Written Answers Nos. 252-271
252. Deputy John Curran asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government the number of home loans applied for; the number of home loans drawn down under the Rebuilding Ireland home loan scheme for each local authority; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [27182/18]
View answer256. Deputy Eoin Ó Broin asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government the number of Rebuilding Ireland home loans approved; the number of loans drawn down; the average loan approved; the amount approved; the draw down; and the number of loan applications rejected in each of the months since the scheme was introduced in tabular form. [27198/18]
View answer273. Deputy Sean Fleming asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government the number of Rebuilding Ireland home loan applications received from each county in tabular form; the average length of time taken to process these applications; the percentage of loans approved; the average length of time to issue approval; the number of loan applications refused; the average time taken to process same; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [27333/18]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 252, 256 and 273 together.
As with the previous local authority home loan offerings, loan applications under the Rebuilding Ireland Home Loan are made directly to the local authority in whose area the property proposed for purchase is situated. My Department does not directly collect information on the number of enquiries to local authorities regarding the loan or the number of loan applications received by local authorities.
However, as is currently the case, my Department will continue to publish information on the overall number and value of (i) local authority loan approvals and (ii) local authority loan drawdowns. Information up to Q3 2017 is available on the Department's website at the following link: http://www.housing.gov.ie/housing/statistics/house-prices-loans-and-profile-borrowers/local-authority-loan-activity, and this information will be updated on a quarterly basis as additional data is compiled.
The Housing Agency provides a central support service which assesses valid loan applications that are made to the local authorities and makes recommendations to the authorities as to whether loans should be offered to applicants.
I have asked the Agency to centrally compile figures of the numbers of applications that it has assessed and the most recent figures, as at the end of May, indicate that the Agency had received a total of 1,499 applications for assessment from local authorities. This was made up of 540 applications from Cork, Galway, Kildare, Louth, Meath and Wicklow and 619 applications from Dublin. There were 340 applications received from counties outside those listed.
Of the 1,499 applications received, 1,150 were deemed to be valid. Of these valid applications, 876 had been assessed and 52% of these had been recommended for approval. The average turnaround time for applications underwritten by the Housing Agency at the end of May was 22 calendar days.
Each local authority must have in place a credit committee and it is a matter for the committee to make the decision on applications for loans, in accordance with the regulations, having regard to the recommendations made by the Housing Agency.
With regard to the values of the loans approved to date, figures are not available concerning the breakdown of amounts approved in the manner referred to. However, the Housing Agency has advised that the average loan amount for the 458 applications recommended for approval by the end of May was €189,133.
253. Deputy John Curran asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government the number of social housing completions by each local authority in 2018, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [27183/18]
View answerData relating to Quarter 1 2018 Social Housing Delivery, across all local authorities, is currently being finalised and will be published on My Department's website when complete.
In 2018, I expect to see nearly 26,000 households having their housing need met. I have advised all local authorities of their minimum social housing targets across build, acquisition and lease both for 2018 and also for the multi-annual period to 2021, details of which can be accessed on my Department's website at:
http://rebuildingireland.ie/news/minister-murphy-publishes-social-housing-delivery-targets-for-local-authorities-2018-2021/.
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 provides project detail on the existing pipeline in place, which will support the delivery against this target. The report can be viewed at the following weblink:
http://rebuildingireland.ie/news/minister-murphy-publishes-social-housing-construction-status-report-q4-2017/.
Over the course of the first quarter of 2018, projects will have progressed further through the approval process and additional projects will also have been added to the pipeline. The Q1 2018 Construction Status report will be finalised shortly and will be published at that stage.
254. Deputy John Curran asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government the number of social housing completions by each local authority in 2017; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [27185/18]
View answerIn 2017, 25,901 households had their housing need met, with some 7,095 of these properties delivered under through the build/acquisition and long-term leasing mechanisms.
