asked the Minister for Local Government if he will state (a) the reason for the substantial difference in the cost of providing labourers' cottages in Dublin, Wexford and Cork by their respective County Councils, and (b) the average estimated cost of such cottages to be provided by Cork County Council as compared with the estimated cost of similar houses to be provided by Dublin County Council.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Cost of Labourers' Cottages.
(a) The cost of providing labourers' cottages depends on many factors the principal being the cost of the sites, the nature of the development work, the size of the individual cottages, whether sanitary services and bathrooms are provided, the extent to which local labour is available, the degree of competition in tendering which exists and the prevailing wage rates.
In the case of grouped cottages with water and sewerage services, the estimated all-in-cost per cottage based on current schemes, is 16.8 per cent. higher in County Dublin than in County Cork, the difference being due in part to the larger size of the County Dublin cottages, which include bathrooms, and also to the greater cost of land, higher wage rates and the absence of keen competition in tendering because of the heavy demands of private building work on the building trade in Dublin City and County. There are no comparable schemes in progress in County Wexford.
As regards rural cottages without piped water or sewerage, the estimated all-in cost per cottage based on current schemes, is similar for Counties Cork and Wexford. There is no scheme of purely rural cottages currently in progress in County Dublin.
(b) As regards the second part of the Deputy's question, the only particulars at present available in the Department relate to schemes in progress. The estimated all-in cost of labourers' cottages at present in course of construction by the Cork and Dublin County Councils is as follows:— Grouped cottages with water and sewerage services: County Cork, all-in costs range from £1,034 to £1,572 per cottage; County Dublin, all-in costs range from £1,600 to £1,833 per cottage. Rural cottages without services:— County Cork, all-in costs range from £700 to £788.
As already stated, there is no scheme of rural cottages in progress in County Dublin.