Written Answers Nos. 456-469
456. Deputy Micheál Martin asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government the number of voids that have been refurbished in Cork city and county in the past year since the end of Q1 of 2017; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18861/18]
View answerThe Voids Programme, introduced in 2014 by my Department, provides additional support to local authorities in preparing vacant units for re-letting. The purpose of the Voids Programme is to ensure that vacant units are actively targeted, with a view to minimising the turnaround and re-let time of these units and return them to use in an energy efficient condition.
During 2017, my Department provided funding to Cork City Council to enable them to bring 81 vacant properties back to productive use and funding was provided to Cork County Council to enable them to bring 48 such vacant properties back to productive use. Without substantial refurbishment under construction contracts, these social homes would have been left vacant and in turn would not be part of the active social housing stock.
457. Deputy Eoin Ó Broin asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government further to Parliamentary Questions Nos. 604 and 605 of 24 April 2018, the number of exits from homelessness in 2017 to local authority housing, approved housing bodies and the private rental sector by preventative interventions and exits from emergency accommodation for individuals and households, respectively, in tabular form. [18866/18]
View answerDetails in relation to the exits by individuals and households from homeless emergency accommodation to independent living in 2017 are set out in the following table.
|
Individuals |
Households |
|
|
Local Authority Lettings |
1,063 |
802 |
|
AHB Lettings |
856 |
715 |
|
Long Term Supported Accommodation |
82 |
80 |
|
Private Rented |
731 |
645 |
|
Housing Assistance Payment (HAP) |
1,997 |
1,741 |
|
Totals |
4,729 |
3,983 |
Information on preventative exits is only available for the Dublin region and is presented in the following table.
|
Adults |
Households/Tenancies |
|
|
Homeless HAP |
1,364 |
1,171 |
|
Other types (not specified by the Council) |
190 |
167 |
|
Totals |
1,554 |
1,338 |
458. Deputy Tony McLoughlin asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government if a decision on the issuing of seaweed harvesting licences has been made by his Department; if a policy has been agreed; when the applications are likely to be considered; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18874/18]
View answerApplications to harvest seaweed, most of which are by companies, are effectively on hold until such time as I am in a position to bring clarity to the regulatory regime applying to the harvesting of wild seaweed. This includes the interaction between the applications on hand from companies and any seaweed related rights that exist. At that point the applications on hand will come before me for determination. Work on this complex legal issue is continuing and I hope to have made substantial progress on the matter later in the second quarter of this year.
459. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government his plans for families who availed of the affordable housing scheme and now need to move due to geographical or family size but are not in a position to increase their mortgage and the clawback is still owing to the council in view of the fact that there is no follow-on to the scheme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18919/18]
View answerHomes sold to first-time buyers under previous affordable housing schemes, at a significant discount from market value, contained a clawback provision, in order to prevent short-term profit-taking on the resale of the discounted house, to the detriment of the schemes' objectives.
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.
In terms of new affordability initiatives, the Government is committed to ensuring that housing is affordable to buy or rent for households on low to moderate incomes. With regard to affordable purchase, I intend to establish a new scheme, to be based on the relevant provisions of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2009, which will be commenced shortly, and enabling regulations which are in preparation. In this regard, the inclusion of households as "eligible" for the purpose of the new scheme, including those that have purchased under previous affordable housing schemes, but whose current accommodation needs require the household to relocate to a different dwelling, are under active consideration.
460. Deputy Jonathan O'Brien asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government the number of private rented properties by county; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18978/18]
View answer461. Deputy Jonathan O'Brien asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government the number of private rented properties that comply with Part M regulations by county; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18979/18]
View answer462. Deputy Jonathan O'Brien asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government the percentage of private rented properties suitable for occupancy by persons in wheelchairs; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18980/18]
View answer463. Deputy Jonathan O'Brien asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government the number of private rented properties that are pre and post 1 June 1992, respectively; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18981/18]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 460 to 463, inclusive, together.
My Department does not hold or collate the data referred to by the Deputy in relation to private rental properties.
