Written Answers Nos. 1-25
7. Deputy Ruth Coppinger asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government the estimated figures of Part V housing for 2018 and 2019; the estimated cost of this housing; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [45284/17]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs set out in Rebuilding Ireland, it is anticipated that 4,700 Part V units will be secured for social housing. Just under 1,700 of these units will be delivered in 2018 and 2019, with 590 expected in 2018 and 1,100 in 2019. The annual increasing delivery expectation of Part V is consistent with the pace of increasing private housing construction activity.
With regard to costs, the Planning and Development Acts set out the methodology for calculating the net monetary value of units under Part V agreements. Section 96(3)(d)(ii) of the Planning and Development Act 2000 sets out that the construction costs to be paid to the developer in respect of the construction of units are “the costs, including normal construction and development costs and profit on those costs, calculated at open market rates that would have been incurred by the planning authority had it retained an independent builder to undertake the works, including the appropriate share of any common development works, as agreed between the authority and the developer.”
My Department supports local authorities and approved housing bodies to secure new social homes through the Part V mechanism using financial assistance from my Department under a variety of social housing financing programmes. In addition, some local authorities can acquire Part V units directly using their own funding and therefore, full details on such transactions would not be available to my Department. Given that the cost and output of units delivered through Part V is a matter in the first place for local authorities to agree with developers, local authorities welcome this flexibility in funding arrangements.
Overall, the funding earmarked for the Rebuilding Ireland Action Plan is being increased from €5.35bn to over €6 billion. Part V is a critical component of that delivery and, according as decisions are made on the delivery mechanism to be used to fund Part V units in individual developments, the necessary funding will be made available to the relevant local authorities and approved housing bodies.
13. Deputy Willie Penrose asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government if he will extend the slurry spreading closing date of 15 October for a further two weeks in view of the very challenging weather conditions of the past two months which has resulted in significant backlogs in getting slurry spread; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41650/17]
Amharc ar fhreagra53. Deputy Martin Kenny asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government if he will extend the slurry spreading deadline of 14 October 2017 to enable farmers to spread when conditions allow in view of the extremely wet weather conditions in parts of the country over the past six to eight weeks which has prevented the spread of slurry. [41893/17]
Amharc ar fhreagraI propose to take Questions Nos. 13 and 53 together.
The European Union (Good Agricultural Practice for Protection of Waters) Regulations 2014, as amended, give legal effect in Ireland to the Nitrates Directive and to our Nitrates Action Programme (NAP). The Nitrates Directive requires all member states to define set periods when the land application of fertiliser, including slurry, is not allowed and in Ireland the closed season commenced on 15 October.
It was recognised that the exceptional rainfall in recent weeks has created difficulties for slurry spreading in certain parts of the country resulting in animal welfare concerns. My Department and the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine agreed an appropriate response and farmers with concerns about the impact of recent rainfall on their ability to complete the land-spreading of slurry were advised to contact the Nitrates Section of the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine with details of the flooding / trafficability situation, their herd number and other relevant data in advance of the closed period commencing on 15 October.
I understand that 578 farmers out of a total number of bovine farmers of 109,000 contacted the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine in this regard. The Nitrates Section of that Department will now be making follow-up contact with each of those farmers.
Farmers who contacted the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine in this regard were advised:
1. To spread only that volume of slurry necessary to ensure adequate storage capacity for the remainder of the closed period
2. That any spreading should occur as soon as good spreading conditions exist
3. That they would be prioritised for inspection by Local Authorities in the immediate future to ensure compliance with the Nitrates Regulations
4. That assessment of overall on-farm storage capacity could be part of that inspection process
5. That the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine would subsequently contact the farmers to ascertain and record the date(s) on which this additional spreading takes place.
Subsequent Local Authority inspection reports will be returned to my Department and will be shared with the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine and those farms needing to avail of this flexibility will become a priority category for inspections in future years.
I am satisfied that the concerns regarding farmers' inability to spread slurry within the required timeframe have been adequately dealt with in a proportional and sensible manner.
15. Deputy Robert Troy asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government the reason the midlands region receives a disproportionate homeless allocation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [45253/17]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe purposes for which housing authorities may incur expenditure in addressing homelessness are set out in section 10 of the Housing Act 1988. Under that section, funding is provided annually to local authorities, on a regional basis, and the responsibility for the disbursement of funding is delegated to a lead-authority in each region. The counties of Laois, Longford, Offaly and Westmeath make up the midlands region and Westmeath County Council is the agreed regional lead-authority.
