Written Answers Nos. 532-546
532. Deputy Anthony Lawlor asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government when Leader funding will be made available under the rural development programme; the EU regulations groups must meet to avail of funding; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [3682/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraMy Department is currently working with the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine and the European Commission to finalise the text of the Rural Development Programme with a view to commencing the LEADER Local Development Strategy selection process over the coming weeks. Notwithstanding the level of work to be done in advance of the programme becoming operational, I expect that the programme will be in a position to start selecting Local Development Strategies for implementation by mid-2015.
The two main framework regulations that those involved in the delivery of the Rural Development Programme will be required to work within are EU Regulation 1303/2013, the Common Provisions Regulation (CPR), and EU Regulation 1305/2013, the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD) regulation. A third regulation, EU Regulation 1306/2013, details more technical requirements for the financing and management of the programme and further regulations outline the control/compliance regime for the programme.
My Department is currently preparing a set of operating rules for the delivery of the LEADER elements of the Rural Development Programme that will consider and outline all that is required in order to be compliant with all relevant regulations. These operating rules will be available to all Local Action Groups selected to deliver the LEADER elements of the Rural Development Programme in advance of programme commencement.
533. Deputy John O'Mahony asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government the reason a project (details supplied) in County Mayo which has received State funding is refusing to accept tenants from a local authority; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [3683/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe issue raised concerns moving existing Rental Accommodation Scheme and Local Authority tenants who have been nominated by Mayo County Council, into a new development provided under the Capital Assistance Scheme. The charging of rent is, in the first instance, a matter for the approved housing body concerned. However, housing authorities have a clear right of consultation in relation to the fixing of rents generally and the rents should be fair and equitable in respect of the development.
I understand that Mayo County Council has been in regular contact with the approved housing body concerned in an effort to secure agreement on the rent levels.
534. Deputy Mattie McGrath asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government if his attention has been drawn to concerns expressed by community groups around the way SICAP is being implemented, specifically the danger that this programme will put communities and community groups in competition with one another; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [3685/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraMy Department’s Local and Community Development Programme (LCDP) superseded the Local Development Social Inclusion and the Community Development Programmes in 2010. LCDP is the largest social inclusion intervention of its kind in the State. The current Programme officially ended at the end of 2013 having operated for four years with funding of €281 million over that period. It is being implemented on a transitional basis until March next, pending the roll-out of the new Social Inclusion and Community Activation Programme (SICAP) in April next.
As part of the programme of reform of local government, Local Community Development Committees (LCDCs) were established in all local authorities. These Committees, comprising public-private socio-economic interests, will have responsibility for local and community development programmes on an area basis. They will develop, co-ordinate and implement a more coherent and integrated approach to local and community development than heretofore, with the aim of reducing duplication and overlap and optimising the use of available resources for the benefit of citizens and communities.
The new SICAP is one of my key priorities and targets a range of groups across communities. In accordance with the Public Spending Code, legal advice, good practice internationally and in order to ensure the optimum delivery of the services to clients, the Programme is subject to a public procurement process, which is currently underway. Stage one (Expression of Interest) has been completed. Stage two (Invitation to Tender), got underway on 20 October 2014 and involved the successful applicants from Stage one being invited to apply to one or more Local Community Development Committees, in Local Authority areas, to deliver the programme. Contracts for SICAP will be determined following the outcome of the procurement process. The closing date for receipt of tenders under stage two was noon on 19 December 2014. The tenders received are currently being evaluated and tenderers will be informed of the outcome by mid February.
It should be noted that the procurement process for SICAP was open to Local Development Companies, other not-for-profit community groups, commercial firms and national organisations that can provide the services to be tendered for to deliver the new Programme. In Stage one, joint applications were encouraged and organisations of varying sizes (for example smaller organisations working in consortia with larger organisations) were invited to submit joint applications.
I am satisfied that the procurement process underway is in line with best practice and that the procurement documentation on e-Tenders contains all the relevant information on the process. I look forward to the outcome of the process and the roll out of SICAP in April 2015.
All groups who received LCDP funding in 2014 are being funded through LCDP interim arrangements until 31 March next, pending the outcome of the SICAP competitive process.