A total of 1,014 new build homes were delivered directly by local authorities. In addition, 761 new build homes were delivered by Approved Housing Bodies and a further 522 new build Part V homes were provided by local authorities and approved housing bodies, bringing to 2,297, the total of new build homes provided in 2017. A breakdown by local authority is set out in the Table.
|
- |
LA New Build |
AHB New Build (CAS and CALF) |
Part V -New Build (All delivery streams) |
Total New Build |
|
Carlow County Council |
43 |
0 |
10 |
53 |
|
Cavan County Council |
2 |
0 |
1 |
3 |
|
Clare County Council |
0 |
28 |
4 |
32 |
|
Cork City Council |
33 |
0 |
0 |
33 |
|
Cork County Council |
123 |
9 |
7 |
139 |
|
Donegal County Council |
11 |
0 |
0 |
11 |
|
Dublin City Council |
295 |
214 |
56 |
565 |
|
Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council |
38 |
0 |
137 |
175 |
|
Fingal County Council |
99 |
54 |
101 |
254 |
|
Galway City Council |
0 |
23 |
34 |
57 |
|
Galway County Council |
31 |
23 |
0 |
54 |
|
Kerry County Council |
10 |
0 |
0 |
10 |
|
Kildare County Council |
28 |
66 |
24 |
118 |
|
Kilkenny County Council |
29 |
19 |
3 |
51 |
|
Laois County Council |
0 |
0 |
1 |
1 |
|
Leitrim County Council |
0 |
2 |
0 |
2 |
|
Limerick City and County Co |
111 |
7 |
9 |
127 |
|
Longford County Council |
14 |
7 |
0 |
21 |
|
Louth County Council |
25 |
93 |
1 |
119 |
|
Mayo County Council |
3 |
7 |
0 |
10 |
|
Meath County Council |
16 |
101 |
23 |
140 |
|
Monaghan County Council |
39 |
7 |
5 |
51 |
|
Offaly County Council |
5 |
0 |
0 |
5 |
|
Roscommon County Council |
16 |
0 |
0 |
16 |
|
Sligo County Council |
8 |
0 |
6 |
14 |
|
Sth Dublin County Council |
0 |
45 |
80 |
125 |
|
Tipperary County Council |
1 |
12 |
0 |
13 |
|
Waterford City and County Council |
4 |
10 |
13 |
27 |
|
Westmeath County Council |
21 |
2 |
0 |
23 |
|
Wexford County Council |
9 |
32 |
6 |
47 |
|
Wicklow County Council |
0 |
0 |
1 |
1 |
|
TOTALS |
1,014 |
761 |
522 |
2,297 |
The significant expansion of the social housing build programme is evident in the Quarter 4 2017 Social Housing Construction Status Report, which was published on 19 April. The programme includes 846 schemes (or phases) at the end of last year, delivering over 13,400 homes, a very substantial increase on the 8,430 homes in the programme a year earlier. The full report can be accessed at http://rebuildingireland.ie/news/minister-murphy-publishes-social-housing-construction-status-report-q4-2017/.
255. Deputy Thomas Byrne asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government if he is satisfied with the level of uptake of the repair and leasing scheme in County Meath under the Rebuilding Ireland project. [27190/18]
View answerThe Repair and Leasing Scheme (RLS) was initially piloted in Carlow and Waterford and the pilot has been rolled out nationally since 23 February 2017. The scheme is one of a suite of measures available to local authorities to bring vacant properties back into use. Since the national roll out, my Department has been working intensively with local authorities and Approved Housing Bodies (AHBs) to develop and implement the scheme. There have been a number of national and local press advertising initiatives, as well as targeted online promotion, in an effort to ensure that property owners who can benefit from the scheme are aware of the benefits.
I can confirm that at the end of 2017, applications in respect of a total of 820 houses had been received by local authorities nationwide. A total of 8 applications were received in the Meath County Council area, one of which was deemed suitable for social housing following an initial evaluation. No lease agreements had been signed. A detailed breakdown of the RLS data up to end Q4 2017 is available on my Department’s website at the following link:
http://www.housing.gov.ie/housing/social-housing/social-and-affordble/overall-social-housing-provision.
The nature of the RLS means that the period leading up to the signing of contracts-sourcing and inspecting the properties, and negotiation with owners-is the slowest part of the process. All local authorities are active in sourcing and identifying potential properties and it is expected that significant numbers of contracts will be entered into once that process is complete. Once contracts are signed, delivery is estimated at between 2 and 6 months, a fraction of the time involved for a build project.
