Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 10 November 2020
387. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if local authorities can engage in leasing arrangements for the provision of houses in respect of part 5 of the Planning and Development Act 2000; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [35238/20]
View answerSection 96(3) of the Planning and Development Act, 2000 (as amended) sets out 6 types of Part V agreement that may be made with respect to lands that are subject to a residential development pursuant to a relevant planning permission, which include:
1. Transfer of up to 10% of the land that is the subject of the application;
2. Build and transfer of up to 10% of the proposed housing units;
3. Transfer of housing units on any other land in the functional area of the planning authority;
4. Lease of housing units either on the site subject to the application or in any other area within the functional area of the planning authority;
5. A combination of a transfer of a lesser part of the land that is the subject of the application and one or more of the other options; and
6. A combination of options not involving a transfer of the ownership of land.
The Part V Guidelines issued in January 2017 under section 28 of the Planning and Development Act 2000 by the then Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government set out that, in overall terms, the priority option which should normally be pursued by Local Authorities is the acquisition of social housing on the development site, by means of transfer of ownership to the Local Authority or to an Approved Housing Body and this remains the case. Circular PL 11/2016 and Circular Housing 04/2020 sought to clarify in what instances it may be appropriate to enter into a leasing arrangement for Part V units, including for build to rent developments. These Circulars clearly state that the priority remains the acquisition of completed units. It should be noted, however, that the decision is one for the local authority, as per the provisions of Section 96(3)(c) and (h) of the Planning and Development Act, 2000 (as amended).
