.
Students enrolled in special classes should be included in mainstream classes to the greatest extent possible, in line with their abilities.
There are currently 1,152 special classes nationally, which is an increase of over 100% on the number available in 2011. Of these, 126 are ASD early intervention classes, 526 are primary ASD classes and 236 are post-primary ASD classes. The remainder are non-ASD special classes.
The NCSE, in looking to open special classes, must take into account the present and future potential need for such classes, taking particular account of the educational needs of the children concerned. The NCSE will also take account of location and sustainability in looking to establish special classes in certain areas.
The NCSE has informed my Department that it intends to establish an additional 162 ASD Special Classes for the 2017/18 school year increasing the number of ASD Special Classes by 18% from 888 to 1,050. This will include 17 new ASD early intervention classes, 100 new primary ASD classes and 45 new post-primary ASD classes.
My Department will continue to support the NCSE in opening ASD special classes in areas where there is an identified need.
272. Deputy Michael Ring asked the Minister for Education and Skills the status of an appeal by a school (details supplied). [24752/17]
View answerI wish to advise the Deputy that DES Circular 0013/2017 for primary schools and 0014/2017 for post primary schools were published on 7 March 2017.
These Circulars set out the details of the new model for allocating special education teachers to schools.
The revised allocation model replaces the generalised allocation process at primary and post primary school level for learning support and high incidence special educational needs, and the National Council for Special Education (NCSE) allocation process which provided additional resource teaching supports to schools, to support pupils assessed as having Low Incidence disabilities.
The new model provides one single allocation to schools based on the profile. Schools will be front-loaded with resources to provide additional teaching support to all pupils who need such support.
The NCSE has published details of the appeals process on the NCSE website: www.ncse.ie.
Schools who wished to submit an appeal were asked to do so by 31 March 2017.
The NCSE has confirmed that an appeal has been received from Gaelscoil na Cruaiche.
The appeals will be processed in the coming weeks and it is intended that schools will be notified of the outcome by 31 May.
Schools could appeal whether the data used to calculate their school profile was correct and complete and whether it was correctly applied in the calculation of their 2017/18 allocation.
DES Circulars 0013/2017 and 0014/2017 outline the basis on which the Education Research Centre determined the allocations for all schools.
In advance of any submission of an appeal, schools were asked to read carefully the DES Circulars and in particular the relevant sections, which relate to the breakdown of the allocation, which may be under consideration for appeal.
The model will also allow for some additional provision for exceptional circumstances or where a school’s enrolment levels increase very substantially prior to the next review of the model. The National Council for Special Education will support schools in managing their special education teaching allocations in the first instance. Only in very exceptional circumstances, where it can be demonstrated that the schools profile has changed very significantly since the allocation was made to the school, may an additional allocation of hours be made to the school.
Guidelines for schools on the organisation, deployment and use of their special education teachers to address the need of pupils with special educational needs have also now been published and are available on my Departments website.
The Guidelines will support schools to reflect on how they can review and manage their timetabling practices to ensure the timetable is sufficiently flexible to meet the needs of all pupils in their school who have special needs. The Guidelines encourage schools to ensure they deploy their resources appropriately to meet the needs of all of the children in their school who require additional teaching support, including pupils with emerging needs, or new entrants.
273. Deputy Martin Heydon asked the Minister for Education and Skills if he will consider an appeal for a summer works application from a school (details supplied) in County Kildare; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24760/17]
View answerI wish to advise the Deputy that my Department has received correspondence from the school in question relating to its application under the Summer Works Scheme (SWS) (2016-2017). My Department is considering the correspondence concerned and expects to convey a decision to the school authority in the near future.
274. Deputy James Lawless asked the Minister for Education and Skills if he will address a matter with regard to a school (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24770/17]
View answerThe State Examinations Commission has statutory responsibility for operational matters relating to the certificate examinations.
In view of this I have forwarded your query to the State Examinations Commission for direct reply to you.
