Written Answers Nos. 255-273
255. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government the number of local authorities that have lands within their possession that are serviceable or serviced on which local authority and affordable houses can be started as a matter of urgency; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39318/18]
View answer259. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government the extent to which, in order to plan for future housing needs, a calculation has been done as to the precise number of local authority and affordable houses required on an annual basis; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39322/18]
View answer262. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government the number of contractors available to undertake local authority or affordable housing construction in County Kildare; when such works will start in view of the large number of applicants on the waiting list; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39325/18]
View answer263. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government the emergency measures he will take to make an immediate impact on the housing shortage with particular reference to local authority and affordable housing in the counties immediately adjacent to Dublin such as County Kildare; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39326/18]
View answer264. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government the degree to which he continues to have discussions with Kildare County Council with a view to action likely to make a major impact on the housing situation, with particular reference to ensuring the availability of sufficient new housing starts in order to meet the requirements of the affordable and local authority housing sector; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39327/18]
View answer265. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government the lands now immediately available in the counties adjacent to Dublin to facilitate immediate local authority and affordable housing starts; the extent to which planning requirements in this regard have been complied with; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39328/18]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 255, 259 and 262 to 265, inclusive, together.
The active management of the publicly owned housing land bank continues as a key part of a range of complementary actions being progressed under the Rebuilding Ireland Action Plan for Housing and Homelessness, designed to accelerate and increase housing output. To this end, details of some 1,700 hectares of land in local authority and Housing Agency ownership were published on the Rebuilding Ireland Housing Land Map, with the potential to deliver some 42,500 homes nationally. This includes circa 135 hectares in the functional area of Kildare County Council. These mapped sites can be viewed at the following link:
http://rebuildingireland.ie/news/rebuilding-ireland-land-map/.
Local authorities will continue to maximise the use of publicly owned lands for social housing, affordable purchase, and cost rental.
In addition to the active management of the publicly owned land bank, assessments of population and housing need are required. The Summary of Social Housing Assessments is conducted annually, specifically assessing the social housing needs of the population. The 2018 summary which has been published this week and is available on the Department's website, show that 71,858 households were assessed as qualified and being in need of a social housing support as of 11 June 2018; this represents a decrease of 13,941 households or 16% on the last assessment in June 2017. Indeed, since Rebuilding Ireland, the numbers of those waiting on social housing homes, has dropped from 91,600 to 71,858. In Kildare, there has been a 22% in 2018 in the number of households qualifying for social housing support, down from 5,103 households in June 2017 to 3,962 in 2018.
With specific reference to Co Kildare, the Council has prepared the Kildare County Development Plan 2017-2023, which seeks, amongst other things, to address housing needs specific to Kildare, particularly in section 2.8 - Population and Housing Growth. The plan is available at the following link:
www.kildare.ie/countycouncil/Planning/developmentplans/KildareCountyDevelopmentPlan2017-2023/.
Also, an overall Housing Need Demand Assessment (HNDA) will be required to be undertaken in future planning, in accordance with the vision as set out in Project Ireland 2040 and the National Planning Framework.
With regard to social housing delivery in County Kildare, this data is published quarterly. The most recent report which I published today, reflects the position at the end of Quarter 2 of 2018 and is available on the Rebuilding Ireland website at the following link:
http://rebuildingireland.ie/news/minister-murphy-publishes-latest-social-housing-construction-report/.
This latest report shows 544 homes added to the social housing stock in County Kildare through build, acquisition and leasing in the first six months of this year.
Regarding affordable housing, a multi-pronged approach is being pursued, targeting households on low to moderate annual gross incomes of maximum €50,000 for a single applicant and maximum €75,000 for joint applicants.
In terms of affordable housing for purchase, the relevant provisions of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2009 have now been commenced.
In terms of affordable rental I am determined that cost rental homes become a major part of our rental landscape in the future, making a sustainable impact on housing affordability, national competitiveness, and the attractiveness of our main urban centres as places to live as well as work. Two cost rental projects have previously been announced for Emmet Road, Inchicore, and at Enniskerry Road, Dundrum. On foot of these pilots, cost rental will be rolled out across other suitable sites.
