Vol. 457 No. 7
7 Mr. N. Ahern asked the Minister for the Environment the number of local authority houses in the Dublin and Cork urban areas and in the remainder of the State which still have outdoor toilets only or exposed non-insulated hot water tanks; and the plans, if any, he has to provide grants to end this unsatisfactory situation. [16261/95]
While information in the form requested is not available in my Department, returns made by local authorities indicate that, out of their total of approximately 95,000 rented dwellings, some 2,500 lacked bathroom facilities at 31 December 1994. Dublin Corporation had 1,079 such dwellings and Cork Corporation had 378. In the case of 490 dwellings in Dublin and six in Cork, I understand the tenants have indicated they do not wish at this stage to have facilities installed.
To assist local authorities in providing the necessary facilities, funding is provided by my Department under the bathrooms sub-programme, the provision for which in 1995 is £3 million. In addition, bathroom facilities can be provided as part of refurbishment projects under my Department's remedial works scheme.
Local authorities have a legal obligation to provide sanitary facilities in their rented dwellings by 1 January 1998. I am satisfied that, with the financial assistance available from the Department, they should be able to comply with this deadline.
The Minister mentioned that his Department pays out £3 million in the bathroom provision programme. My question relates to houses which have only an outdoor toilet. I am aware his Department gives assistance for bathrooms but Dublin Corporation and other local authorities have requested that the programme be extended to people with outdoor toilets only, as distinct from the bathroom. Can he not accede to that request?
I have no difficulty facilitating that request, it should be part of the normal upgrading of houses. We are spending a lot of money under the normal remedial schemes to upgrade and refurbish sub-standard housing and the lack of an indoor toilet would qualify under the generous allocation of moneys available through my Department. Under that programme some £150 million has been allocated to date.
Will the Minister approve special funds to be given from the bathroom provision programme towards houses with outdoor toilets only? There are two categories of houses involved — those with outdoor toilets and those with outdoor toilets and an indoor bathroom — but the programme allows for one and not the other. In this day and age it is not proper to expect people to be satisfied with an outdoor toilet. I accept there is an overall refurbishment programme but can the Minister not change Department policy to allow grants from the bathroom programme to be made available to local authorities for houses which have an indoor bathroom but an outdoor toilet?
I was unaware that such a prohibition existed and will examine it on foot of the Deputy's question. In common parlance, when I spoke about the building of bathrooms it would include the building of an internal toilet facility. I will have this investigated and return to the Deputy.