535. Deputy Mattie McGrath asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government if he will provide in tabular form the total amount raised from parking fees by Tipperary County Council and its predecessors, South Tipperary County Council and North Tipperary County Council, in the past three years; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [3686/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Annual Financial Statement of each local authority provides an analysis of income from goods and services. South Tipperary County Council and North Tipperary County Council’s income from parking fines and charges in respect of the years 2011 to 2013, the latest year for which audited information is available, is set out in the following table.
|
Local Authority |
2011 - € |
2012 - € |
2013 - € |
|
North Tipperary County Council |
166,134 |
135,927 |
120,494 |
|
South Tipperary County Council |
2,482 |
7,752 |
792 |
536. Deputy Michael McCarthy asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government the work being done to deal with voids in local authority housing stocks in County Cork; if funding will be made available to refurbish and maintain the many voids that have been boarded up; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [3696/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs part of a planned programme of addressing vacant properties supported by my Department in 2014, there were 2,333 units returned to productive use nationally at a cost of €26.1 million. 155 of those units were in County Cork. The programme will be continuing into 2015, through funding made available under Budget 2015.
538. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government the reason his Department considers it appropriate to include a timeframe of up to 2017 for the preparation and implementation of the national and sectoral mitigation plans under the proposed Climate Action and Low Carbon Development Bill 2015; if his attention has been drawn to the fact that the Environmental Protection Agency projects that domestic non-ETS emissions will exceed the former EU 2020 targets from 2016 on; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [3719/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe extent of the challenge to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, in line with our EU commitments, is well understood by Government, as reflected in the National Policy Position on Climate Action and Low Carbon Development, published in April 2014, and in the Climate Action and Low Carbon Development Bill 2015, published last week. The National Policy Position provides a high-level policy direction for the adoption and implementation by Government of plans to enable the State to move to a low-carbon economy by 2050. Proposed statutory authority for the plans is set out in the Climate Action and Low Carbon Development Bill 2015.
In anticipation of enactment of the planned legislation, work is already underway on developing a low-carbon plan - the National Mitigation Plan - the primary objective of which will be to track implementation of measures already underway and identify additional measures within the longer term to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and progress the overall national low carbon transition agenda to 2050. I am satisfied that Ireland is on course to comply with the annual mitigation targets under the 2009 EU Effort-Sharing Decision (406/2009/EC) in the first half of the 2013-2020 compliance period. However, there will be a significant compliance challenge in the years 2017-2020 and therefore the first iteration of the National Mitigation Plan will place particular focus on putting the necessary measures in place to address this particular challenge in the years 2017 to 2020 but also in terms of planning ahead to be ensure that appropriate policies and measures will be in place beyond that. It is also important to note that the Bill will provide for long-term successive planning in this respect.
In terms of the timeframe, the development of the National Mitigation Plan will be an open and inclusive process. It will be necessary therefore to ensure that the Plan will comply with the principles and requirements of EU Directive 2001/42/EC and the European Communities (Environmental Assessment of Certain Plans and Programmes) Regulations 2004 to 2011 and the Appropriate Assessment provisions of the Habitats Directive (92/43/EEC) and S.I. No. 477/2011 (European Communities (Birds and Natural Habitats) Regulations 2011). Both of these processes involve a number of phases, including statutory consultative phases at different stages of the development of the plan. In addition to the statutory consultations required under the Strategic Environmental Assessment and Appropriate Assessment legislation, the Climate Action and Low Carbon Development Bill provides that there will be a consultation process on the draft National Mitigation Plan. I propose to allow a significant period of time for the public and stakeholders to express their views and provide input to the continued development of the plan.
The general public and stakeholders have already had opportunities to submit views on the sectoral elements of the planned National Mitigation Plan in previous public participatory processes over the last year or so. In continuing my commitment to openness and inclusiveness, I will shortly be inviting the views of the public and stakeholders on the preparation of the National Mitigation Plan currently being developed and I am particularly looking forward to receiving input from all interested parties on how we might address the specific challenges ahead and what economic opportunities might arise in moving towards a low-carbon sustainable economic future.
539. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government when he anticipates publishing planning legislation that will introduce greater certainty and obligations with regard to bonds and securities which are required by a planning authority as part of a permission; if his attention has been drawn to the fact that there are many cases where a bond has expired or cannot be activated to help complete unfinished estates; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [3720/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraOn 20 June 2013, my Department issued Circular Letter PL 11/2013 to planning authorities in relation to the provision of adequate security provided under section 34(g) of the Planning and Development Act 2000, as amended, for the satisfactory completion of residential developments. The Circular advised on updated practice to be implemented in relation to bonds and securities for housing and other relevant developments, complementing previous circular PD 1/08 on the taking in charge of residential developments generally, including developments involving management companies. My Department has committed to keeping Circular Letter PL 11/2013 under review as required in order to take account of practical experience in the implementation of the guidance concerned. However I have no immediate plans to amend the planning legislation in this regard at this point in time.
Given the increasingly important role of securities in effecting the resolution of public infrastructure elements especially of unfinished housing developments, information has been collated nationally on the level of planning securities, including bonds, held by planning authorities in respect of unfinished housing developments.
Over the past four years, local authorities across the country have obtained more than €43.3 million from such securities to complete essential public infrastructure within housing developments including roads, water services, public lighting and amenity areas and where breaches of planning conditions have occurred. The yearly breakdown is as follows:
- 2010 - 2011: €23.9 million
- 2012: €3.9 million
- 2013: €2.9 million
- 2014: €12.6 million
In addition, Budget 2014 contained a special provision, in the form of a targeted €10 million Special Resolution Fund (SRF), to assist further in addressing the legacy of unfinished housing developments. The SRF is designed to encourage the resolution of the remaining tranche of unfinished developments identified in the National Housing Development Survey 2013 and, particularly, those developments not likely to be resolved in the normal way through solely developer/owner/funder action because of the presence of specific financial barriers.
The management and administration of issues relating to unfinished housing developments, including bonds and securities, is a matter for individual local authorities. Each local authority has appointed an Unfinished Housing Development co-ordinator and contact details can be found at: www.housing.ie.
540. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government the progress that has been made regarding the promised review of the waste management industry that was made by the Government during the Greyhound company strike in 2014 and its immediate aftermath. [3739/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs part of the introduction of a radical and comprehensive new regulatory framework to reform the regulation of the collection of household waste in 2015, I intend to introduce measures to require collectors to have a customer charter in place and to meet certain minimum standards of customer service, such as specified frequencies of collection. I will be setting out in law what the minimum content of these customer charters will be, so that standards of service are raised and are consistent.
It will also become a statutory requirement for all collectors to operate the “pay-by-weight” system as a condition of their permit. The requirement for households, other than those already on a pay-by-weight system, to pay on a by-weight basis will not apply until 2016 so as to provide an appropriate lead-in time.
541. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government if he will provide a breakdown by local authority area of the number of new social homes that are targeted to be built by local authorities in 2015 and 2016; the number that are projected to be built by private developers under the proposed planning (No. 1) Bill; and the number under public-private partnerships. [3740/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Social Housing Strategy 2020 – Support, Supply and Reform, published in November 2014, sets out clear, measurable actions and targets to increase the supply of social housing, reform delivery arrangements and meet the housing needs of households on the housing list. Actions 1 and 4 of the Strategy require the agreement of national targets for delivery of social housing across local authorities in 2015 and in subsequent years.
In 2015, I expect that some 7,400 new social housing units will be provided, broken down as follows:
- 1,400 units to be built or acquired by local authorities and approved housing bodies;
- 3,000 units under the Social Housing Leasing Initiative;
- 1,000 vacant local authority units will be returned to use; and,
- 2,000 new Rental Accommodation Scheme (RAS) units.
In addition, a further 8,400 households will be assisted through the Housing Assistance Payment (HAP).
Over the following two years, 2016 and 2017, I envisage that some 13,500 additional new units will be provided and an extra 20,000 households will also be accommodated through HAP. The Project Board responsible for oversight of the delivery of actions and targets under the Social Housing Strategy, and the Dublin Social Housing Delivery Taskforce have each agreed a process on setting social housing delivery targets. Consultation with individual Local Authorities is now taking place.
