Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 24 July 2018
2782. Deputy Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government the number of social or affordable housing units that have been built in Cork city or county since 2011; and the number of submissions received from the council or from approved housing bodies, AHBs, for County Cork for projects to be developed in 2018 and 2019; and the number of units involved. [35316/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs housing authorities, local authorities, including Cork City Council and Cork County Council, are responsible for the identification of the social housing need in their area and for the development of appropriate responses to the need identified. My Department is supporting local authorities and Approved Housing Bodies in the provision of social housing across build, lease and acquisition programmes.
Over the period 2016-2021, the Government is committed to the provision of 50,000 additional build, acquire and lease homes for social housing. Cork City Council and Cork County Council, over the course of 2016 and 2017, have delivered over 1,200 additional homes under these programmes, and have a target to deliver a further 4,221 such homes across the period 2018 to 2021.
Local authorities now have substantial pipelines of new build social housing projects, details of which can be seen in the quarterly Social Housing Construction Status Reports published by my Department. The most recently available report sets out the position as at end Q1 2018 and is available on the Rebuilding Ireland website at the following link:
http://rebuildingireland.ie/news/minister-murphy-publishes-social-housing-construction-status-report-q1-2018/.
This report lists approved projects within the Cork City and County area, submitted by the local authorities and Approved Housing Bodies (AHBs).
My Department also publishes a wide range of statistical information in relation to other housing delivery mechanisms, including the number of houses that have been built, acquired or leased by local authorities. These statistics are available on my Department's website at the following link:
www.housing.gov.ie/housing/social-housing/social-and-affordble/overall-social-housing-provision.
Funding is provided by my Department to local authorities to acquire a range of properties for social housing use. Identifying and undertaking such social housing acquisitions is largely delegated to local authorities, so that they may respond flexibly to all opportunities to provide new social housing. Such funding is also provided on the basis that the houses are suitable for social housing use and suitable also across a range of other considerations including value for money, design, planning and other compliances. As the housing authority for its area, it is a matter in the first case for the local authority to determine the suitability of any units for acquisition, including the appropriateness of acquisitions by AHBs for social housing purposes.
All affordable housing schemes were stood down in 2011, reflecting the reality of market conditions across the country at that time and the very significant easing of affordability in that period.
However, a small number of affordable housing units, which would have been in progress at that time, were delivered in the following years, details of which are published on my Department's website at the following link: www.housing.gov.ie/housing/statistics/affordable-housing/affordable-housing-and-part-v-statistics.
As Minister, I have been clear that we need to address issues of housing affordability, recognising the pressures that exist for low- to middle-income households, particularly in Dublin, Cork and other urban centres. The delivery of targeted affordable housing, for purchase and rent, was a priority topic at the recent Summit with local authority Chief Executives. It also featured prominently at a post-Housing Summit meeting with local authority Housing Directors of Service.
In this regard, I have now commenced the relevant provisions of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2009, to place the new scheme for affordable purchase on a statutory footing. This Scheme will be delivered by local authorities developing their sites in key locations. The Scheme will be complementary to other Government Schemes which help first-time buyers to buy a home, such as the Help to Buy Scheme and the new Rebuilding Ireland home loan.
I am also determined that cost rental homes become a major part of our rental landscape in the future. There is a gap between social housing and the rental market that needs to be filled, making a sustainable impact on housing affordability, national competitiveness, and the attractiveness of our main urban centres as places to live and work. Cost rental is an important component of progressive housing systems around Europe.
In order to support local authorities to get their sites ready for affordable housing, I am providing additional funding for enabling infrastructure via the Serviced Sites Fund. Given that housing-related infrastructure will now be able to avail of funding under the €2 billion Urban Regeneration and Development Fund, I am re-directing the €50 million planned funding for Phase 2 of the Local Infrastructure Housing Activation Fund to the Serviced Sites Fund, increasing the scale of the fund from the previously announced €25 million to €75 million. When local authority co-funding is included, an overall minimum investment of €100 million will be provided to those sites that require infrastructural investment in order for them to be brought into use for affordable housing. The call for proposals under the Serviced Site Fund issued last month.
Based on initial estimates, the local authorities in Dublin, the Greater Dublin Area, Cork and Galway, have lands with the potential to deliver some 4,000 new affordable homes. My Department is continuing to work with the key local authorities, including the Cork local authorities, and the Housing Agency to identify sites for at least 10,000 new affordable homes, and that analysis is progressing well.
