andMr. Crotty asked the Minister for the Environment the number of applications for house improvement grants disallowed owing to failure to comply with the prior inspection condition, since this condition was introduced.
204.
Written Answers. - Housing Grant Regulations.
203.
asked the Minister for the Environment the number of applications for house improvement grants for County Kilkenny disallowed owing to failure to comply with the prior inspection condition, since this condition was introduced.
205.
asked the Minister for the Environment the number of applications for house improvement grants for County Carlow disallowed owing to failure to comply with the prior inspection condition, since this condition was introduced.
206.
asked the Minister for the Environment the number of applications for house improvement grants for County Tipperary disallowed owing to failure to comply with the prior inspection condition, since this condition was introduced.
207.
andMr. Griffin asked the Minister for the Environment if he is satisfied that his Department give adequate notice and publicity to prospective applicants for house improvement grants that to qualify for this grant it is essential that an inspection of the house must be carried out by an inspector from his Department before work commences.
208.
asked the Minister for the Environment if, where a person has commenced reconstruction work before the inspector from his Department calls, he will consider that applicant as fulfilling the necessary requirements for sanction; and if a grant will then be sanctioned.
I propose to take Questions Nos. 203 to 208, inclusive, together. The information requested in relation to numbers of applications for house improvement grants rejected because of the applicants' failure to comply with the prior inspection requirement is not readily available in my Department. Records of rejected applications are not segregated on the basis of the grounds for rejection and, with the available staff resources, it would not be possible to have this information extracted without seriously affecting the processing of day-to-day work.
The prior inspection requirement is an integral part of the scheme and cannot be dispensed with in an individual case irrespective of the circumstances. The requirement was widely publicised in the media on the introduction of the scheme and is prominently adverted to in the explanatory leaflet made available to anybody interested in the scheme.