The Clerk of the Dáil requested that arrangements be put in place to facilitate the provision of information by State Bodies to members of the Oireachtas. Following the issue of Circular LG (P)05/16 on 20 September 2016 from my Department, the Residential Tenancies Board (RTB) set up a dedicated email address for this purpose, at OireachtasMembersQueries@rtb.ie.
Part M of the Building Regulations does not differentiate between owner occupied and rental properties, but applies equally to all dwellings, including social housing. New buildings and extensions or material alterations to existing buildings must comply with the legal minimum performance standards set out in the Building Regulations 1997-2017. In this context, the Building Regulations (Part M Amendment) Regulations 2010, and the accompanying Technical Guidance Document M – Access and Use (2010), which came into effect on 1 January 2012, set out the minimum statutory requirements that a building must achieve in respect of access. The TGDs are available on my Department’s website at
http://www.housing.gov.ie/housing/building-standards/tgd-part-d-materials-and-workmanship/technical-guidance-documents.
The requirements of Part M aim to ensure that, regardless of age, size or disability:
- new buildings other than dwellings are accessible and usable;
- extensions to existing buildings other than dwellings are, where practicable, accessible and usable;
- material alterations to existing buildings other than dwellings increase the accessibility and usability of existing buildings, where practicable;
- certain changes of use to existing buildings other than dwellings increase the accessibility and usability of existing buildings where practicable; and
- new dwellings are visitable.
Guidance on how to design, build and manage buildings and spaces so that they can be readily accessed and used by everyone, regardless of age, size, ability or disability is available in Building for Everyone, A Universal Design Approach, a National Disability Authority(NDA) publication, which may be accessed at www.nda.ie.
464. Deputy Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government his plans to allow county council mortgage holders who are first-time buyers and in the early stages of their mortgage to avail of the same rates as the first-time buyers on the Rebuilding Ireland home loan scheme. [18986/18]
View answerFollowing a review of the two existing local authority home loan schemes, the House Purchase Loan and the Home Choice Loan, a new loan offering known as the Rebuilding Ireland Home Loan was introduced, with effect from 1 February 2018. The new loan enables credit-worthy first-time buyers to access sustainable mortgage lending to purchase new or second-hand properties in a suitable price range. The low rate of fixed interest associated with the Rebuilding Ireland Home Loan provides first-time buyers with access to mortgage finance that they may not have otherwise been able to afford at a higher interest rate.
As with previous local authority house purchase loan finance, the Rebuilding Ireland Home Loan is available to first-time buyers only. This is to ensure the effective targeting of limited resources and there is no change in this regard.
The low interest rates for the Rebuilding Ireland Home Loan have been secured through the raising of €200 million by the Housing Finance Agency (HFA) on a fixed-rate basis for periods out to thirty years' maturity. Based on the pricing achieved, local authorities can offer a first tranche of fixed-rate annuity finance to eligible borrowers at rates of 2.0% and 2.25% per annum, for terms of up to 25 and 30 years respectively, up to an aggregate maximum of €200 million.
As such, these conditions are solely available to new applicants under the specific terms and conditions of the Rebuilding Ireland Home Loan. Existing local authority mortgage holders remain subject to the terms and conditions of their loans as originally agreed at the point of drawdown of their individual loans.
465. Deputy Darragh O'Brien asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government the number of social housing units delivered in each of the years 2015 to 2017, by local authority; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18987/18]
View answer466. Deputy Darragh O'Brien asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government the number of social housing units delivered in each of the years 2015 to 2017, by county; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18988/18]
View answer467. Deputy Darragh O'Brien asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government the number of social housing units planned for delivery in 2018, by local authority and county; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18989/18]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 465 to 467, inclusive, together.
Detailed data in relation to social housing delivery by each local authority, for the years 2015 to 2017, is available on my Department's website at the following link:
http://www.housing.gov.ie/sites/default/files/attachments/1b1-la-bld-by-area_10.xlsx.