Feedback from local authorities indicates that, in many cases, properties requiring extensive repair work, and therefore not suitable for the RLS, have been secured under the Buy and Renew Scheme which facilitates local authorities or AHBs to purchase vacant properties for social housing use. In addition, anecdotal evidence suggests that the levels of vacancy recorded as part of Census 2016 have significantly reduced in the interim, particularly in urban areas like Dublin where many previously vacant homes have since been occupied.
It is clear from end 2017 output, that RLS has not yet delivered the level of new social housing homes envisaged. I have reviewed the operation of the scheme, as part of the review of Rebuilding Ireland, and I have concluded that the scheme has significant potential but there are areas where it can be improved to make it more attractive and effective. At the Housing Summit held on 22 January 2018, local authority Chief Executives were advised that, from 1 February 2018, a number of key changes were being made to the scheme. These include:
- a reduction in the minimum lease term required from 10 to 5 years;
- increasing the proportion of market rent available to property owners where they take on more responsibilities under the tenancy, meaning that up to 92% of market rent will be available; and
- provision of additional funding for property owners, over and above the current €40,000 limit, where the dwelling is a bedsit type dwelling being brought into compliance with the Standards for Rented Houses Regulations and made available for social housing.
I am making €32 million available for the scheme in 2018 and I expect local authorities and AHBs to continue to implement the scheme locally.
Data in respect of Q1 2018 is currently being collated and will be available shortly. My Department is actively engaging with all local authorities to accelerate the delivery of homes under this scheme.
257. Deputy Michael McGrath asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government the number of positions on the board in respect of the board of agencies and commercial State companies under his Department’s aegis in tabular form; the quorum required for a board meeting; the number of ministerial appointee vacancies on the board to date; the length of time the ministerial appointee vacancy has been present for each vacancy; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [27223/18]
View answerThe following table presents the current number of Ministerial appointee vacancies, the date when these vacancies occurred and the quorum for the boards of each State Body under the aegis of my Department.
|
STATE AGENCY/BODY |
QUORUM |
MAXIMUM NO. OF POSITIONS |
CURRENT MINISTERIAL APPOINTEE VACANCIES |
|
An BordPleanála |
3 |
10 |
NONE |
|
Ervia |
3 |
11 |
ONE VACANCY - VACANT FROM 20/01/2018 |
|
Gas Networks Ireland |
2 |
6 |
*** |
|
Housing Finance Agency |
3 |
12 |
NONE |
|
Housing and Sustainable Communities Agency |
3 |
9 |
NONE |
|
Irish Water |
2 for general meetings (and 4 for meetings of Directors) |
12 |
**** |
|
Local Government Management Agency* |
4 |
11 |
ONE VACANCY - VACANT FROM 29/09/2017 |
|
National Oversight and Audit Commission |
4 |
9 |
NONE |
|
National Traveller Accommodation Consultative Committee |
No quorum |
12 |
NONE |
|
Ordnance Survey Ireland |
5 |
9 |
NONE |
|
Property Registration Authority |
4 |
11 |
NONE |
|
Pyrite Resolution Board |
3 |
7 |
NONE |
|
Residential Tenancies Board* |
3 |
12 |
THREE VACANCIES VACANT FROM 31/05/2018 |
|
Water Advisory Body** |
3 |
5 |
TWO VACANCIES VACANT FROM 01/06/2018 |
*The LGMA and the RTB both have defined minimum numbers of board members. The decision to appoint members in addition to the minimum number is at the discretion of the Minister. In neither case do the current vacancies bring board membership below these minimum membership levels.
**The Water Advisory Body was established on 1st of June 2018, the recruitment process to fill the two vacancies will commence shortly.
***The Board of Gas Networks Ireland is an Executive-only Board and appointments to this Board are made by Ervia with Ministerial consent; currently Ervia is progressing the appointment of 2 Executives to this Board and such appointments require Ministerial consent.
****The Board of Irish Water is an Executive-only Board and appointments to this Board are made by Ervia with Ministerial consent; there are currently no Ministerial appointee vacancies being progressed for this Board.
Full information on the membership of the boards of the State Bodies under the aegis of my Department is published on the Department's website and is available at http://www.housing.gov.ie/corporate/transparency-data/appointments-state-boards/appointments-declg-state-boards.