In order to support local authorities to get their sites ready for affordable housing, I am providing Exchequer funding of €75 million for enabling infrastructure via the Serviced Sites Fund over the four years to 2021. When local authority co-funding is included, an overall minimum investment of €100 million will be available under the Fund to offset the costs of providing both on-site and off-site enabling infrastructure for sites in order for them to be brought into use for affordable housing.
A total of €15 million Exchequer funding has been allocated for 2018, to which the local authority minimum contribution of €5 million will be added. This should enable the provision of infrastructure for some 500 affordable homes this year, based on a maximum level of €40,000 infrastructure investment per home. The bids that have been received from 9 local authorities, including from Kildare County Council, under the first call are now being assessed, and I expect to make initial funding awards next month.
From engagements with the local authorities in Dublin, the wider Greater Dublin Area as well as Cork and Galway cities, their initial estimates suggest that they have lands with the potential to deliver some 4,000 new affordable homes. My Department is continuing to work with the key local authorities and the Housing Agency to identify sites for at least 10,000 new affordable homes from local authority owned land.
In addition, the Government has now launched the Land Development Agency, which will be aiming to deliver some 150,000 new homes over the next 20 years. The new Agency has an immediate focus on managing the State’s own lands to develop new homes, and regenerate under-utilised sites, and will deliver at least 40% of any housing potential on such lands for both social and affordable housing purposes.
My Department is continuing to work with all local authorities and State bodies to ensure that housing is delivered from appropriately located and publicly owned sites to meet our current and future housing requirements.
My Department does not maintain a record of private contractors. Rather, construction tenders are publicly available online at www.etenders.gov.ie, where contractors may tender for public construction work available in local authority areas.
256. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government if he will address the issue whereby applicants for local authority and affordable houses are excluded from the local authority housing lists on the basis of excessive income and excluded from Rebuilding Ireland loans on the basis of insufficient income; if regulations to address this issue will be introduced as a matter of urgency; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39319/18]
View answer257. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government the steps he will take to address the housing need of extra applicants for affordable and local authority housing in view of housing repossessions by lending institutions in respect of buy-to-let developments and individual households; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39320/18]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 256 and 257 together.
The income eligibility bands for access to social housing support, and the authority area assigned to each band were based on an assessment of the income needed to provide for a household's basic needs, plus a comparative analysis of the local rental cost of housing accommodation across the country. It is important to note that the limits introduced at that time also reflected a blanket increase of €5,000 introduced prior to the new system coming into operation, in order to broaden the base from which social housing tenants are drawn, both promoting sustainable communities and also providing a degree of future-proofing.
The accepted benchmark of housing affordability is that households, particularly low- to moderate-income households, should not be paying more than one third or 35% of their disposable income on accommodation costs and the income thresholds for access to social housing support generally achieve this. Recognising that there are people who do not qualify for social housing but find it very challenging to purchase or rent at market rates, the Government has brought in new measures specifically targeted at delivering affordable homes.
Affordable housing is generally targeted at households earning a maximum gross income of €50,000 (single applicant) or €75,000 (joint applicant). Affordable homes to buy will be delivered under a new statutory Scheme; the relevant provisions of Part 5 of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2009 have been commenced and regulations & guidance are being finalised.
This new Scheme replaces all previous affordable purchase schemes; is led by housing authorities; is a shared equity scheme with a fully repayable equity share/discount; eligibility and priority are set out in the legislation and will be expanded upon in the regulations; and the equity repayments will be pooled into a strategic affordable housing fund managed by the HFA.
The Scheme is complementary to other Government schemes which help first-time buyers to buy a home, such as the Help to Buy Scheme and the new Rebuilding Ireland Home Loan. The Rebuilding Ireland Home Loan was introduced from 1 February 2018, following a review of the two existing local authority home loan schemes, the House Purchase Loan and the Home Choice Loan. 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 otherwise be able to afford at a higher interest rate.
Single applicants for the loan may earn up to €50,000 gross per annum, while the combined income of joint applicants may be up to €75,000 per annum. These income limits are unchanged from the previous local authority loan offerings. The maximum dual-income threshold also applies to the new Affordable Purchase Scheme which will enable a maximum purchase price of c. €320,000, which is in line with the purchase limits set out under the Rebuilding Ireland Home Loan.
It is important to note that there are no set minimum income limits for the scheme; however, applicants must be capable of repaying the mortgage in accordance with the statutory credit policy underpinning the loan.