The midlands region housing authorities were allocated €800,000 in Exchequer funding for 2017, in respect of their programme for planned and contracted expenditure for homeless services and accommodation. In addition, my Department has also made payments of over €232,000 in 2017 to the midlands region arising from increased levels of homeless presentation. These costs include temporary emergency accommodation for families.
Given the current level of homelessness in the midlands, comprising 67 adults and 47 dependents, which represents 1.36% of the national total, and having regard to the fact that the midlands region's percentage drawdown of national funding has averaged at 1.27% over the last three years, I do not consider that the region receives a disproportionate allocation.
However, as is the case with all regions, I can assure the Deputy if further funding is required for homeless services in the midlands region, I will consider the matter.
17. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government his views on whether the process that homeless persons must go through when there is no placement available for them from the DRHE to be satisfactory in view of the chronic shortage of both emergency placements and hotel and guesthouse accommodation; his plans to make changes; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [45302/17]
Amharc ar fhreagraMy Department’s role in relation to homelessness involves the provision of a national framework of policy, legislation and funding to underpin the role of housing authorities in addressing homelessness at local level. My Department does not have a role in relation to operational issues, such as placements into emergency accommodation, which are a matter for the relevant housing authorities.
In relation to the Deputy's query, I am aware that Dublin Region Homeless Executive (DRHE) staff are available on a daily basis to meet with newly homeless persons, as they present to the Central Placement Unit. On presentation, the DRHE will make an initial assessment with regard to the homeless person or household’s accommodation options and will arrange temporary accommodation, as required. Those that have presented previously can access the Homeless Helpline until 1am nightly, where their options and possible need for temporary accommodation will be assessed. When a family presents out-of-hours, the dedicated Family Homeless Action Team will work with them to secure hotel accommodation for the night, following which a more detailed assessment of their requirements takes place the next day.
If it is the case that commercial accommodation cannot be accessed late at night, contingency accommodation and arrangements for families are in place but are intended for use only as a last resort when all other options that night have been explored.
It is intended that the long-term housing needs of households in emergency accommodation will be met through a range of social housing supports, such as the HAP scheme and through general social housing allocations. In addition, housing authorities are delivering custom-developed facilities, referred to as family hubs, which offer family living arrangements with a greater level of stability and more coordinated needs assessment and support than is possible in hotel accommodation.
Notwithstanding the continued level of homeless presentations, considerable progress is being made in securing long-term accommodation solutions for individuals and families in emergency accommodation. Over 3,000 sustainable exits from homelessness into independent tenancies were achieved in 2016, and this accelerated further during the first half of 2017 when over 2,000 such exits were achieved. Securing long-term sustainable housing solutions for homeless households will continue to be the subject of priority attention.
18. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government if an affordable housing scheme to guide councils in providing affordable homes and to ensure that affordable homes will remain affordable into the future, even if there is a change of ownership, will be put in place; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [45303/17]
Amharc ar fhreagra42. Deputy Barry Cowen asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government the income limits for households to access affordable housing in his Department's plans such as the local infrastructure housing activation fund, the second LIHAF and local authority support as set out in budget 2018; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [45247/17]
Amharc ar fhreagra43. Deputy Thomas P. Broughan asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government if he will report on the affordable housing scheme or assistance to lower income persons and families to purchase a home that his Department is examining; the reason no such proposals were brought forward in budget 2018; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [45100/17]
Amharc ar fhreagraI propose to take Questions Nos. 18, 42 and 43 together.
Housing affordability has been examined by my Department, in consultation with the Housing Agency, local authorities and other stakeholders as part of the targeted review of Rebuilding Ireland. The examination was carried out under the generally accepted premise that housing is deemed affordable where households, particularly low or moderate income households, are paying no more than a third of their disposable income on meeting their accommodation needs.
The work took account of the measures already taken to make housing more affordable. These include the streamlined planning system for large-scale housing developments; reduced development contributions; the €226 million LIHAF funding, the impact of Rent Pressure Zones and changes to apartment guidelines in 2015.