258. Deputy Barry Cowen asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government the status of the €149 million allocated to housing assistance payment as outlined in budget 2018; the amount that has been spent; the way in which the money has been spent; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [27236/18]
View answerBudget 2018 increased the Exchequer funding for the Housing Assistance Payment scheme (HAP) by €149m to €301 million, in order to meet the continuing costs of supporting existing households and the costs of meeting the additional 17,000 households, targeted under Rebuilding Ireland, to be supported by HAP in 2018.
To date in 2018, expenditure of €117.8m has been incurred supporting over 37,000 active households on the HAP scheme.
259. Deputy Barry Cowen asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government the status of the €31 million allocated to the social housing current expenditure programme as outlined in budget 2018; the amount has been spent; the way in which the money has been spent; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [27237/18]
View answerThe Social Housing Current Expenditure Programme (SHCEP) supports the delivery of social housing by providing financial support to local authorities for the long term leasing of houses and apartments from private owners, developers, as well as new social housing homes build and acquired by Approved Housing Bodies (AHBs). Properties made available under the Programme are used to accommodate households from local authority waiting lists and are allocated to tenants in accordance with the relevant local authority’s allocation scheme. My Department recoups the cost of the agreements that are made with private property owners, including AHBs, to the local authorities. Therefore, the Progamme plays a significant role in facilitating local authorities to achieve the range of Build, Acquisition and Leasing social housing delivery targets that have been set for them over the period of Rebuilding Ireland.
The 2018 budgetary provision for the SHCEP is €115 million which represents an increase of €31 million on the 2017 provision. This is expected to fund the ongoing cost of the 10,152 social housing homes secured with support of the Programme at the end of 2017. In addition, a further 4,060 new social housing homes, targeted for delivery across the build, acquisitions and leasing streams in 2018 are to be funded under the Programme.
The amount of funding expended under the SHCEP at end May 2018 was €22 million with the full budget for 2018 expected to be used by year end. My Department is currently gathering delivery data from local authorities for Quarter 1 of 2018 and this will be published on my Department's website as soon as it is available.
260. Deputy Barry Cowen asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government the status of the €17 million allocated to homeless services and emergency accommodation as outlined in budget 2018; the amount has been spent; the way in which the money has been spent; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [27238/18]
View answerBudget 2018 provides for a national Exchequer allocation of €116 million for homeless services, which is an additional €18 million on the Budget 2017 provision. The purpose of the additional funding is to address the increased demand for emergency homeless services as well as assisting in supporting homeless households with long-term and sustainable housing solutions.
My Department does not fund any homeless service directly but provides funding to housing authorities towards the operational costs of homeless accommodation and related services. Under the funding arrangements, housing authorities must provide at least 10% of the cost of any funded services from their own resources. Furthermore, housing authorities may also incur additional expenditure on homeless related services outside of the Exchequer funding arrangements that apply. Therefore, the exact amounts to be spent by housing authorities on homeless services are a matter for those authorities.
Exchequer funding is provided through my Department to housing authorities on a regional basis. The following table sets out the funding recouped to housing authorities on a regional basis to date in 2018.
|
Region |
2018 (to date) |
|
Dublin |
€36,983,247 |
|
Mid-East |
€600,000 |
|
Midland |
€502,128 |
|
Mid-West |
€875,000 |
|
North-East |
€357,520 |
|
North-West |
€214,522 |
|
South-East |
€1,250,000 |
|
South-West |
€1,225,241 |
|
West |
€845,894 |
|
Total |
€42,853,552 |
261. Deputy Barry Cowen asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government the status of the €9 million allocated to the RTB and Housing Agency to support social housing delivery as outlined in budget 2018; the amount that has been spent; the way in which the money has been spent; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [27239/18]
View answerThe Residential Tenancies Act 2004 regulates the landlord-tenant relationship in the rented residential sector and sets out the rights and obligations of landlords and tenants. The Residential Tenancies Board (RTB) was established as an independent statutory body under the Act to operate a national tenancy registration system and to facilitate the resolution of disputes between landlords and tenants. The support of social housing delivery does not come under its remit.
While the RTB has recourse to sources of external funding primarily via tenancy registration fees, these resources are not sufficient to fund the anticipated full operating expenses for 2018, estimated at €15.8 million. As a consequence, Exchequer funding of €4.39m is being provided in 2018 to support the RTB's operations. This grant amount reflects the expansion of the RTB’s core functions as a result of actions and commitments under Rebuilding Ireland and the Strategy for the Rental Sector. A further €950,000 has also been provided for in the RTB's 2018 budget in relation to the establishment of a Deposit Retention Scheme. In total, funding of €2.355m has been drawn down by the RTB to date in 2018.