275. Deputy Stephen S. Donnelly asked the Minister for Education and Skills the funding that is available for the provision of information technology access and training for older persons (details supplied) [25049/17]
View answerThrough the 16 Education and Training Boards (ETBs), SOLAS funds community education provision throughout the country which is delivered at a local level supported by ETBs.
Last year over €11 million was provided for community education, benefitting almost 54,000 learners in courses nationwide. These courses cover a range of topics including subjects relevant to information technology.
The range and extent of community education provision is a matter for each ETB to decide in accordance with local demand and needs. It is firmly community-based, with local groups taking responsibility for, and playing a key role in, organising courses and deciding on programme content.
The organisation in question may wish to engage directly with ETBs in relation to the scope for funding provision within community education.
276. Deputy Brendan Griffin asked the Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government if he will review the issue of restrictions on slurry spreading times in view of the implementation method in other jurisdictions with a view to easing the difficulties that the current calendar-based system is causing for farmers; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24002/17]
View answerThe European Union (Good Agricultural Practice for Protection of Waters) Regulations 2014, as amended, give legal effect in Ireland to the Nitrates Directive and to our Nitrates Action Programme (NAP). The Directive requires all member states to define set periods when the land application of fertiliser, including slurry, is not allowed and in Ireland the closed season commences on 15 October.
The closed periods in Ireland were decided following extensive consultation and were discussed with farming bodies and the European Commission when Ireland’s Nitrates Action Programme was introduced. The provisions of the Regulations are underpinned by scientific research and good agricultural practice. The most recent scientific studies carried out on a diverse range of farm and soil types as part of Teagasc’s on-going Agricultural Catchments Programme have provided further evidence in support of the efficacy of the prohibited spreading periods in reducing nutrient losses to waters.
Ireland faces considerable challenges in meeting the requirements of the Water Framework Directive to bring all waters back to good status at least. Taking those challenges and the evidence in support of the benefit of closed periods into consideration, I do not intend to make any changes to the closed periods at the present time.
277. Deputy Jackie Cahill asked the Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government the steps he will take to bring vacant houses back into the housing market in view of the census 2016 figures published which revealed that there are 7,493 vacant houses in County Tipperary of which 3,020 are vacant for more than five years; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23986/17]
View answerPillar 5 of the Government's Rebuilding Ireland: Action Plan for Housing and Homelessness is specifically focused on Utilising Existing Housing Stock, with a key objective of ensuring that the existing vacant housing stock throughout the country and across all forms of tenure, in both the public and private sectors, is used to the optimum degree possible. In this regard, Action 5.1 of Rebuilding Ireland commits to the development of a National Vacant Housing Re-Use Strategy, informed by Census 2016 data, to:
- inform the compilation of a register of vacant units across the country,
- identify the number, location and reasons for longer-term vacancies (i.e. over 6 months) in high demand areas, and
- set out a range of actions to bring vacant units back into reuse.
To this end, the Housing Agency, which has lead responsibility for co-ordinating the development of the Strategy, established a working group in September 2016, comprising senior representatives from my Department, local authorities and from the Housing Agency itself to inform the Strategy. The Group is due to report in the coming weeks.
Ahead of finalisation of the Strategy, it is important to note that my Department has already introduced a number of significant measures under Pillar 5 of Rebuilding Ireland to incentivise the increased use of vacant housing stock to help meet the needs of those in receipt of social housing assistance. These initiatives include the Repair and Leasing Scheme, through which it is anticipated that up to 3,500 homes will be secured for social housing over the period to 2021 supported by a budget of €140m, the Buy and Renew Scheme with a €25m budget for 2017 and increasing thereafter to purchase and renew up to 500 housing units in need of remediation and make them available for social housing use, and the €70m Housing Agency acquisitions fund which will target the purchase of some 1,600 homes from the vacant property portfolios of financial institutions and investment companies over the period to 2020 for social housing use.
278. Deputy Catherine Martin asked the Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government if the changes to the planning status of large-scale peat extraction will be designed to ensure that there is no effective retrospective legalisation of extraction undertaken without environmental impact assessment. [24059/17]
View answer281. Deputy Catherine Martin asked the Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government if changes to the planning status of large-scale peat extraction will be designed to ensure that the carbon sequestration and storage functions of peatlands, important to achieving the goal of carbon neutrality for the land sector, will be promoted in a cost-effective manner. [24149/17]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 278 and 281 together.
