Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 4 October 2022
317. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the number of HAP applications that were refused due to the applicant landlord not having sufficient or appropriate planning permission in situ on the leased property, per county, in each of the years 2016 to 2021 and to date in 2022, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [48562/22]
View answer319. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the discretionary parameters in cases in which a rental payment that is due to a landlord under a tenancy secured by HAP can be withdrawn by his Department and in cases in which a tenant has had to pay the rent due to the landlord during a period of time that the local authority and or the Limerick centre is processing the claim; if the policy is per county, region and or on a national basis; the number of times that HAP was withheld due to monies being paid by the tenant during processing periods by local authority per county by family size in each of the years 2016 to 2021 and to date in 2022, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [48564/22]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 317 and 319 together.
The Housing Assistance Payment (HAP) scheme plays a vital role in housing eligible families and individuals. At the end of Q2 2022, over 104,700 HAP tenancies had been set-up since the scheme commenced, of which there were over 60,700 households actively in receipt of HAP support.
A key principle of the HAP scheme is that eligible households source their own accommodation in the private rented sector, which best suits their needs, in their area of choice. The accommodation sourced by tenants should be within the prescribed maximum HAP rent limits which are based on household size and the rental market within the area concerned.
Decisions in relation to HAP, including the suitability of HAP accommodation, is solely a matter for the local authority concerned. Data on the number of HAP applications refused due to the non-compliance of landlords with the planning regulations is not collected by my Department.
The HAP Shared Services Centre (SSC) manages the collection of all HAP tenants’ differential rents, on behalf of the relevant local authority, and the payment of all HAP rents to landlords on behalf of tenants supported by the HAP scheme.
Once a HAP application has been received and confirmed as valid by the relevant local authority, it is entered on the system by the local authority and then submitted for processing and payment by the HAP SSC. If there are delays at the processing stage within a local authority, payment to the landlord may be backdated to the date on which a complete and valid application form was received by the local authority. The landlord is therefore not penalised for any delay.
My Department continues to keep the operation of the HAP scheme under review.