The Housing Agency provides essential support to Local Authorities, AHBs and my Department in the delivery of housing and housing services and is provided with an annual grant to fund its operational costs. In addition, under the Pyrite Resolution Act 2013, the Agency administers the Pyrite Remediation Scheme and makes payments on behalf of the Pyrite Resolution Board. In total, provision has been made for €37.1m in funding to the Housing Agency in 2018 to cover its range of activities, €30m of which relates to the Pyrite Remediation Scheme. To date, funding of €15.147m has been drawn down, €11.560m of which is pyrite remediation related.
262. Deputy Barry Cowen asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government the status of the €2 million allocated to An Bord Pleanála to assist in speeding up the planning process as outlined in budget 2018; the amount has been spent; the way in which the money has been spent; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [27240/18]
View answerSection 116 of the Planning and Development Act 2000 provides for the payment to An Bord Pleanála in each financial year of a grant of such amount as the Minister may fix, with the consent of the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform. The grant goes towards financing the administration and general day-to-day expenses of the Board.
The current expenditure grant allocation to the Board for 2018 is €16.8m, an increase of €1.6m on the corresponding allocation for 2017. In addition, the Board has been allocated a capital grant of €0.5m for 2018 to implement an ICT strategy which will facilitate the introduction of on-line planning services as part of a complete upgrade and replacement of its core systems. In the year to date, the Board has drawn down €8.4m and €0.5m of its current and capital allocations, respectively.
The increase in the current funding requirements in 2018 is attributable to a number of factors, primarily relating to increased staffing costs. In particular, additional staffing has been provided in relation to the implementation of the strategic housing development process introduced under the Planning and Development (Housing) and Residential Tenancies Act 2016.
263. Deputy Barry Cowen asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government the status of the €3 million allocated to Met Éireann as outlined in budget 2018; the amount that has been spent; the way in which the money has been spent; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [27241/18]
View answerThe €3m referred to relates to subscriptions towards international meteorological organisations, membership of which by Ireland plays a vital role in the provision of meteorological services by Met Éireann. To date in 2018, €2.7m of this €3m has been drawn down.
264. Deputy Barry Cowen asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government the status of the €326 million allocated to social housing construction and acquisition as outlined in budget 2018; the amount that has been spent; the way in which the money has been spent; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [27242/18]
View answerAdditional capital funding of €403 million was provided in Budget 2018 for the construction and acquisition of social housing units by local authorities and approved housing bodies. This additional funding was assigned to the Local Authority Capital Programme for the construction and acquisition of new social housing, the Capital Assistance Scheme, which delivers housing for specific categories of need, and the Capital Advance Leasing Facility, which provides funding to approved housing bodies to facilitate the construction and acquisition of new social housing units.
The 2018 budgetary provision and the funding expended to date in 2018 under these programmes is set out in the following table.
|
Programme |
2018 Budget |
Expenditure to 19 June 2018 |
|
Local Authority Capital Programme |
€638.727m |
€243.804m |
|
Capital Assistance Scheme |
€88.800m |
€23.310m |
|
Capital Advance Leasing Facility |
€91.706m |
€22.809m |
The overall capital provision for housing in 2018 is €1.14 billion and this will support the delivery of almost 5,900 new social homes through construction and acquisition.
265. Deputy Barry Cowen asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government the status of the €26 million allocated to repair and leasing initiative as outlined in budget 2018; the amount has been spent; the way in which the money has been spent; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [27243/18]
View answerThe Repair and Leasing Scheme (RLS), as well as the Buy and Renew Scheme, has been developed to assist private property owners and local authorities or Approved Housing Bodies (AHBs) to harness the accommodation potential that exists in certain vacant dwellings across Ireland.
The RLS is targeted at owners of vacant dwellings, who cannot afford or access the funding needed to bring their dwellings up to the required standard for rental property. Subject to the suitability of the dwelling for social housing, and the agreement of the property owner, the cost of the necessary repairs will be met upfront by the local authority or an approved housing body (AHB).
