Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 27 May 2020
1059. Deputy Johnny Mythen asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government if county councils will be instructed to decrease the turnover time of houses to within at least a three month period (details supplied). [7628/20]
View answerUnder Section 58 of the Housing Act 1966, the management and maintenance of local authority housing stock, including pre-letting repairs to vacant properties, responsive repairs and implementing planned maintenance programmes, is a matter for each individual local authority.
Since 2014, my Department has provided funding for this purpose through the Voids Programme. The suite of works now being funded under the Voids Programme is tailored to facilitate quicker turnaround times. Local authorities are encouraged, where possible, to limit pre-letting works to only those required to ensure that the dwellings to be re-let meet the minimum standards required under the Standards for Private Rented Dwellings Regulations 2019.
There is a commitment under Rebuilding Ireland that local authorities will introduce a planned maintenance approach to the management of their housing stock. Under this approach, it is intended that major upgrade works required to the stock would be scheduled as part of an informed programme of works and not carried out as part of pre-letting works, as this can extend turnaround times. The move to a planned maintenance approach to the management of the social housing stock is central to the requirement for the quick turnaround of vacant units and my Department is involved in ongoing discussions on this important piece of work with the City & County Management Association.
