Niamh Smyth
Question:78. Deputy Niamh Smyth asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government the progress being made on reducing the social housing waiting lists; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [47175/18]
View answerWednesday, 14 November 2018
Questions (78)
Written answers
Details 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, which has been carried out on an annual basis since 2016.
The 2018 assessment shows that 71,858 households were assessed as qualified and being in need of social housing support. This represents a decrease of 13,941 households or 16.2% on the last assessment in June 2017. Indeed, since the Government's Rebuilding Ireland Action Plan was launched in 2016, the numbers have decreased from 91,600 to 71,858, a reduction of 22%.
In terms of meeting the need of households on waiting lists, Rebuilding Ireland provides for a total of 50,000 social housing homes to be delivered through build, acquisition and leasing programmes and 87,000 additional households to be supported through the Housing Assistance Payment Scheme and the Rental Accommodation Scheme, over the 6 year period 2016 to 2021. At end June 2018, over 57,000 households had their social housing need met, representing over 40% of the overall Rebuilding Ireland target.
In 2019, funding of €2.4 billion is being provided for the delivery of housing programmes, which will allow for the housing needs of almost 27,400 households to be met next year. 10,000 of these homes will be delivered through build, acquisition and long term leasing programmes.
My Department engages with all local authorities on a regular basis regarding the delivery of social housing. I am confident that the actions, targets and resources available to all local authorities under Rebuilding Ireland provide a strong platform for meeting our challenges in the housing sector and continuing to reduce the number of households on waiting lists.