Full details of the loan’s eligibility criteria and other information are available from the dedicated Rebuilding Ireland Home Loan website:
http://rebuildingirelandhomeloan.ie/. Subject to certain conditions, any person who meets the eligibility criteria may apply for a loan regardless of whether or not they are on the local authority housing list or qualified for social housing support.
There is also a gap between social housing and the rental market that needs to be filled, in order to support housing affordability, national competitiveness and the attractiveness of our main urban centres as places to live as well as work. Cost rental is an important component of progressive housing systems around Europe and after detailed financial modelling by my Department, the National Development Finance Agency and the European Investment Bank/Housing Finance Agency, Dublin City Council is working on the first major cost rental project to deliver over 300 cost rental homes at Emmet Road, Inchicore, as part of a mixed-tenure development of some 470 homes in total.
In parallel, the Housing Agency, Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council and a number of Approved Housing Bodies (AHBs) have been working on a smaller-scale cost rental pilot, at Enniskerry Road, the tenders for which have been issued. Learning from these pilot projects, cost rental will now be rolled out across other suitable sites.
As part of the broader social housing reform agenda, a review of income eligibility for social housing supports is underway. The Housing Agency is carrying out the detailed statistical work which will underpin this review on behalf of my Department. The review will obviously have regard to current initiatives being brought forward in terms of affordability and cost rental and will be completed when the impacts of these parallel initiatives have been considered.
258. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government if he will approach the lending institutions with a view to the temporary cessation of home repossessions in order to reduce the number of applicants being forced onto the local authority waiting lists; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39321/18]
View answerAs Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government, I have no role or function in the regulation or policy making in relation to the banking sector. Regulation of banking and financial services comes within the remit of my colleague, the Minister for Finance.
260. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government the number of new housing applicants registered with the various local authorities throughout the country in each of the past three years to date; the number housed by the local authorities; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39323/18]
View answerDetails on the number of households qualified for social housing support in each local authority area are provided in the statutory Summary of Social Housing Assessments (SSHA). The most recently conducted SSHA, carried out in June 2018, details the number of households on all local authority waiting lists as at 11 June 2018 (the count date).
The SSHA has been conducted on an annual basis since 2016, links to the relevant reports for 2016, 2017 and 2018 are below. Table 2.9 in these reports provides data on the length of time a household has been deemed qualified for social housing support. It should be noted that the SSHA is a point in time exercise and does not necessarily reflect the dynamic nature of entry to and exit from the list.
2016: https://www.housing.gov.ie/sites/default/files/publications/files/summary_of_social_housing_assessments_2016.pdf
2017: https://www.housing.gov.ie/sites/default/files/publications/files/sha_summary_2017.pdf
2018: https://www.housing.gov.ie/sites/default/files/publications/files/summary_of_social_housing_assessments_2018_-_key_findings.pdf .
While my Department reports quarterly on the number of social housing supports delivered through the range of Government funded schemes, this does not take account of other households that may have been housed by local authorities or Approved Housing Bodies through, for example, routine relettings. The allocation of social housing support is a matter for the relevant local authority in accordance with the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2009, and associated regulations. Section 22 of the 2009 Act requires all local authorities, as a reserved function, to make an allocation scheme determining the order of priority to be accorded in the allocation of dwellings to households qualified for social housing support and to households approved for a transfer, the allocation of which would, in the opinion of the authority, meet the accommodation needs and requirements of the households. The manner in which the allocation process is managed is a matter for the relevant local authority concerned.
261. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government the steps which can be taken to arrange for the immediate commencement of local authority housing schemes and or the provision of serviced local authority sites for use by eligible applicants in the short term; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39324/18]
View answer270. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government the extent to which delays in the provision of local authority houses have been caused by logistics such as planning permission, availability of services or other issues; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39333/18]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 261 and 270 together.
The Government’s Rebuilding Ireland Action Plan for Housing and Homelessness is firmly focused on increasing supply to meet social housing needs under a range of programmes in all counties, with the target to deliver 50,000 social homes through build, acquisition and leasing in the period to 2021, as well as meeting the housing needs of an additional 87,000 households through the Housing Assistance Payment and the Rental Accommodation Scheme. The Action Plan is supported by €6 billion in funding, which means that local authorities have the financial support available to them to deliver on their local targets.