My Department is currently progressing draft Regulations under the European Communities Act 1972 that will establish a new regulatory regime in respect of large-scale peat extraction. Under the new regime, the Environmental Protection Agency will be required to carry out an environmental impact assessment as part of its examination of applications for licences to commence peat extraction of 30 hectares or more from the date that the Regulations come into effect or to continue such peat extractions from a date to be determined, in accordance with the Regulations.
As indicated by my colleague, the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment in reply to Question No. 277 of 18 May 2017, the fact that the consent regime for large-scale peat extraction is changing should not inherently give rise to direct implications for changes affecting the sequestration potential or the storage function of peatlands.
279. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government his plans to amend the rules with regard to clawback for houses that were sold under the affordable housing scheme; the particular circumstances being considered; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24096/17]
View answerThe Affordable Housing Schemes helped qualifying applicants, who would not have otherwise been in a position to purchase a home, to become home owners through the purchase of designated affordable units. Houses sold to first time buyers under the various affordable housing schemes were priced at a significant discount from their market value. Buyers are free to sell their properties at anytime. However, in order to prevent short-term profit-taking on the resale of the house to the detriment of the objectives of the schemes, the schemes contained a clawback provision.
Under the clawback provisions, as set out in the Planning and Development Act 2000, as amended, and the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2002, as amended, where the purchaser proposes to sell the unit within 20 years of the date of purchase, he/she must refund to the local authority a percentage of the proceeds of the sale of the unit. The percentage of the proceeds to be repaid will be related to the proportion of discount from the market value originally received from the local authority. A full refund must be paid if the unit is sold within the first ten years of occupancy. A reduction of 10% per annum is given for each full year of occupancy between 10 and 20 years and after 20 years of full occupancy no refund would be due to the local authority.
However, where a person is selling an affordable home and the clawback amount payable would reduce the proceeds of resale below the initial price actually paid, the legislation provides for the amount of the clawback payable to be reduced to the extent necessary to avoid that result.
I have no plans to amend these provisions, which I consider to be equitable and reasonable.
280. Deputy Eoin Ó Broin asked the Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government his plans for the regulation of a company (details supplied); if he or his officials have met with the company and if so, when; the topics discussed; and his plans to bring forward regulations clarifying in law the position in relation to short-term lets. [24128/17]
View answerArticle 10(4) of the Planning and Development Regulations 2001-2015, dealing with change of use exemptions for planning purposes, provides that development consisting of the use of not more than four bedrooms in a house, where each bedroom is used for the accommodation of not more than four persons as overnight guest accommodation, shall be exempted from the requirement to obtain planning permission under the Planning and Development Act 2000, as amended, provided that such development would not contravene a condition attached to a permission under the Act or be inconsistent with any use specified or included in such a permission.
The interpretation and application of provisions relating to exempted development in any particular case is in the first instance a matter for the local planning authority concerned, or An Bord Pleanála on appeal or referral. Similarly, responsibility for enforcement action in relation to any breach of the planning code is a matter for individual planning authorities, under Part VIII of the 2000 Act. Under section 30 of the Act, I am specifically precluded from exercising any power or control in relation to any particular case, including enforcement, with which a planning authority is or may be concerned.
It should be noted that a recent determination by An Bord Pleanála in a particular case has determined that the exclusive use of a residential apartment for short-term holiday lettings is a material change of use requiring planning permission. Therefore, the continued operation of the apartment in question without such planning permission could be considered to be unauthorised development and subject to enforcement proceedings by the relevant local authority under the Planning Act.
In this connection, my Department has, by way of Circular letter PL12/2016 of 22 December 2016, brought this determination to the attention of all planning authorities to ensure that they are aware of:
-the grounds on which the Board reached its decision,
-the planning implications in terms of the requirement for such commercial use of residential units to be the subject of an application for planning permission, and
-the importance of a pro-active approach to planning enforcement generally in this regard.