It also took account of the additional housing affordability measures contained in Budget 2018. As announced, there will be a second phase of the LIHAF infrastructure fund with an Exchequer contribution of €50 million to unlock additional lands for housing. I also secured funding to put in place a new serviced sites fund of €25 million specifically to deliver affordable housing on local authority sites. The new Home Building Finance Ireland fund is also of importance in terms of addressing the costs of delivering housing as it will provide finance at commercially competitive rates to developers.
The review is now at an advanced stage and I expect to be in a position to outline the outcome, including any additional measures, in the coming weeks.
19. Deputy Eamon Scanlon asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government his plans to conduct a review of the terms and conditions of the housing grant scheme to allow local authorities to use discretion in the awarding of house repair grants for older persons, such as in the case in which a person has transferred ownership of their home over to one of their children but they will still continue to live in their home in order that they would be entitled to apply for and receive grant approval for works on the merits of their own income; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [45308/17]
Amharc ar fhreagraFor the Housing Adaptation Grants for Older People and People with a Disability, household income is calculated as the annual gross income in the previous tax year of all household members over 18, or over 23 if in full-time education, with the exclusion of Family Income Supplement, Domiciliary Care Allowance and Carer's Benefit or Carer's Allowance if paid in respect of the person to whom the grant application relates. Also €5,000 is disregarded for each member of the household up to 18 years.
The terms and conditions governing the schemes were examined in 2013 by a review group that included representatives of grant beneficiaries and the local authorities. They considered how the benefits of the grants could be spread as widely as possible and to achieve fairness and value for money in the grants process. Arising from the recommendations of the review group, the income requirements for the schemes were revised in 2014 to bring the criteria in line with the assessment of need for social housing and to focus the grants towards those with the greatest needs. I have no plans to further revise the criteria at this time.
My main focus in respect of these schemes is in seeking to spread their benefits by further increasing the funding. For 2017, funding has been increased by a further 6% to €59.8m overall. Some 8,000 households benefitted under this Scheme in 2016, and with this additional funding, this should increase to 10,000 in 2017. A further increase in funding will be provided in the 2018 allocations.
20. Deputy Clare Daly asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government the cost per day of rent supplementation in the private housing sector across all housing assistance schemes (details supplied). [45293/17]
Amharc ar fhreagraThere are currently some 50,000 households having their housing needs met via HAP and RAS, and some 40,000 landlords or agents currently in receipt of HAP and RAS payments. These schemes provide social housing support for households already living in the private rental sector and for households who require long-term assistance with their housing needs, by allowing them to increase their income without the risk of losing their housing support. Under Rent Supplement, these households would lose their housing support payment, therefore putting their housing security at risk.
Rent Supplement continues to be paid by the Department of Social Protection to those who are already in the private rented sector but who, because of a short term change in their circumstances, such as loss of income through unemployment, require a short-term income support to pay their rent. These applicants would not generally require an assessment of housing need and the expectation would be that a return to employment would obviate the need for long-term support. Thus Rent Supplement would return to being a short-term income support, as originally intended. Rent Supplement is a matter for the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection.
My Department does not hold a per day breakdown of the costs of HAP and RAS due to variations in costs related to a variety of factors including contractual agreements, household size, and locations. However, a detailed breakdown of the annual cost of each scheme per year for both RAS and HAP is available on my Department's website. In summary, the average monthly payment to landlords under RAS, across all areas and all household sizes, was just over €700 in 2016. In relation to HAP, the average monthly payment to landlords at end Q2 2017 was just under €690.
21. Deputy Charlie McConalogue asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government the actions his Department has implemented to help homeowners affected by the Mica issue; his plans to set up a redress scheme; the timeframe for same; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [45098/17]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Expert Panel on concrete blocks was established by my Department in 2016, to investigate problems that have emerged in the concrete blockwork of certain dwellings in Counties Donegal and Mayo.
The panel had the following terms of reference:
(i) To identify, insofar as it is possible, the numbers of private dwellings which appear to be affected by defects in the blockwork in the Counties of Donegal and Mayo;
(ii) To carry out a desktop study, which would include a consultation process with affected homeowners, public representatives, local authorities, product manufacturers, building professionals, testing laboratories, industry stakeholders and other relevant parties, to establish the nature of the problem in the affected dwellings;
(iii) To outline a range of technical options for remediation and the means by which those technical options could be applied; and
(iv) To submit a report within six months.
On 13 June 2017, the report of the Expert Panel was published and included eight recommendations.
My Department has already taken action to implement recommendations 1 and 2, as priorities.
