Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 13 November 2018
617. Deputy Jackie Cahill asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government the number of housing estates that are not taken in charge in County Tipperary; the names of these estates; the number of houses in each estate; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [46723/18]
View answerUnder Section 180 of the Planning and Development Act 2000 (as amended) it is a matter for the relevant Planning Authority to take a development in charge. Taking in charge is an iterative process and the number of developments in any given local authority area is subject to ongoing change as new developments commence, while other developments progress and move towards the completion phase, and then become the subject of applications to be taken in charge under Section 180 of the Act.
My Department does not hold current data on a year to year basis regarding developments that are to be taken in charge and such data is a matter for the relevant local authority.
However, an initial national baseline survey carried out in December 2015 indicated that, in respect of County Tipperary, there were 295 developments that were not in the charge of the local authority at that time and that 96 of these were the subject of a valid taking in charge application.
Details of this initial baseline survey are available on my Department's website at the following link:
https://www.housing.gov.ie/sites/default/files/publications/files/initiative_to_accelerate_taking_in_charge_of_residential_estates_-_initial_list_0.pdf.
On foot of this initial survey, my Department launched the National Taking-in-Charge Initiative (NTICI) in April 2016 to trial new approaches and working methods in supporting and accelerating overall national and local action on the process for taking-in-charge housing estates. Under the terms of the NTICI, which was underpinned by €10 million in funding, developments subject to valid taking-in-charge applications were eligible for funding for demonstration projects to inform the development of proposals for streamlining of the taking-in-charge process.
Ultimately, €7.5 million of the allocated funding was paid to local authorities in respect of the taking in charge of 330 developments, containing some 14,930 homes and this funding mechanism is now closed. Tipperary received €521,296 in funding for 15 developments, all of which have since been taken in charge.
Findings and recommendations from the NTICI process will be included in a report, which my Department intends to publish shortly and which I believe will be of considerable value to local authorities and other stakeholders in applying the lessons from the pilot programme in a more general roll-out of a more streamlined approach to taking-in-charge. The report will provide an update of the data for 2018 and it is anticipated that it will demonstrate a substantial reduction in the number of developments remaining to be taken in charge within County Tipperary.
Ultimately, however, progression of individual developments through the taking-in-charge process is a matter for the relevant housing developer, the residents in such developments and the relevant local authorities, following the procedures laid out in Section 180 of the Planning and Development Act.
