Vol. 505 No. 6
19 Mr. Hayes asked the Minister for the Environment and Local Government the number of local authority houses purchased or commenced in 1998 and in each of the past five years; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [14419/99]
The number of dwellings either purchased or started by local authorities in 1998 and in the previous five years was as follows: 1998 – 3,504; 1997 – 3,606; 1996 – 3,717; 1995 – 3,699; 1994 – 3,288; 1993 – 3,845. This information is published in my Department's annual housing statistics bulletin, copies of which are available in the Oireachtas Library.
Local authorities have already been authorised to start or acquire a further 4,500 houses under the 1999 housing programme. I have also introduced for the first time a four year multi-annual local authority housing programme to commence next year, which provides for 22,000 additional local authority houses. I have requested local authorities to set in train the necessary preparatory work to produce a pipeline of projects which will be ready to go to construction early in the new year.
My purpose in introducing a multi-annual programme is to establish a local authority housing programme which will produce a streamlined delivery of housing output over the next four years. The experience to date of having to operate on a year to year basis has not been satisfactory in terms of forward planning for housing requirements, and the multi-annual approach will provide a better and more effective mechanism for social housing delivery.
The local authority housing programme is the major contributor to social housing output, but it is not the only source of social housing. The voluntary sector has the capacity to make a significantly greater contribution to meeting social housing needs and I am determined to encourage and support a ten-fold increase in output by the voluntary sector over coming years.
Is the Minister of State confirming that 3,504 local authority houses were either commenced or purchased last year at a time when over 46,000 applicants are on the national housing list? Is he confirming that figure, which is the lowest number of local authority houses either commenced or purchased in five years?
Local authority housing is not the entire response to social housing needs. The whole picture needs to be taken into account. Total social housing output last year, taking account of new local housing, vacancies arising in existing houses and output under other social housing measures, met the housing needs of 8,500 households. This year, when account is taken of expected house completions, vacancies which arise in the normal course of events and output from other social housing sources, I confidently expect the needs of 10,300 households to be met. This will make a significant impact on needs and I intend to increase social housing output over the next four years to meet the needs of 60,000 households.
How can the Minister of State confidently predict figures for 1999 when in each of the two years he has been in office he has produced such a woeful number of local authority houses? What confidence has the Minister of State in delivering additional housing options for people on low incomes when the Government produced just over 3,000 houses in 1998 for the 46,000 applicants on the national housing list? Will the Minister of State also confirm that the percentage of capital expenditure on local authority housing last year was 6.9 per cent and was the lowest percentage of capital expenditure over the past five years? How can the Minister of State claim the Government is dealing with the issue of social housing when the expenditure it provides is woefully inadequate?
We worked initially from the last year the Deputy's party was in Government when it provided the funding for local authority and social housing generally. I had no control over the initial funding for 1997 when the planning programme was put in place. The number of local authority houses built that year was 3,217.
There were only 26,000 on the waiting list.
Let us hear the Minister of State without interruption.
I diagnosed at an early stage that the voluntary housing sector had been grossly underfunded by the previous Government and the output from that sector fell dramatically because no attempt was made by the previous Government to improve the capital limits. I have increased them twice since I came into office.
It has made no difference. About 480 houses were built last year.
Allow the Minister of State to proceed without interruption.
When in Government, the Deputy's party had a miserable record in this area. He should, therefore, remain silent.
I have introduced a number of new programmes such as the affordable housing programme, which gives local authorities the opportunity to bring forward proposals to build houses that can be sold to people with incomes of £20,000 or less. I have placed no limit on the number of affordable houses local authorities can build. When they enter office, I urge those who are elected to the councils in the forthcoming elections to take full advantage of the affordable housing scheme. In that way we will be able to help meet the needs of an enormous number of housing applicants.
The Minister of State is not replying, he is making a speech. Will the Chair protect my rights as a Member of this House?
Will the Minister of State draw his remarks to a conclusion?
I am happy to do so.
That concludes priority questions. We now move to ordinary questions. I remind Members that there is a six minute time limit on ordinary questions, two minutes for the Minister's initial reply and four minutes overall for supplementary replies. There is a time limit of one minute for both the questioner and the Minister, respectively, in asking and replying to supplementary questions.