Data for end Q1 2018 is currently being collated and will be available shortly. However, at the end of 2017, a total of 820 applications had been received under the scheme. Local authorities were engaging with the property owners in relation to 573 properties, 31 agreements for lease had been signed and 9 homes had been delivered and tenanted. A detailed breakdown of the RLS scheme data up to end Q4 2017 is available on my Department’s website at the following link:
http://www.housing.gov.ie/housing/social-housing/social-and-affordble/overall-social-housing-provision.
It is clear from the end 2017 output that RLS has not yet delivered the level of new social housing homes envisaged. I have reviewed the operation of the scheme, as part of the review of Rebuilding Ireland, and I have concluded that the scheme has significant potential but there are areas where it can be improved to make it more attractive and effective. At the second Housing Summit held on 22 January 2018, I announced a number of key changes to the scheme which took effect from 1 February 2018. These include:
- a reduction in the minimum lease term required from 10 to 5 years;
- an increase in the proportion of market rent available to property owners where they take on more responsibilities under the tenancy, meaning that up to 92% of market rent will be available; and
- provision of additional funding for property owners, over and above the current €40,000 limit, where the dwelling is a bedsit type dwelling being brought into compliance with the Standards for Rented Houses Regulations and made available for social housing.
I am making €32 million available for the scheme in 2018 and I expect local authorities and AHBs to continue to implement the scheme locally. The amount that has been been spent to date in 2018 is set out in the following table:
End May 2018 RLS Capital Spend
|
Local Authority |
€ |
|
Carlow County Council |
€39,889 |
|
Meath County Council |
€8,698 |
|
Waterford City and County Council |
€64,620 |
|
Total |
€113,207 |
266. Deputy Barry Cowen asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government the status of the €25 million allocated to the local infrastructure housing activation fund as outlined in budget 2018; the amount has been spent; the way in which the money has been spent; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [27244/18]
View answerAdditional funding of €50 million over the period to 2020 was announced in Budget 2018 for a second call for proposals under the Local Infrastructure Housing Activation Fund. The aim of LIHAF is to increase housing supply through enabling infrastructure such as roads, bridges and parks.
However, it is now the case that significantly increased funding will be available for enabling infrastructure projects through the new €2 billion Urban Regeneration and Development Fund and the €1 billlion Rural Regeneration and Development Fund, announced under Project Ireland 2040. Local authorities will also be able to apply to the new Serviced Sites Fund which will support delivery of both off- and on-site infrastructure which can unlock local authority-owned lands in order to deliver affordable homes.
Given the cross-over between these funds, I have reviewed whether it is necessary to have a further call specifically under LIHAF, and I have concluded, in consultation with the Minister for Finance and Public Expenditure and Reform, that the funds that had been allocated for the second call under LIHAF should be transferred to the new Serviced Sites Fund to increase the Exchequer funding available under the Fund from €25 million to €75 million over the period 2018 to 2021. This funding will help to speed up the development of affordable housing from publicly-owned sites and I will be issuing a call for proposals under that Fund next week.
267. Deputy Barry Cowen asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government the status of the €10 million allocated to urban renewal and regeneration as outlined in budget 2018; the amount that has been spent; the way in which the money has been spent; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [27245/18]
View answerFurther to the announcement in Budget 2018 of allocated expenditure of €10m in the current year under the proposed Urban Renewal Fund, the Government has since launched Project Ireland 2040 which includes a €2 billion Urban Regeneration and Development Fund (URDF) focusing on cities and towns in excess of 10,000 in population, as well as a complementary €1 billion Rural Regeneration and Development Fund (RRDF) for smaller settlements and rural areas.
The €2 billion URDF is aimed at securing more compact, sustainable growth in Ireland's five cities and other larger urban centres. This funding, separate and in addition to normal sectoral funding streams, is designed to leverage a greater proportion of residential and commercial development, supported by infrastructure, services and amenities, within the existing built-up areas of our larger urban settlements. The URDF will be a competitive bid-based programme that will operate on a multi-annual basis over the period to 2027.
An outline of the approach that the Government intends to take in relation to the URDF will be published shortly with URDF bids for funding invited on an initial three-year period to 2021, with the scope for further bids in 2019 and subsequently over the lifetime of the National Development Plan.