A copy of the Circular letter is available on my Department’s website at the following link:
http://www.housing.gov.ie/sites/default/files/publications/files/pl_12-16_aph_6-16_recent_an_bord_pleanala_decision_on_short_term_lettings.pdf.
In the wider context, in December 2016, Government approved the publication of a Strategy for the Rental Sector. In terms of rental accommodation supply, the focus in the Strategy is on maintaining existing levels of rental stock and encouraging investment in additional supply, reflecting the shortages in the supply of rental accommodation in key locations, particularly in urban areas. In some of these areas, there is also significant demand for transitory short-term accommodation. In this context, providing short-term rentals at higher prices may be an attractive option for landlords.
The implications of the above-mentioned determination by An Bord Pleanála has raised a number of regulatory and other related issues, such as tax liability, residential tenancy regulation, support for tourism, and planning. The Strategy for the Rental Sector provides for the establishment by my Department of a working group, comprising representatives of relevant stakeholders, with a view to providing more information on the scale and nature of the issue and full clarity regarding the appropriate regulatory approach to be adopted in relation to short-term tourism-related lettings.
In February this year, I met with the company in question, together with officials from my Department, to discuss the development of a collaborative agreement to help ensure that short term letting be facilitated in ways that do not negatively impact on the supply of residential rental accommodation. Discussions in this regard are ongoing.
282. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government the person or organisation that is legally responsible in the event of an apartment complex having been issued with a fire certificate by the local authority and subsequently found to be non compliant with fire regulations upon inspection by the fire officer and requiring remedial works; if the person responsible is the builder, the architect, the developer, the owners or the local authority; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24162/17]
View answer289. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government his views on whether the self regulatory system should be reformed and an approved inspector model adopted in view of the number of developments built in recent years that are in breach of fire safety regulations and require remedial works; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24295/17]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 282 and 289 together.
Under the Building Control Acts 1990 to 2014, primary responsibility for compliance with the requirements of the Building Regulations rests with the designers, builders and owners of buildings. Enforcement of the Building Regulations is a matter for the 31 local building control authorities, who have extensive powers of inspection and enforcement in the event of breaches of the Building Control Regulations.
In general, building defects are matters for resolution between the contracting parties involved: the homeowner, the builder, the developer and/or their respective insurers, structural guarantee or warranty scheme. In this regard, it is incumbent on the parties responsible for poor workmanship and/or the supply of defective materials to face up to their responsibilities and take appropriate action to provide remedies for the affected homeowners.
In response to the many building failures that have emerged over the past decade, my Department introduced the Building Control (Amendment) Regulations 2014 (S.I. No. 9 of 2014), which require greater accountability in relation to compliance with Building Regulations in the form of statutory certification of design and construction by registered construction professionals and builders, lodgement of compliance documentation, mandatory inspections during construction and validation and registration of certificates.
A Certificate of Compliance on Completion is jointly signed by the builder and the assigned certifier. This must be accompanied by plans and documentation to show how the constructed building complies with the building regulations and also the inspection plan, as implemented.
In effect, the statutory Certificate of Compliance on Completion certifies that a building is compliant with all relevant requirements of the Building Regulations.
283. Deputy Sean Fleming asked the Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government the organisations that are subject to global valuation for commercial rate purposes to local authorities; the overall commercial rates paid by each of these organisations in 2011 in each local authority and for the most recent year for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24164/17]
View answerLocal authorities are under a statutory obligation to levy rates on any property used for commercial purposes, in accordance with the details entered in the valuation lists prepared by the independent Commissioner of Valuation under the Valuation Acts 2001 to 2015.
The Valuation Acts 2001 to 2015 provide for global valuations of public utility undertakings to be carried out by the Valuation Office every five years and entered on the central valuation list by that Office. Eleven public utility undertakings have been designated for such purposes. The Valuation Acts are under the aegis of my colleague, the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality.
