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Social and Affordable Housing Funding

Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 8 May 2018

Tuesday, 8 May 2018

Ceisteanna (30)

Tom Neville

Ceist:

30. Deputy Tom Neville asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government the extent to which he will provide additional funding for the provision of social housing to Limerick City and County Council in the event that the local authority exceeds the social housing delivery targets recently set for it; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [19813/18]

Amharc ar fhreagra

Freagraí ó Béal (6 píosaí cainte)

I wish to ask the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government the extent to which he will provide additional funding for the provision of social housing to Limerick City and County Council in the event that the local authority exceeds the social housing delivery targets recently set for it; and if he will make a statement on the matter.

Local authorities have been notified of their targets for social housing delivery via construction, acquisition and leasing which, in the case of Limerick City and County Council, is 1,365 units for the period 2018-2021. The targets are based on the summary of social housing assessments of 2017.

Limerick City and County Council has an ambitious pipeline of new social housing construction projects in place, including those it is leading itself and those being delivered in partnership with approved housing bodies. There are approximately 770 new social homes in its programme and the council is adding to this on an ongoing basis. Other delivery for new social housing is also under way in Limerick through schemes such as the leasing schemes, which are working well.

Details of local authority activity across the range of social housing programmes are published on my Department’s website. I have also indicated that I intend to publish progress against targets across each category of activity on a quarterly basis. I am determined that local authorities meet their targets and the financial resources they need to do this are in place. I have always been clear that the targets that have been set are minimum targets and, where further social housing delivery opportunities are available and represent value for money, my Department will support the local authorities to pursue them.

I welcome the initiative, particularly the quarterly review of targets, but we need to make sure these targets are hit as we do not want hear about things not happening as they should. The target of 1,365 units between 2018 and 2021 is ambitious and, now that the funding is being provided, we need to have an element of stick in our approach to ensure such targets are met on time.

Some existing housing stock has already been purchased by the local authority, which is very welcome, but potential tenants are waiting a considerable amount of time for them to be upgraded or refurbished in order that they are habitable. Some in County Limerick have been waiting for 12 or 14 months, especially where it is one house on its own in a country area but has been bundled in with a number of other houses, meaning it is left for a long period before it can be done up. A number of people have said they will sign off on a deal to move into a house and have the works done around them, or move out for two or three weeks while the work is being done. A lot of the work that needs to be done is around regulations and not health and safety. The houses have been lived in already and it may be that someone died there but they are sitting idle because of regulations. I would be grateful if the Minister could investigate this problem, which is specific to country areas.

I have had the opportunity, on a number of occasions, to be in Limerick to look at regeneration schemes and new-build schemes and I was there at the weekend, albeit in a personal capacity. What is happening in the local authority at the moment is quite exciting. The Minister of State, Deputy English, has met the housing delivery team as part of the new delivery unit in the Department which he heads up, and it is a very good team. It members know what they are doing and we need to make sure they have the tools to deliver what they need to deliver. If there are any blockages or snags which the Deputy or any other Deputy can identify, they should give them to me. The Minister of State, Deputy English, the Department and I will inform the local authority in order that we can unblock problems. The funding is in place and local authorities know what they need to do so now we need to drive delivery and drive local authorities in respect of specific projects and sites.

A lot is happening under the repair and leasing scheme in Limerick City and County Council and 66 applications have been received, with six agreements to lease having been signed. There are more in the pipeline and €32 million has been secured in capital funding for the repair and leasing scheme in 2018, while further funding can be delivered if it is needed. There are other long-term leasings for which there is an allocation of €115 million in 2018, an increase of €31 million on last year.

Last week, a total of €2 million in claims for the council was processed in respect of delivery of new housing for social housing. We are doing that on a continuous basis, week in and week out.

I welcome the work carried out by Limerick City and County Council. The Minister is correct that the council is moving and working hard on this. I have had personal engagement with the county management. It has been second to none on coming back to me. I am however, expressing the anomalies from a rural perspective. I understand the cities like Dublin, Limerick and Cork have higher waiting lists. There are rural people too on the housing lists who want to live in their rural areas. These houses have been identified and earmarked, particularly in respect of medical circumstances. It is an anomaly in the system. I am not asking for a solution today. I am just highlighting that sometimes, rural single houses can get lost in the pipeline. That is not to take away from the required priorities. I refer in particular to people who are rough sleepers or who are homeless. As a Deputy representing a rural constituency, I wish to identify that this issue also arises. It is something that can be solved quickly and people can be moved into those houses. They are actually liveable at the moment.

The Deputy is absolutely right to highlight this as an issue. When we look at local authorities, of course we give them autonomy in respect of how they manage their resources. Some try to manage those resources between going for bigger schemes and bigger sites versus the resources that might have to be put into individual units or homes. Each local authority needs to strike that balance to make sure that in providing social housing, local authorities are not working against our long-term plans under Project Ireland 2040. That aims to make sure we are doing what we can to regenerate parts of our counties that need to be regenerated. Initiatives like the repair and leasing scheme are key where a building can be turned into housing, if it has not already, and with some minor works can become a residence very quickly. If the Deputy has specific locations or specific towns or villages, he should give them to me and I will ask the Minister of State, Deputy English, to follow them up with the delivery team in the local authority.

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