Having regard to the potential for synergies and overlaps between the URDF and the proposed Urban Renewal Fund, which it is envisaged will have a funding stream of €50m over a four-year period, the scope of the latter scheme is currently being reviewed with a likely specific targeted focus on tackling dereliction and vacancy in our larger urban settlements. It is intended that the details of the scheme will be published as soon as possible after the publication of the details and call for proposals under the URDF, which will issue in the coming weeks.
269. Deputy Clare Daly asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government further to Parliamentary Question No. 220 of 30 May 2018, if a list of compliant buildings will be established which can be accessed by website in the interest of transparency to aid prospective tenants. [27293/18]
View answerWhen a building is constructed and occupied, statutory responsibility for safety is assigned by section 18(2) of the Fire Services Acts, 1981 and 2003 to the ‘person having control’ of the building. Local authorities have powers of inspection and enforcement under these Acts, which may be relevant where fire safety concerns arise in apartment developments.
In such circumstances, Fire Services work with building owners to ensure immediate risks are addressed and that plans are put in place for works to bring buildings into compliance. They have enforcement powers for cases where co-operation is not forthcoming, or progress cannot be made on an agreed basis.
In the aftermath of the Grenfell Tower tragedy in June 2017, and in recognition of fears expressed for fire safety, the National Directorate for Fire and Emergency Management were requested to convene and coordinate a Task Force to lead a re-appraisal of our approach to fire safety in Ireland. The work of the Task Force has now been completed and its findings are reflected in “Fire Safety in Ireland: Report of the Fire Safety Task Force”, which is available on my Department's website at the following link: http://www.housing.gov.ie/sites/default/files/publications/files/fire_safety_in_ireland_-_report_summary_of_conclusions_and_recommendations.pdf.
The Task Force discussed the issue of fire safety in apartment buildings and states in its Report that the key to life safety in apartment buildings is a proper two-stage fire detection and alarm system, an evacuation strategy, the involvement of residents in preventing nuisance alarms and knowing how to react in the event of fire alarms being activated. There are a number of recommendations in relation to this area in the report, but these do not involve the establishment of a list of compliant buildings. The Management Board of the National Directorate for Fire and Emergency Management have now been mandated to oversee the implementation of the report's recommendations.
270. Deputy Darragh O'Brien asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government the estimated first and full year cost of increasing the housing capital budget to 2008 levels. [27307/18]
View answerThe 2018 capital provision for housing is €1.141 billion. The cost of increasing the capital provision to the 2008 expenditure level is €375 million.
The total housing budget for 2018 is €1.9 billion compared with expenditure of €1.7 billion in 2008.
271. Deputy Darragh O'Brien asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government the estimated first and full year cost of increasing housing assistance payment limits at 5% intervals. [27311/18]
View answerThe Housing Assistance Payment (HAP) rent limits were increased significantly in July 2016, including by up to 60% in some areas. The Government also provided flexibility to each local authority to agree to a HAP payment up to 20% above the maximum rent limit, where it is necessary, because of local rental market conditions.
At the end of Q4 2017, 22.4% of the total number of households being supported by HAP were benefiting from the additional flexibility. When the additional discretion available to homeless households in the Dublin Region is removed, 16.7% of households nationally were benefiting from the additional flexibility. In those cases, the average rate of discretionary payment being used was 15.2% above the relevant rent limits. Data for Q1 2018 will be available shortly.
The previous revision to the maximum rent limits was proposed jointly by the Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection and my Department following a comprehensive rent review process. The review considered a number of data sources, namely the Residential Tenancies Board (RTB) database, Daft.ie Rental Market Reports and the CSO Rental Indices. Consultation and engagement with those administering both schemes was also carried out. In relation to the Deputy's query, detailed analysis would be required to provide the figures requested in order to ensure any increases reflect the market trends experienced under both the rent supplement scheme and the HAP scheme.
My Department monitors HAP data on an ongoing basis, as well as other key information relating to the private rental market. Indications are that the current HAP rent limits, and the flexibility to exceed those rent limits, provide local authorities with sufficient capacity to assist households in securing rented accommodation that meets their needs.
I have no plans at present to increase HAP rent limits, a course of action which could have further inflationary effects on the private rented sector and thereby have a potentially detrimental impact on the wider rental market, including for those households who are not receiving HAP support.
