Written Answers Nos. 436-446
436. Deputy Aengus Ó Snodaigh asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the funding spent by his Department on Roma Culture, Heritage and Identity annually in 2022 and 2023; and a breakdown by current and capital spending. [24588/23]
View answerMy Department has no specific remit in relation to funding for Roma Culture, Heritage and Identity.
437. Deputy Fergus O'Dowd asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if he will seek details from each individual local authority in respect of the percentage of rural one-off housing applications that have been refused by county and local authority, over the years 2020, 2021, 2022 and to date in 2023, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24729/23]
View answerMy Department does not hold the details requested. A breakdowns of housing application refusals based on the parameters requested may be sought from relevant Local Authorities directly.
438. Deputy Fergus O'Dowd asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if he will clarify whether the fresh-start principal under the local authority home loan scheme is available to those who previously owned and sold/lost a property prior to their second home purchased with a spouse/partner, in so far as the person can show they have low income and savings and cannot attain loans through the standard avenues, and where the person is not applicable for social housing support; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24757/23]
View answerThe Local Authority Home Loan is a Government-backed mortgage for those who cannot get sufficient funding from commercial banks to purchase or build a home. It has been available nationwide from local authorities since 4 January 2022 for first-time buyers and fresh start applicants. The loan can be used both for new and second-hand properties, or to self-build.
The following categories of persons are eligible to apply for the Local Authority Home Loan under the Fresh Start principle :
• Applicant(s) who previously purchased or built a dwelling, together with a spouse, a civil partner or a person with whom he or she was in an intimate and committed relationship are eligible under the Fresh Start principle where this relationship has ended, and they have divested themselves of their interest in the previous property.
• Applicant(s) that previously purchased or built a residential property, but has been divested of this property through insolvency or bankruptcy proceedings, are eligible to apply. However, a separate assessment of creditworthiness will be conducted by the underwriters. This applies when the applicant has exited the insolvency/bankruptcy proceedings
Decisions on all housing loan applications must be made in accordance with the Regulations establishing the scheme and the credit policy that underpins the scheme, in order to ensure prudence and consistency in approaches in the best interests of both borrowers and lending local authority.
The final decision on Local Authority Home Loan applications is a matter for the relevant local authority.
Further information can be found on the dedicated website https://localauthorityhomeloan.ie/
439. Deputy Mick Barry asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the amount in the capital budget as set out in table 13 of the Stability Programme Update 2023 that is designated for building social housing; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24799/23]
View answerThe capital expenditure provision for my Department in 2023, as set out in the Revised Estimates for Public Services 2023 published by the Department of Public Expenditure, NDP Delivery and Reform (DPENDR) and available at www.per.gov.ie/en/rev/, is €3,525m.
The breakdown of this capital allocation by Programme is set out below:
|
PROGRAMME |
2023 GROSS CAPITAL PROVISION €m |
|
Housing |
2,294 |
|
Water |
932.2 |
|
Local Government |
30.5 |
|
Planning |
157.4 |
|
Met Éireann |
21.5 |
|
Heritage |
89.4 |
|
TOTAL |
3,525 |
These provisions will be used to advance capital investment across a range of programme areas within my Department’s remit.
The Housing for All Strategy is the Government’s plan to increase the supply of housing to an average of 33,000 per year over the next decade. The annual targets include the delivery of 88,400 new social homes and 53,800 new affordable homes in the period 2022-2030. Housing for All is supported by an investment package of over €4bn per annum, through an overall combination of €12bn in direct Exchequer funding, €3.5bn investment through the Land Development Agency (LDA) and €5bn lending through the Housing Finance Agency (HFA).
This funding will facilitate the delivery of new social, affordable and cost rental homes, along with the implementation of a broad range of housing programmes providing targeted support to meet housing needs.
In relation to capital ceilings for 2023-2025, these are outlined in the National Development Plan published by DPENDR. See link below:
www.gov.ie/en/publication/774e2-national-development-plan-2021-2030/
440. Deputy Mick Barry asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the estimated cost of providing family hubs for the 1,639 families currently accessing emergency homeless accommodation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24800/23]
View answerMy Department's role in relation to homelessness involves the provision of a national framework of policy, legislation and funding to underpin the role of housing authorities in addressing homelessness at local level. Statutory responsibility in relation to the provision of homeless services rests with individual housing authorities.
