Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 20 September 2023
431. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage whether the income thresholds for housing adaptation grants for older people and people with a disability will be increased. [39787/23]
View answer525. Deputy Robert Troy asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if he will review the means test criteria on housing adaptation for people with disability grants; and if he will examine the possibility of not considering income earned by adult children who live in the home and can prove that they are saving for a deposit on a home of their own. [40221/23]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 431 and 525 together.
My Department provides Exchequer funding to local authorities to support the suite of Housing Adaptation Grants for Older People and People with a Disability which support older and disabled people living in private houses to adapt their home to meet their needs.
Housing for All commits to reviewing the grants scheme and a report on the review has been prepared by my Department. The review was informed by engagement with external stakeholders, including the Department of Health, the HSE, the Disability Federation of Ireland and the Irish Wheelchair Association. Written submissions were also invited and considered as part of this process. Among the areas which the review considered are the income thresholds (including the means test provisions) and grant limits, and the application and decision-making processes including the supplementary documentation required.
On foot of my consideration of the Review report, I have asked my Department to engage with the Department of Public Expenditure, NDP Delivery and Reform on the recommendations in the Review report, and this engagement is ongoing at present. I will publish the report, including the agreed amendments to the scheme, once that engagement has concluded.
