Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 2 June 2004
4 Mr. Morgan asked the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government the measures he is undertaking to redress the predicament whereby single persons, in particular single men, who make up 32% of the 48,000 on housing waiting lists, find it virtually impossible to secure social housing; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16674/04]
Amharc ar fhreagra
Single people who are unable to provide housing for themselves from their own resources are entitled to apply for social housing which is provided by either a local authority or a voluntary housing body. While it is a matter for individual local authorities to decide on the allocation of houses to single persons and other categories on their waiting lists in accordance with their schemes of letting priorities, my Department continues to advise local authorities of the need to provide a reasonable mix of dwellings suited to the different kinds of households already on waiting lists and to plan their future programmes taking account of the estimated size and type of households likely to be seeking housing in the future.
Local authorities have been asked to submit action plans setting out their social and affordable housing programmes for the period 2004 to 2008. My Department expects to have these plans in draft form from all authorities over the coming weeks. Given the nature of continuous housing need, the preparation of these action plans will be beneficial to local authorities in identifying priority needs over the coming years and providing a coherent and co-ordinated response across all housing services, including delivery of housing by the voluntary and co-operative housing sector. My Department will be examining individual plans to ensure that they match the profile of needs in local authority areas. It is intended to agree activity levels with each local authority in the autumn of this year.
I did not need to come to the House to hear that reply from the Minister of State. When I raised this matter last November, I received exactly the same reply. I was preparing to make notes on what the Minister of State would tell me so that I could challenge him but he has given exactly the same reply as last November.
I asked the Minister of State what he is doing to house people on housing waiting lists. Of the 48,000 people on housing lists, 32% are single people. What is the Minister of State doing to reduce that number and to provide social housing for single people and particularly for single men, who are the biggest sector of that 32%?
The Minster of State's reply means that nothing has been done in the past eight months. The crisis in the housing sector, particularly among single people and, more particularly, among single men, has got slightly worse and not better. Informing me of the letters being sent out to various housing authorities means nothing and is not an indication of measures taken. Will the Minister of State shorten his answer to informing the House of what he is doing about the crisis?
I have tried to answer the Deputy's questions. The housing budget for this year is €1.88 billion. A few weeks ago, the local authority spend, which is approximately €700 million, was announced. That will allow the needs of approximately 13,000 of the 48,000 people on the waiting lists to be met this year. They will include a number of single people. If 25% of the people on the lists are having their needs met, the number of single people housed may not be high, but these figures give an indication of what is being done.
We are trying to break down the attitude among local authorities that they must build three-bedroom semi-detached houses. It takes a while to break down that attitude. When the new local authority action plans are submitted, they will be judged. When an authority establishes the housing needs of its area, my Department will examine its plans to see if they are in accordance with the needs of the people on its housing list. For families with five or six children we will want to see four bedroom houses, and if a local authority area has a large number of single people, we will want to see provision of suitable accommodation for them.
If the Minister of State is suggesting that what he is doing constitutes action and is effective, will he inform the House how many single people have been accommodated under the actions he has taken? Can he furnish the House with figures or indicate any alleged success from what he is doing? Organisations which deal with homeless people highlight the lack of provision of social housing, specifically housing designed for single people, as one of the most severe hurdles in accommodating homeless people and enabling them to make the transition from emergency to permanent accommodation. Will the Minister of State provide the House with those figures?
Approximately 10% of all local authority housing allocations are to single persons. Given there are almost 7,500 to 8,000 direct allocations per year, approximately 750 or 800 single people are being accommodated each year. Also, approximately 1,800 units will be provided this year by way of voluntary housing, a growing sector. A much higher percentage of voluntary housing units are allocated to single people perhaps because many housing associations cater for elderly people and those with special needs. I do not have a specific percentage in that regard but it is much higher than the 10% provided by local authorities.