I have provided all local authorities with their individual social housing targets across all delivery streams, including build. Details of these targets 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/.
My Department also publishes information on the approved social housing construction projects in all counties via quarterly Construction Status Reports. The most recently available report is at the following link:
http://rebuildingireland.ie/news/minister-murphy-publishes-latest-social-housing-construction-report/ and includes the approved projects for all local authority areas.
The timing and delivery of each of these projects is a matter for the local authorities and the approved housing bodies. I am keen, however, that all local authorities, further accelerate their programmes and I have assured them that the necessary funding to support their activity is available. This includes developing their own land banks and working with approved housing bodies and developers on all new opportunities.
Logistical challenges will always arise with a significant programme of new construction but my Department works with all local authorities, approved housing bodies and other statutory bodies to overcome these. My Department's engagement with the local authorities regarding the delivery of social housing includes ongoing contact on a very regular basis on individual projects and structured quarterly meetings to review progress on all projects. These engagements can also involve site visits to review project activity at first hand.
Elected Members play an important role in relation to social housing delivery in terms of approving new projects under the Part 8 process. They can also play an important role in overseeing their authority's work to make sure projects are advanced in a timely manner. Elected members on Housing Strategic Policy Committees can play a particularly important role in scrutinising delivery.
266. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government the extent to which the number of local authority housing lists have been reduced in the past 12 months whether on income grounds or new house building; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39329/18]
View answerDetails on the number of households qualified for social housing support in each local authority area are provided in the statutory Summary of Social Housing Assessments (SSHA). The most recently conducted SSHA, carried out in June 2018, details the number of households on all local authority waiting lists as at 11 June 2018 (the count date).
The results show that, on the count date, 71,858 households were assessed as qualified and being in need of a social housing support. This represents a decrease of 13,941 households or 16.2% on the last assessment in June 2017. Since commencing Rebuilding Ireland, Action Plan for Housing and Homeless in 2016, the numbers of households on social housing waiting lists have dropped from 91,600 to 71,858 – a reduction of 22%.
Under Rebuilding Ireland, a total of 50,000 social housing homes will be delivered through build, acquisition and leasing programmes. In addition to this, 87,000 additional households will be supported through the Housing Assistance Payment Scheme (HAP) and the Rental Accommodation Scheme (RAS).
The combination of 50,000 social housing homes and 87,000 HAP and RAS social housing supports, which are being funded by the Government in the period 2016 to 2021, means that over 137,000 long term and flexible options will be made available to those on housing waiting lists under Rebuilding Ireland.
The Government, working with the local authorities, Approved Housing Bodies and other delivery agents, is already exceeding the delivery targets set for the first two years of Rebuilding Ireland. Of the combined target of 137,000 referred to above, just under 45,000 households have had their housing need met by the end of year 2 of the Rebuilding Ireland Plan – 33% of those targeted under the 6 year Plan as a whole.
In 2017, 25,901 households had their housing need met, with some 7,095 of these properties delivered through the build/acquisition and long-term leasing mechanisms.
Data relating to overall social housing delivery in 2017 and to end Q2 2018, across all local authorities, is published on my Department's website at the following link:
www.housing.gov.ie/housing/social-housing/social-and-affordble/overall-social-housing-provision.
In 2018, I expect to see at least 25,500 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 the following link:
http://rebuildingireland.ie/news/minister-murphy-publishes-social-housing-delivery-targets-for-local-authorities-2018-2021/.
267. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government the number of persons who have made an application for Rebuilding Ireland loans; the number granted, refused and pending, respectively; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39330/18]
View answer268. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government if and when responsibility for processing local authority housing loans will be given to each individual local authority with a view to shortening the process period; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39331/18]
View answer269. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government the reason most commonly given for refusal of Rebuilding Ireland loans to young couples; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39332/18]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 267 to 269, inclusive, 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 loan applications received by each local authority.
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 Q4 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.
In addition, the Housing Agency provides a central support service which assesses 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 on the numbers of applications that it has assessed and the most recent figures, as at the end of August, indicate that the Agency had received a total of 2,628 applications for assessment from local authorities. Of the 2,628 applications received, 2,074 were deemed to be valid. Of these valid applications, 1,989 had been assessed and 1,024 of these (51%) had been recommended for approval.