In 2018, more than 25,000 additional households will have their housing need met, including through the Housing Assistance Payment Scheme and the Rental Accommodation Scheme. In this regard, I recently wrote to all local authorities setting out their individual social housing targets across build, acquisition and leasing for 2018 and also for 2018-2021. Details of these are available on the Rebuilding Ireland website at the following link:
http://rebuildingireland.ie/news/minister-murphy-publishes-social-housing-delivery-targets-for-local-authorities-2018-2021/.
Rebuilding Ireland, together with initiatives announced on foot of the targeted review of progress which was undertaken last year, as well as additional measures announced under Budget 2018, provides a robust framework for addressing the housing and homelessness challenges we face. My Department's focus, and that of all delivery agents, will remain on implementation and delivery to ensure that the range of objectives and targets set are achieved. A wide range of delivery mechanisms and a funding commitment of €6 billion over the lifetime of Rebuilding Ireland have been put in place to support the achievement of these targets.
In terms of setting and publishing targets for 2018 and 2018-2021, I want to drive transparency and also accountability at local authority level. Rebuilding Ireland is modelled on blended delivery across the main programmes of build, acquisition and leasing. While it is recognised that the pace of delivery, particularly under build activity, may vary from local authority to local authority, the range of delivery options available, combined with the support structures outlined, provide the necessary resources for local authorities and I expect all stakeholders to be fully mobilised towards meeting the target for 2018, and subsequent years.
In respect of build targets for 2018, a strong pipeline is already in place for local authorities and Approved Housing Bodies to deliver on these targets. The 2018 build target is for the delivery of 4,969 additional social housing homes, including 3,819 local authority and Approved Housing Body build units. The Quarter 4 2017 Construction Status Report, available on the Rebuilding Ireland website at the link below, provides project detail on the existing pipeline in place, which will support the delivery against this target. The report is based on activity up to end 2017 and, over the course of the first quarter of 2018, further projects will have been moving through from approval to on-site, with additional projects also being added to the pipeline. These will be reflected in the next quarterly report.
http://rebuildingireland.ie/news/minister-murphy-publishes-social-housing-construction-status-report-q4-2017/.
My Department will continue to work with local authorities to maximise delivery and also harness appropriate opportunities to deliver on additional build units in 2018, including through turnkey schemes.
468. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government his plans to change planning legislation with respect to unauthorised developments; if so, if such changes will impact on situations in which a local authority has deemed a development to be unauthorised and has issued a warning letter or enforcement or both and in which an application for planning permission or an appeal to An Bord Pleanála halts the process; if not, the reason therefore; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18991/18]
View answerUnder the Planning and Development Act 2000, as amended, all development, unless specifically exempted under the Act or the associated Regulations, requires planning permission.
Any development that is carried out without planning permission or that does not comply with the terms of a planning permission is unauthorised development and may be subject to enforcement action by a planning authority. Responsibility for enforcement action in relation to any breach of the planning code is a matter for individual planning authorities and extensive enforcement provisions are provided for in Part VIII of the Act.
Where a development has been carried out without firstly obtaining the necessary planning permission, a person may apply to their planning authority for retention permission in accordance with section 34(12) of the Act. An application for retention permission is required to be assessed by a planning authority in the same way as any other application; that is, the planning authority is required to consider the proper planning and sustainable development of the area, having regard to the provisions of the development plan, any submissions or observations received, and relevant Ministerial or Government policies, including any guidelines issued by my Department.
It should be noted that the fact that a person has made an application for retention permission is not a defence to a prosecution for unauthorised development and a development carried out without planning permission, or in breach of planning conditions, remains unauthorised unless and until retention permission is granted. Section 162(3) of the Act provides that no enforcement action under the Part VIII enforcement provisions of the Act shall be stayed or withdrawn by reason of an application for retention of unauthorised development.
I have no plans to amend the provisions in this regard at this time.
469. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government further to Parliamentary Question No. 646 of 8 March 2018, the position regarding the matter. [19026/18]
View answerHaving compiled the data requested, I replied to the Deputy's Parliamentary Question of 8 March 2018 in accordance with standard procedures on 29 March 2018.