With regard to Recommendation 1, the National Standards Authority of Ireland (NSAI) Technical Committee, established to scope and fast track the development of a standardised protocol, held its inaugural meeting on 11 September 2017 and has held several further meetings in recent weeks.
With regard to Recommendation 2, my Department has been in contact with Engineers Ireland in regard to the establishment of a register of competent engineers for homeowner/affected parties’ reference. Engineers Ireland have provided assurance that they will collaborate with the Department, the NSAI and others on measures to establish such a register.
During July this year, I visited Donegal and Mayo and met with key stakeholders, including affected homeowners, elected members and officials of the local authorities and other interested parties. In addition, and in light of the information contained in the report, I am currently considering what further actions may be required to assist the parties directly involved in reaching a satisfactory resolution to the problems that have emerged in the two counties.
22. Deputy Dessie Ellis asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government the status of his plan to end the use of hotels, bed and breakfasts and similar accommodation for homeless persons; if his targets are being met; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [45103/17]
Amharc ar fhreagraAt the end of September 2017, some 690 families were being provided with temporary accommodation in hotel and B&B arrangements in the Dublin Region. This number is down from the total of 871 recorded at the end of March 2017 and must also be considered in the context of the ongoing numbers of families presenting as homeless.
The Rebuilding Ireland Action Plan on Housing and Homelessness comprises a range of actions to tackle homelessness and to assist families residing in emergency accommodation. It is evident that the long-term solution to the current homelessness crisis is to increase the supply of new homes, across all forms of housing, to 25,000 per annum by 2020. Over one year into the plan, all of the key statistical indicators point to a significant scaling up of home building activity with planning permissions, commencement notices and ESB residential connections all on the increase. With over 19,000 households having had their social housing needs met in 2016, I expect that a further 21,000 such supports will be delivered in 2017.
With regard to the Housing Assistance Payment (HAP), there are currently more than 28,500 households being supported by the scheme and over 14,500 of these households commenced HAP support since the beginning of 2017; more than 350 households are being set up on HAP each week in 2017.
It is intended that the long-term housing needs of households in emergency accommodation will be met through a range of social housing supports such as the HAP scheme and through general social housing allocations. Progress is being made with over 3,000 sustainable exits from homelessness into independent tenancies being achieved in 2016, while over 2,000 such exits were achieved during the first half of 2017.
In addition to the actions outlined above, housing authorities are delivering custom-developed facilities, referred to as family hubs, which offer family living arrangements with a greater level of stability and more coordinated needs assessment and support than is possible in hotel accommodation.
23. Deputy Mick Wallace asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government his views on the system of assessing building completions used by his Department; his plans to develop a more accurate system for recording housing and apartment building completions; the position regarding the work of the internal group within his Department tasked with examining housing statistics; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [45288/17]
Amharc ar fhreagraUnder the Government's Rebuilding Ireland Action Plan for Housing and Homelessness, a key objective is to increase the supply of housing to 25,000 homes per annum. As we improve our housing systems and put in place a housing delivery model that is sustainable and responsive to changing economic and societal demands, it is critical that any future policy interventions that become necessary can be identified and planned for in good time, underscoring the importance of quality data that are timely, accurate and informative.
Housing activity data is available from a range of different indicators – planning permissions, construction commencement notices, building insurance registrations and ESB connections to the grid - all of which are tracked and published by my Department on the Rebuilding Ireland website.
ESB connections data have been used in the past by my Department and others as the only consistent long-term proxy for housing output with full coverage i.e. every home is connected to the electricity grid. Acknowledging the limitations of the current ESB data-set, while still being informed by it in particular, my Department no longer uses it as a proxy for new house building activity. I am committed to developing a more robust method of capturing house completions and improving the data that is currently being recorded as they relate to newly constructed homes.
In this context, my Department and the Central Statistics Office (CSO) are continuing to work with the ESB to identify and supply to the CSO a more detailed dataset on connections which can be used to estimate the number of new builds. Good progress has been made on this issue, which is technically complex. Once the detailed ESB data is received by the CSO, they will require a period of time to review and analyse it by matching it to other datasets, and to build a methodology for estimating and tracking new builds, based on the best available data. This project is advancing well and all parties are committed to its further progression as quickly as possible.