As has been the case since the introduction of the Rebuilding Ireland Home Loan, applications are made directly to the local authority in which the applicant wishes to purchase a property. Applications are then processed by the local authority before being sent to the Housing Agency for assessment. Based on this comprehensive financial analysis, the Housing Agency makes a recommendation to the local authority on each application.
Each local authority must have in place a credit committee which makes the final decision on applications for loans, in accordance with the statutory credit policy issued in accordance with the Regulations and having regard to the recommendations made by the Housing Agency.
The purpose of the scheme is to enable credit-worthy first-time buyers to access sustainable mortgage lending to purchase new or second-hand properties in a suitable price range, where they have been unable to obtain sufficient mortgage finance from a commercial lender. However, in accordance with the statutory credit policy, as with any other loan, potential borrowers must be credit-worthy and must demonstrate that they have the ability to repay the loan. It would be irresponsible to give individuals approval for loans that may see them placed under undue financial strain. The creditworthiness checks that are part of the approvals process for the Rebuilding Ireland Home Loan, and which may result in individuals being refused, help to safeguard against this eventuality and assist in protecting both the applicant and the Exchequer.
Of the 1,989 applications underwritten to the end of August 2018, 49% were not recommended for approval. Reasons for applications not being reconsidered under the scheme include an inability to satisfactorily demonstrate sufficient repayment capacity for the loan, or having an unsatisfactory savings record.
271. Deputy John Brassil asked the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht if she will liaise with the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine to review a more workable system to allow farmers in designated special areas of conservation who are not in REPS or GLAS to farm their lands sustainably; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [39157/18]
View answerIreland is bound by the EU Habitats and Birds Directives, as transposed in the 2011 Natural Habitats Regulations, and must therefore protect habitats and species in the sites for which they are designated. I understand that it is a condition of the Basic Payment Scheme that farmers must be compliant with the requirements of the Habitats and Birds Directives.
In order to avoid both accidental or deliberate damage in designated sites, it is necessary to have a system by which potentially damaging activities require consent before they can be carried out. This consent is required from me as Minister or, as appropriate, from another licensing or permitting authority. Each regulatory authority must take into account the requirements of the Habitats and Birds Directives before consenting to an activity, as is the case of the approval of GLAS plans by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine. In some cases, planning permissions may be required.
Where consents are required of my Department, these are referred to as Activities Requiring Consent. The Activities Requiring Consent are most often applicable to new activities, or an intensification of existing activities, but this is not always the case. Depending on the scale and type of activity proposed, my Department's staff may be able to make a determination on consent or may require further information to make such a determination. This is not a matter of qualification or experience - it is incompatible with the Directives, and Irish law, to make such determinations without adequate information.
This matter is one of the subjects under discussion in a series of meetings currently underway between my officials and the farming organisations. The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine participates in these meetings.
272. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht if the difficulty between a person (details supplied) and Waterways Ireland has been resolved; if not, if efforts can be made to ensure that the difficulty can be resolved without delay in their case; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [39200/18]
View answerWaterways Ireland has informed me that a formal application for the permission in question has not yet been received. However, Waterways Ireland has been liaising on this matter.
Once a formal application is in hand Waterways Ireland will be required to obtain approval from the North South Ministerial Council (NSMC). Waterways Ireland has in the meantime provided a Draft Licence, which has been accepted, as an interim measure to facilitate a related transaction.
273. Deputy Jackie Cahill asked the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht further to Parliamentary Question No. 252 of 26 April 2018, the European regulation that obliges member states to protect against double funding for delivery of the same objective; and if it is EU or national policy that deems participation in both GLAS and the National Parks and Wildlife Service farm plan scheme simultaneously as not permissible. [39359/18]
View answerArticle 28 of Regulation (EU) No 1305/2013 on support for rural development by the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD) states that “payments shall be granted annually and shall compensate beneficiaries for all or part of the additional costs and income foregone resulting from the commitments made”. It is a fundamental principle underpinning the rules for public expenditure in the EU that costs for the same activity cannot be funded twice and that double funding must be avoided, including between EAFRD co-financed schemes and schemes funded from the national exchequer. To protect against double funding, a national policy decision has been taken to not administer separate payments to farmers in both the NPWS farm plan scheme and GLAS.