Under section 53 of the Valuation Act 2001, as amended by the Valuation (Amendment) Act 2015, I, as Minister, am issued with a certificate by the Commissioner of Valuation in respect of each global valuation. In respect of the latest five-year cycle of global valuations I have been notified of global valuations in respect of BT Communications (Ireland) Limited, Eircom, Eirgrid, Electricity Supply Board, Gas Networks Ireland, Iarnrod Eireann, Meteor Mobile Communications Limited, RTE Transmission Network Limited, Three Ireland, Virgin Media Ireland Limited, and Vodafone Ireland.
The levying and collection of rates are matters for each individual local authority. The information requested in respect of payment of rates by ratepayers to each local authority is not available in my Department.
284. Deputy Gerry Adams asked the Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government the funding which was available to Louth County Council to develop Traveller accommodation in 2016; the amount of the available funding which was drawn down in 2016; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24213/17]
View answerIn accordance with the Housing (Traveller Accommodation) Act 1998, housing authorities have statutory responsibility for the assessment of the accommodation needs of Travellers and the preparation, adoption and implementation of multi-annual Traveller Accommodation Programmes (TAPs) in their areas. My Department’s role is to ensure that there are adequate structures and supports in place to assist the authorities in providing such accommodation, including a national framework of policy, legislation and funding.
The allocations and recoupment profiles for capital Traveller accommodation projects can vary across local authorities given the local priorities, circumstances and project timelines as set out in the TAPs. The first three TAPs covered the periods 2000-2004, 2005-2008 and 2009-2013. Local authorities adopted the fourth and current round of TAPs in April 2014, with the five-year rolling programmes running from 2014 to 2018. These programmes provide a road map for local authority investment priorities over the period. They also form the basis for the allocation of funding from my Department for Traveller accommodation.
As part of the annual capital allocation process, local authorities submit proposals for individual Traveller-specific projects and developments which are assessed on a case-by-case basis in my Department, in advance of allocations being made. Based on submissions received as part of the capital allocations process for 2016, Louth County Council did not receive an initial allocation from my Department.
Further funding is considered by my Department throughout the year in the light of proposals received, also on a case by case basis, while balancing the total amount available for Traveller Accommodation Capital projects and competing demands from other housing authorities. In this regard, there was a request from the Council for funding of €444,484 towards the refurbishment of Woodlands Park, Dundalk as a halting site and this was recouped to the Council during 2016.
285. Deputy Fergus O'Dowd asked the Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government the moneys allocated to each local authority for housing adaptation grants and housing aid for older persons in each of the past three years; if he will increase such allocations for 2017 for all priority one applicants that have been told they qualify but that there is no funding available; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24216/17]
View answerInformation on the Exchequer funding provided by my Department to each local authority under the Housing Adaptation Grants for Older People and People with a Disability is available on my Department’s website at the following link: http://www.housing.gov.ie/housing/statistics/social-and-affordble/other-local-authority-housing-scheme-statistics. On top of the exchequer funding amounts, local authorities make a further 20% contribution in respect of these grants.
For 2017, I am pleased that the funding available for these grants has increased once again, up by some 6% to €59.8 million. The detailed administration of the grants, including the approval and prioritisation of the various applications, is the responsibility of each individual local authority, but I expect that the increased 2017 funding will enable them to deliver an increased level of service to the applicants.
286. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government the steps he is taking to develop an accurate system for assessing the number of new housing units that are commenced and completed; the reason the numbers from his Department differ from statistics gathered by the Central Statistics Office; the changes he plans to make to current systems; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24217/17]
View answerThe recording and reporting of statistics on housing activity is a complex matter that involves tracking a range of different indicators – including planning permissions, commencement notices, ESB connections and several others - from various sources, each of which measures different aspects of housing market activity. Each dataset presents part of the overall housing activity picture but none of the datasets were specifically designed to count new houses. In respect of commencements, this activity is tracked through the Building Control Management System (BCMS). It is important to note that the BCMS was introduced with effect from 1 March 2014 to facilitate building control authorities, building owners, builders and construction professionals in discharging their responsibilities under the Building Control Act 1990, as amended.