The Strategy envisages that the standard availability-based design, build, finance and maintain (DBFM) Public Private Partnership (PPP) model will be used as a basis for the delivery of a large-scale social housing investment, delivering social housing units in multiple locations and procured within the same public contract. The model proposed has been used to build a number of national roads and 23 schools in Ireland and is also being used to deliver primary health care centres and a programme of new and refurbished courthouses. This considerable experience will be used to ensure that the housing PPP can deliver significant scale, value for money for the State and a return for investors.
Under the detailed governance arrangements outlined in the Social Housing Strategy, an Oversight Group, which I Chair, will oversee the delivery of the 37 actions. Action 8 sets a target of delivering 1,500 units via PPP by the end of 2017. The Project Board will ensure that all actions are progressed under the 5 work streams identified in the Strategy. A separate Group has been established to progress the delivery of actions under each work stream. The detailed work on the PPP proposal will be progressed with the benefit of the expertise of the Group responsible for Work Stream 1 - Finance.
In October 2014, I announced major reforms of the planning system as part of the forthcoming Planning and Development (No. 1). The Review of Part V of the Planning and Development Acts has been completed. The legislative changes required on foot of the Review have been incorporated into the General Scheme of the Bill which was published in November 2014 and is available on my Department’s website at:
http://www.environ.ie/en/PublicationsDocuments/FileDownLoad,39512,en.pdf.
The General Scheme of the Bill is currently the subject of pre-legislative scrutiny by the Joint Committee on Environment, Culture and the Gaeltacht. The Bill is currently being drafted with a view to enactment in 2015.
The new Part V proposals will require developers to provide up to 10% of their housing units for social housing and the legislation will remove the ability of developers to account for their social housing commitments through cash payments to local authorities. The proposals will furthermore ensure that the social housing units will be located predominantly on the site of the original developments. Under these plans, it is estimated that in the region of 4,000 additional social housing units will be delivered through the Part V mechanism by 2020.
542. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government further to Parliamentary Question No. 1485 of 17 September 2014, the number of meetings of the technical working group on Seanad Éireann university constituencies that have taken place since 17 September 2014; and when the work of the technical working group will be concluded; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [3759/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraI am currently considering observations made by the Technical Working Group and issues raised in submissions made as part of the public consultation process on the General Scheme of the Seanad Electoral (University Members) (Amendment) Bill 2014. These are informing the further development of the General Scheme, which has not yet concluded.
To date, the Technical Working Group has met on four occasions. No meetings of the Group have taken place since 17 September 2014. Since its last meeting, contact has been maintained between my Department and members of the Technical Working Group and further meetings of the Group may be convened at a later stage should any other matters arise that would benefit from its further consideration.
543. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government if his Department has conducted any research on the accuracy of the National University of Ireland and University of Dublin Seanad Éireann electoral registers; and if he will report on any interaction his Department may have had with these institutions regarding their electoral registers; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [3760/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraResponsibility for the maintenance and publication of the relevant electoral registers is assigned in law to the universities which form the university constituencies for the election of members of Seanad Éireann. My Department has not carried out any research on the electoral registers of either university constituency. Section 8(1) of the Seanad Electoral (University Members) Act 1937, ‘the Act’, requires the governing body of every university which is a university constituency to cause a register to be kept in accordance with the Act of the persons who are for the time being entitled to be registered as electors. Section 9(1) of the Act provides that there shall be a registration officer for each of the university constituencies who shall be appointed and paid for by the governing body of the university forming the constituency.
In progressing work on the General Scheme of the Seanad Electoral (University Members) (Amendment) Bill 2014, a technical working group was set up to examine and make observations on operational matters including in respect of the creation and maintenance of a register of electors. This group includes nominees from the National University of Ireland and the University of Dublin - Trinity College.
544. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government the number of inspections of building projects by building control officers, by county, since the introduction of the Building Control (Amendment) Regulations 2014; and if he will report on the technical capacity of the building control management system to check calculations submitted. [3761/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe statistical information sought is not available in my Department. A target inspection rate of 12-15% of all buildings covered by valid commencement notices is in place within all local building control authorities. Performance against this target is reported by the Local Government Management Agency in its Annual Services Indicators report. A report in respect of activity during 2014 has not yet been compiled.
The Building Control Management System is an online system allowing for the electronic administration of building control matters. Its main function is to facilitate the lodgement and storage of documentation prepared by owners, designers, builders and assigned certifiers to demonstrate compliance with the requirements of the building regulations. Responsibility for the accuracy of the information supplied, as with responsibility for compliance more generally, continues to rest with the owner, designer or builder of the works or building concerned and with any agent engaged on their behalf.
545. Deputy Fergus O'Dowd asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government his views on city status for the greater Drogheda metropolitan area as the way forward as there are 76,000 persons living within the GDMA; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [3777/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraThere are no proposals to establish additional city authorities. The Action Programme for Effective Local Government (October 2012) sets out government policy in relation to the reform of a range of local government matters and the Local Government Act 2001, extensively revised and updated by the Local Government Reform Act 2014, now provides a modern legal framework supporting the local government sector. The 2014 Act provided for the unification of the city and county councils in Limerick and Waterford and reviews of local government arrangements, recently announced in Cork and Galway, include the option of unification of the city and county councils in those areas.
A new system of sub-county governance in the form of municipal districts was also introduced under the 2014 Act to replace the now dissolved town council formation and achieve stronger, more integrated local government in each county while devolving significant decision-making to elected members at district level.
Within the new sub-county arrangements, specific legal provision has been made to allow Drogheda to retain the title ‘Borough’ and to continue to use the title of ‘Mayor’ as an alternative to Cathaoirleach, thereby maintaining appropriate recognition for the history and civic status of the town. Moreover, elected members for the Borough District of Drogheda have a wide range of reserved functions which can be performed in respect of the district. In addition, those same members form part of the combined plenary membership for Louth County Council with responsibility for the discharge of an additional suite of strategic and other reserved functions.
Overall, I am satisfied that Drogheda has a status appropriate to its size and location within Louth County Council and having regard to the structural and other changes that have taken place countrywide under the Action Programme and revised legislation. In the circumstances, I have no proposals to introduce amending legislation to establish a new city authority in Drogheda or elsewhere. Any such proposal would be at variance with the thrust of policy development and implementation work to date which has seen greater streamlining and integration of local government, with the potential for improved subsidiarity, coherence and efficiency resulting in better value for money and service delivery for citizens.
546. Deputy Terence Flanagan asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government the housing supports available in respect of a person (details supplied) in Dublin 5; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [3790/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe allocation of social housing support to qualified households is a matter for the local authority concerned, in accordance with the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2009 and associated Regulations. As Minister, I am precluded from exercising any power or control in relation to any case being dealt with by a housing authority.
The suite of social housing supports available to assist households is being expanded with the introduction of the new Housing Assistance Payment (HAP) scheme, under which a housing authority will pay rent up to a maximum limit to the landlord of private rented accommodation sourced by a qualified household and the household will pay an income-related rent contribution to the authority. The scheme is being piloted by a number of housing authorities, including a pilot in Dublin City and County for certain classes of homeless households, and will continue to be rolled out across the country this year.
Housing authorities make available two types of house purchase loan to assist households to purchase their first home: standard annuity loans targeted at lower-income first-time buyers and loans under the Home Choice Loan scheme, which are available to qualifying middle-income first-time buyers. All applicants must complete a housing loan application form which can be downloaded from the relevant local authority’s website. The terms and conditions governing the operation, including eligibility terms, of annuity mortgages and the Home Choice Loan are set out under the Housing (Home Choice Loan) Regulations 2009, and the Housing (Local Authority Loans) Regulations 2012. These are also available on my Department’s website at the following link: http://www.environ.ie/en/Legislation/DevelopmentandHousing/Housing/.
The final decision on loan applications is a matter for the authority concerned and its credit committee, in accordance with the relevant Regulations.
