Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 7 December 2023
84. Deputy Eoin Ó Broin asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage when he intends to bring forward legislation to give effect to the planning recommendations of the Expert Group on Traveller Accommodation published in 2019 [54148/23]
View answerThe Housing (Traveller Accommodation) Act 1998 provides that the role of my Department is to ensure that there are adequate structures and supports in place to assist housing authorities in providing accommodation for Travellers, including a national framework of policy, legislation and funding.
The Act provides that housing authorities have statutory responsibility for the assessment of the accommodation needs of Travellers and the preparation, adoption and implementation of multi-annual Traveller Accommodation Programmes (TAPs) in their areas.
The Traveller Accommodation Expert Review report, published in July 2019, reviewed the Housing (Traveller Accommodation) Act, 1998, and other legislation that impacts on the provision and delivery of accommodation for Travellers. The Expert Review report, which is intended to improve the effectiveness of the arrangements for providing accommodation for members of the Traveller community, has 32 recommendations across four categories which are aimed at:
• Addressing research deficiencies, including how information is gathered and used;
• Removing any potential delays and obstacles in the planning system in terms of delivery;
• Increasing resources and delivery capacity; and
• Strengthening governance arrangements.
Delivery and implementation of the recommendations involves several areas within my Department, as well as input from other Departments, local authorities and other external stakeholders.
The Programme Board, established to drive implementation of the recommendations from the Traveller Accommodation Expert Review report, agreed to report progress on implementation of the recommendations on my Department's website. The progress report, which provides an update on the work of the Programme Board, is available at the following link:
www.gov.ie/en/publication/37910-traveller-accommodation-expert-review-programme-board-update/.
The need for legislation will depend on the work of the Programme Board and the outcome of its considerations.