In addition, my Department has established a Housing Data Analytics Group, with membership from the CSO, ESRI, Central Bank, local authorities and others, to examine this complex area and to monitor and review the various sources of data collected nationally, with the aim of providing a comprehensive and coherent suite of statistics relating to housing matters. This Group is due to hold its fourth meeting next month.
24. Deputy Mick Wallace asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government the steps he has taken to tackle the problem of land banking and hoarding; if he is satisfied that these steps will be successful in releasing suitable land for building in the short and medium term; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [45290/17]
Amharc ar fhreagraIn the context of the current housing supply shortage, the Government recognises the pressing need to ensure that land that is suitable for the development of housing, in urban areas in particular, is not held back by developers. A range of measures are being implemented under the Rebuilding Ireland Action Plan to ensure that such land is brought forward for development at the earliest opportunity.
The vacant site levy, provided for in the Urban Regeneration and Housing Act 2015, is designed to incentivise the development of vacant and under-utilised sites in urban areas for housing and regeneration purposes. A 3% levy becomes liable for payment on such lands from January 2018. As announced in Budget 2018, the 3% levy rate which applies in the first year of the vacant site appearing on the register will be increased to 7% in year 2 and subsequent years, resulting in an effective vacant site levy of 10% over the first two years. Any levy outstanding will remain a charge on the land concerned until paid and therefore there will be a cumulative effect associated with not activating a site for development.
Furthermore, in order to address the issue of the hoarding of residentially zoned land, a number of amendments have been tabled in the Planning and Development (Amendment) Bill 2016, which is currently at Dáil Report Stage. The amendments proposed are collectively aimed at tightening up existing provisions to ensure that extensions of duration of planning permissions cannot be granted where substantial development work has not been carried out during the initial life of the permission, with a particular focus on housing developments.
In addition, aligned with the Budget announcement, the recently published Finance Bill 2017 provides for a broader housing supply measure through amending the seven-year Capital Gains Tax (CGT) exemption to allow owners of qualifying assets to sell those assets, within a specified period, and still enjoy a full CGT relief. The Minister for Finance and Public Expenditure and Reform also signalled his intention to introduce a rebate from stamp duty on development land, details of which will be introduced by way of a Committee Stage amendment to the Bill.
Rebuilding Ireland attaches a particular priority to using publicly owned lands for the delivery of housing as quickly as possible, supported by the acceleration in Exchequer-funded social housing and the delivery of more homes for sale and rent at lower and more affordable price points. All local authority housing sites and an initial set of broader State-owned sites have now been mapped and can be accessed at:
http://rebuildingireland.ie/news/rebuilding-ireland-land-map/.
Local authorities and the Housing Agency are now preparing strategic development plans for the prioritised development of these sites.
25. Deputy Robert Troy asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government when infrastructural funding will be available to open up the proposed development road on the Ardmore Road, Mullingar, County Westmeath, to allow for future construction works. [45252/17]
Amharc ar fhreagraA call for proposals under the Local Infrastructure Housing Activation Fund (LIHAF) was issued to all local authorities in August 2016. It was open to all local authorities to apply for funding towards the capital cost of public infrastructure, which, when provided, would secure the early delivery of additional housing at considerable scale and more affordable price points, with developments in excess of 500 units in the Dublin area, or in excess of 200 units in areas outside Dublin.
21 local authorities submitted a total of 74 proposals. On 28 March 2017, I announced funding for 34 of those projects under LIHAF. The total cost of these projects is €226.5 million, of which €169.7 million is to be funded by the Exchequer, with local authorities funding the remaining €56.8 million. These public infrastructure projects will be key to the delivery of 23,000 housing units over the next four years, with a longer term projection of up to 70,000 units as the selected sites are fully built out.
Westmeath County Council submitted two projects for consideration under LIHAF. Funding was approved for an access road in Brawny Road, Athlone in the amount of €1.83m. However, while Ardmore Road, Mullingar was one of a number of proposals that was assessed as meriting funding, it was not possible to include the project in the March 2017 approvals, within the overall level of funding available.
As part of Budget 2018, I announced an additional €50 million funding which will be available for a second call under LIHAF and which will again be subject to matching funding at 25% by local authorities. This will facilitate more infrastructure to unlock further sites and activate more housing supply. A further call for proposals under LIHAF is likely early in 2018 and it will be open to all local authorities, including Westmeath County Council, to submit new projects or resubmit previous projects, such as the Ardmore Road project in Mullingar, for consideration at that time.
