asked the Minister for the Environment the time allowed to local authorities to carry out purchase repairs where they have been ordered to be carried out by his Department.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Purchase Repairs.
1.
No statutory time limit is specified within which a local authority must comply with a determination made by me as to the works necessary to put a house in good structural condition in pursuance of section 13 of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, 1979.
Is there a time limit?
There is no statutory time limit.
Would the Minister not agree that this is a very unsatisfactory situation?
Generally speaking, the local authorities are most helpful, but if the Deputy knows of any case and he brings it to my notice I will have it looked at.
It depends on what is meant by "a reasonable period". Would the Minister regard eight months as a reasonable period? I have such a case before my county council at present.
If the Deputy gives me the particulars I will have the case investigated immediately.
Would he regard eight months as unreasonable?
It would depend on the work to be done.
Would the Minister agree it is necessary to have time limits? It is very unfair, if a person has won his appeal, that the Minister's direction is not carried out by the local authority. Deputy Deasy has a case where a person is waiting eight months; I have a case of a person waiting 18 months since the appeal was decided, and there was a delay of several months before the appeal was decided. This man has been waiting two or two-and-a-half years for urgent repairs to be carried out to his house and the Department confirmed that the repairs are urgently required. I suggest it is necessary that there should be a time limit in regard to implementing the Minister's directive.
In view of what the Deputy said I will take the matter into consideration and see what can be done. I would like to point out that it is a matter for the local authorities to co-operate and I shall be only too glad to take this up with the local authorities to see what the position is.
If they co-operated in the first place there would not be any need to appeal to the Minister.
I accept that.
This gives rise to serious anomalies. For instance, tenants waiting for a decision on the sale of their houses continue paying their rents. I know people who have been waiting two-and-a-half and three years. They are still paying rent which should be considered as repayments on the price of their houses. As a member of Dublin Corporation I raised this matter and asked that these rents should be treated as repayments if they continued for longer than six months, but the local authority said they did not have the power to do that. Would the Minister consider giving them this power?
I will have that matter looked into. When I came into the Department I made an order that 40 per cent of the proceeds of the sale of houses should supplement the authority's revenue. This revenue can be used to carry out the necessary repairs on houses. I did not get any letters about delays of this nature but I will look into it and will also consider inserting a time limit.
I will give the Minister the relevant information.