My Department does not fund any homeless service directly but provides funding to housing authorities towards the operational costs of homeless accommodation and related services under Section 10 of the Housing Act, 1988. Under Exchequer funding arrangements, housing authorities must provide at least 10% of the cost of services from their own resources. Furthermore, housing authorities may also incur additional expenditure on homeless related services outside of the Exchequer funding arrangements provided by my Department.
A homelessness consultative forum has been established in each of the nine homeless regions in accordance with Chapter 6 of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, 2009. Decisions on the range of emergency accommodation services and funding required in each region are a matter for individual housing authorities in consultation with the Management Group of the relevant regional joint Homelessness Consultative Forum. It is a matter for the Management Group to bring forward proposals including for family hub facilities to my Department that meet the needs of homeless individuals in their administrative area, and the funding requirements will be considered in this context.
Financial reports from each of the homeless regions, setting out total expenditure on homeless services including on family hub facilities are published on my Department's website at the following link; www.housing.gov.ie/housing/homelessness/other/homelessness-data.
I have continued to assure housing authorities that funding for all required homeless services, including the provision of emergency accommodation, will be provided this year.
441. Deputy Mick Barry asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the estimated cost of expanding the Housing First programme to the 1,639 families currently accessing emergency homeless accommodation, including the provision of wraparound services; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24801/23]
View answerThe Housing First approach to addressing homelessness places direct access to housing first and foremost for vulnerable individuals using homeless services consistently or intermittently over long periods of time, and those unable or resistant to accessing homeless services and who may then become habitual rough sleepers. These individuals often have complex high support needs such as mental or physical health problems, addiction issues or dual diagnosis (the presence of mental ill health and a substance addiction).
The cost of increasing the targets for Housing First would be dependent on the numbers of individuals requiring these supports, the level of support required and where the individuals are located. In this regard, it is important to note that the majority of individuals and families in emergency accommodation do not require the level of supports provided by Housing First. In terms of the costs of funding such an expansion of the Housing First programme my Department does not hold that specific data.
442. Deputy Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage whether his Department has issued guidance on assessing credit time for an applicant for social housing, who may have, in fleeing domestic violence, left one local authority for another area, and in so doing lost credit time built up within that local authority; and if he agrees that if this person is an applicant in the local authority they have moved to, the previous credit time may be taken into account. [24815/23]
View answerGenerally, is not possible for a household previously on one social housing waiting list to carry the time spent on that list when applying to another local authority. However, local authorities may provide for exceptional or emergency cases to qualified households, allowing immediate housing outside of normal waiting lists priorities, should circumstances require. They may also reserve a certain proportion of dwellings for, among other things, allocation to particular categories of households, particular forms of tenure, and households transferring from other forms of social housing support.
As an immediate and short term response, a local authority may provide short-term emergency housing to persons forced to leave their homes because of domestic violence, without having to assess their eligibility for social housing support.
The day-to-day operation of the social housing system, including the oversight and practical management of the lists of qualified households awaiting accommodation, is a matter solely for each local authority.
In 2017, my Department issued policy and procedural guidance to local authorities relating to the role they can play to assist victims of domestic violence.
My Department has committed to a review of the 2017 guidance, the first phase of which has been completed in conjunction with the CCMA. A number of recommendations have emerged that require further policy consideration across a number of difference areas. Any updates to the policy and guidance will be communicated to local authorities in due course.
443. Deputy Jim O'Callaghan asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the number of homebuyers in each county who have now been approved under the first-home shared equity scheme, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24915/23]
View answerThe First Home Scheme, launched on 7 July 2022, supports first-time buyers in purchasing new houses and apartments in the private market through the use of an equity share model. Full details of the First Home Scheme are available at: www.firsthomescheme.ie
The Scheme is overseen and managed by the First Home Scheme Ireland Designated Activity Company (First Home DAC), on behalf of scheme founders (the State and participating mortgage lenders). This body is responsible for collating and issuing statistical information as it pertains to the scheme. The First Home DAC has published its Q1 2023 Public Update covering the period from 7 July to 31 March, which can be found on its website at: www.firsthomescheme.ie/about-the-company/quarterly-updates/.
