Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 18 April 2023
821. Deputy Róisín Shortall asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if he will respond to concerns regarding the energy efficiency retrofit programme being carried out by a local authority (details supplied); if he will liaise with the local authority to explore ways in which individual homes that are in urgent need of insulation works can be prioritised; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17590/23]
View answerMy Department launched the Energy Efficiency Retrofitting Programme (EERP) in 2013 with the aim of funding retrofit of social homes requiring insulation and energy upgrade works. Since the programme commenced in 2013 to the end of 2022, over 77,500 local authority social housing dwellings have been retrofitted with a total exchequer spend of over €251 million.
In 2021 a new holistic approach was applied to the programme, designed around the Programme for Government's commitment led by the Department for the Environment, Climate and Communications that calls for the 'retrofit' of 500,000 homes to a B2/Cost Optimal Equivalent (BER) standard by 2030, of which, approximately 36,500 are expected to be local authority owned homes, with grant funding provided by my Department for those local authority housing retrofits.
The programme has been devised in a way to give local authorities a level of flexibility when selecting properties to retrofit, ranging from those requiring minor levels of works to properties needing the maximum level of retrofitting required to bring them to a B2/Cost Optimal Equivalent standard. Works eligible under my Department's revised EERP include attic/cavity wall insulation or external wall insulation where required, windows and doors replacement, heat pump installation and ancillary and associated works. Works are typically carried out in this order. The installation of gas/oil boilers or solid fuel/inset stoves including wood pellet stoves are not supported by the Department under the Energy Efficiency Retrofit Programme.
My Department issues a full year allocation and target to local authorities with the selection of properties for inclusion in the programme and the eligible measures to achieve the B2/Cost Optimal Equivalent a matter for each individual local authority.
The 2023 EERP budget provides an increase in funding support from €85 million allocated in 2022 to €87 million in 2023, and the details of this year’s programme including target allocations are presently being finalised.