In relation to completions, my Department has published ESB data on residential properties connected to the ESB grid for many years, as a proxy for house completions, as it represents the best available indicator that a residential unit is becoming available for occupation. This dataset includes recently completed once-off homes, multi-unit scheme developments and apartments as well as some re-connections to the grid, where properties that have been unoccupied for over two years are being brought back into use.
ESB data is collected at a point in time when the home is connected to the grid, rather than being related to the period of its construction. My Department has regularly drawn attention to this fact in the context of the recent economic and construction collapse where many homes which were commenced a number of years ago but remained unfinished for several years have gradually been finished out and brought to the market place as recovery took hold. Indeed, for a number of years my Department has published the results of annual surveys undertaken in relation to unfinished housing developments, including details in relation to the progress on completion of such developments.
It is important to note that the ESB figures are by no means the only dataset used to measure housing activity. For example, detailed information on residential construction activity is available from certain local authorities - at the end of 2016, the four Dublin local authorities reported 144 active construction sites, encompassing the construction of some 5,200 new dwellings. This is a really important source of information in terms of informing policies aimed at increasing supply in the Dublin housing market.
The Census of Population and Housing collected and published by the Central Statistics Office, yields a wide range of different statistics, none of which maps precisely to the measures which are disseminated by my Department. Amongst the most important of those measures are the net change to the total housing stock, the net change to the occupied housing stock and the numbers of units occupied which the residents report were constructed since 2011. All measures of stock are subject to additions as well as removals and there is no accepted measure at this time of the level of removals between Census waves, whereas my Department has provided an estimate of the additions to the stock for many years.
My Department is working with colleagues in the Central Statistics Office and across other interested Government Departments and Agencies, along with the continuing assistance of the ESB, to develop methodologies to refine and improve these measures. In this context my Department recently convened the Housing Analytics Group to monitor and review the various sources of housing data collected nationally to provide a comprehensive and coherent suite of statistics relating to housing matters. In collaboration with data owners and stakeholders, the Group will work to refine and improve existing data sources, and identify potential data gaps and new data sources, with a view to ensuring that public policy is informed by the best possible housing data. The first meeting of the Housing Analytics Group took place on 3 May.
In addition, the Central Statistics Office, which is the State’s authoritative voice in relation to the provision of high quality and independent statistical information supporting evidence-based decision-making, established an independent group in January 2017, chaired by an Assistant Director General, to examine housing statistics and my Department is a member of that group. This group is considering the best analytical approaches to reconciling and combining datasets in this area and will have oversight of, and a direct involvement in, the examination of any output arising from the variety of analyses currently underway.
287. Deputy Stephen S. Donnelly asked the Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government the funding that is available for the provision of information technology access and training for older persons (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24234/17]
View answerMy Department’s Social Inclusion and Community Activation Programme (SICAP) is the largest social Inclusion intervention of its kind in the State. It was rolled out in April 2015 and will run until 31 December 2017. Its aim is to tackle poverty, social exclusion and long-term unemployment through local engagement and partnership between disadvantaged individuals, community organisations, public sector agencies and other stakeholders. The Programme has three goals which focus on community development, education and training, and employment.
As SICAP one-to-one interventions are focussed on people of working age, the organisation concerned is not in receipt of funding through the programme. Given the type of support and the target group concerned this appears to be a matter for my colleagues, the Minister for Education and Skills and the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment.
288. Deputy Seán Haughey asked the Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government his plans to review the eligibility criteria for house purchase loans available from local authorities in order that non-first-time buyers that had their houses repossessed or sold due to mortgage difficulties but that are now in a financial position to take out new loans but cannot due to the operation of the Irish Credit Bureau can be eligible for such loans; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24244/17]
View answerLocal authority house purchase loan finance continues to be made available to first time buyers only. The Housing (Local Authority Loans) Regulations 2012 are kept under on-going review and there are no plans, at this time, to alter the scope of the Regulations to include non-first time buyers.
The option currently available for non-first time buyers is to seek home loan facilities from one of the commercial lending institutions.