444. Deputy Sean Sherlock asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if he will intervene in a dispute between a local authority (details supplied). [24956/23]
View answerThe provision of a fire service in its functional area, including the establishment and maintenance of a fire brigade, the assessment of fire cover needs and the provision of fire station premises, is a statutory function of individual fire authorities under the Fire Services Acts 1981 and 2003. My Department supports fire authorities through setting general policy, providing the legislative framework, running a central training programme and issuing guidance on operational and other related matters and providing capital funding for priority infrastructural projects. The National Directorate for Fire and Emergency Management manages fire service issues in my Department.
Fire services in Ireland are provided by the local authorities in accordance with the provisions of the Fire Services Acts, 1981 and 2003. Under this legislation, 31 authorities provide fire prevention and fire protection services for communities through 27 service delivery structures. Approximately 3,300 local authority staff engaged at 217 fire stations nationwide deliver local authority fire services, 16 of these stations being staffed by full-time firefighters, a further 4 are mixed full-time and retained, and 197 are staffed by retained firefighters, with approximately 2,065 retained firefighters around the country. It is important to note that the numbers of fire service front-line staff have been maintained at a constant high level throughout the economic challenges of the past number of years, even when staffing numbers, by necessity, were reduced in other areas of the local authority sector.
I am aware of an ongoing dispute regarding the operational status of Ballincollig fire station. Ballincollig Fire Station has been non-operational since November 2021 as a result of retained firefighters at that stations appointment to full-time positions in Cork City following a recruitment process. Fire calls in the Ballincollig area are responded to from the Fire Brigade Headquarters in Cork City. A recruitment process is underway to fill retained firefighter vacancies in Ballincollig. The Workplace Relations Commission have invited Cork City Council and SIPTU to talks with a view to finding a resolution to this dispute. I would strongly encourage all parties involved to use the established Industrial Relations machinery of the State to find a viable solution.
445. Deputy Mairéad Farrell asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if consideration has been given to including self-builds which commenced prior to the announcement of the waiver connection and council fees; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24990/23]
View answerOn 25 April 2023, the Government approved additional measures under the Housing for All Action Plan to incentivise the activation of increased housing supply and help reduce housing construction costs, including the introduction of temporary time-limited arrangements for the waiving of local authority “section 48” development contributions and the refunding of Uisce Éireann water and waste water connection charges.
These temporary time-limited arrangements apply for 1 year to all permitted residential development, including self-build houses –
• that commences on site between 25 April 2023 and 24 April 2024, and
• is completed not later than 31 December 2025.
My Department is currently working on the detailed arrangements in relation to the operation and administration of the development contribution waiver scheme and the Uisce Éireann connection charge refund scheme.
These temporary arrangements are being applied irrespective of the date of planning permission for the residential development.
446. Deputy Éamon Ó Cuív asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage the steps being taken by him and his Department to avert the threatened strike by retained firefighters around the country; the contingency plans that are being put in place in the event that the strike proceeds in the view of the risk that such a strike would pose to many in society, and the vital and varied role of these firefighters; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24993/23]
View answerThe provision of a fire service in its functional area, including the establishment and maintenance of a fire brigade, the assessment of fire cover needs and the provision of fire station premises, is a statutory function of individual fire authorities under the Fire Service Acts, 1981 and 2003.
My Department supports fire authorities by establishing policy, setting national standards for fire safety and fire service provision, providing a central training programme, issuing guidance on operational and other related matters and providing capital funding for priority infrastructural projects and the procurement of essential frontline fire appliances, ancillary vehicles and equipment.
Fire services are provided in Ireland by local authorities in accordance with the provisions of the Fire Services Acts, 1981 and 2003. Under this legislation, 31 local authorities provide fire prevention and fire protection services for communities through 27 service delivery structures. Local authority fire services are delivered by approximately 3,300 local authority staff engaged at 217 fire stations nationwide, with 16 of these stations staffed by full-time firefighters, a further 4 are mixed full-time and retained, and 197 are staffed by retained firefighters.
I am very aware of the challenges associated with both the recruitment and retention of retained fire personnel being experienced by some local authorities around the country. This is the reason I directed the Management Board of the National Directorate for Fire and Emergency Management (NDFEM) to review the delivery and sustainability of the local authority ‘Retained’ Fire Services, with particular emphasis on the recruitment and retention of staff. Following substantial engagement with retained firefighters, staff representatives, fire service senior management and local authority employers, together with in-depth research and analysis of the current model, a review was published in December 2022 titled, “Retained Fire Services in Ireland - A Review of Recruitment and Retention and the Future Sustainability of Service Delivery”.
