Tommy Broughan (Dublin North East, Labour)
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As the Minister will be aware, I welcomed the publication of the Report of the Pyrite Panel in June, given that it finally provided some recognition of the seriousness of the problem of pyrite-affected homes in north and west Dublin and, indeed, in the north mid-Leinster region. However, the position remains urgent. In a recent email briefing from the chairperson, of Pyrite Action, Mr. Peter Lewis, he described how thousands of innocent people are living in houses and apartments which are literally crumbling around them. As a group representing affected homeowners, Mr. Lewis stated Pyrite Action is increasingly hearing stories of both potential dangers and received injuries as a direct result of living in buildings which are becoming increasingly damaged and unsafe. Recent reports include the skim on ceilings falling down and narrowly missing children, doors falling from kitchen cupboards and, in one case, a child was badly cut by a falling shower screen. Households are also being left with no functioning toilet. With the winter coming, families are wondering again about the safety of using gas fires and central heating given that pyrite causes radiators to come loose and moving floors buckle the pipes. Where there is damage to external walls or window frames, it is next to impossible to keep the heat in.

The Report of the Pyrite Panel provides a valuable technical analysis of the enfolding pyrite disaster and it estimates that more than 12,250 ground floor dwellings in 74 estates across the country could be contaminated by pyrite. Of these, so far approximately 850 have made a claim with a guarantee provider and approximately 1,100 have been remediated or are in the process of being remediated.

However, there are some concerns that the report by Mr. Brendan Touhy and the Pyrite Panel may still underestimate the scale of the pyrite catastrophe. Over the years since 2007, I was given estimates of up to 60,000 units being affected.

Phil Hogan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fine Gael)
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On what basis?

Tommy Broughan (Dublin North East, Labour)
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On the basis of reports of persons who had worked in the industry. There are 24 key recommendations in the report and that is what I really want to ask the Minister about. On publication, the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government, Deputy Hogan, gave important stakeholders, including the Construction Industry Federation, CIF, the Irish Insurance Federation, the Irish Banking Federation, the Irish Concrete Federation and HomeBond, a deadline of the end of September 2012 to come together and respond with a comprehensive solution for all pyrite-affected homeowners. There are five days to go until the end of September. Can the Minister give us an interim report on this and tell us whether all of the stakeholders engage with the process?

One of the striking notes in the report, as the Minister will remember, is that the experience of the Pyrite Panel in dealing with the financial, legal and insurance sectors was hugely disappointing. For example, the report states on page 105 that "the Panel was amazed to learn that little or no discussions about the pyrite issue and its resolution had taken place within the representative bodies (or, indeed, the professional institutions), prior to the Panel seeking the views of the relevant bodies." Will the Minister commit to give significant Dáil time in coming weeks to report on the outcome of these negotiations that he has been having with the representative bodies?

If there has not been full engagement by all the stakeholders involved, the report recommends the imposition of a levy on the industry to get the pyrite problem sorted. As the action group has rightly stated, if the stakeholders are not willing to provide a solution the levy must be imposed as quickly as possible. Has the Minister finalised plans for a process of imposing a levy on stakeholders who will not engage?

Recommendation 2 in the report proposes an identification system for clarifying affected housing of red, amber and green. As the Minister will be aware, red represents a house which requires immediate remediation, amber represents one which requires ongoing monitoring and green represents a house which requires no further action. Concerns have been raised, however, that all houses that have been identified as contaminated by pyrite will not be remediated. I understand, also from the Pyrite Action group, that the phrase, "significantly damaged" has yet to be defined and the campaign group believes that the owner of any pyrite-affected whose damaged house is in the amber category will be left with a home that he or she will never be able to sell.

In addition, homeowners are worried that pyrite-affected homeowners are already being blacklisted by banks and insurers. The action group has asked that the Minister provide an immediate commitment to ensure that all homes containing reactive pyrite are systematically remediated and asks whether he has taken any steps to ensure mortgage providers and insurers are not blacklisting developments.

Phil Hogan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fine Gael)
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First, I acknowledge the difficult situation that homeowners affected by pyrite problems have had to deal with over the past few years. While I have said many times that the State is not responsible for the pyrite problem, I believe I have a duty to assist in trying to facilitate a resolution and this was one of my key objectives in setting up the independent Pyrite Panel. My focus is to ensure the recommendations in the pyrite report are implemented in a way that delivers effective solutions for the affected homeowners.

The pyrite report provides a comprehensive framework to move forward and make progress towards providing solutions to what is a complex problem. I thank the members of the Pyrite Panel, chaired by Mr. Touhy, and all the stakeholders who engaged with it, including Mr. Lewis and other representative groupings in the northside of Dublin and in other counties. We now have a comprehensive picture of, rather than speculative figures on, the nature of the problem.

The report comments on the lack of engagement by stakeholders with homeowners in providing effective solutions for homeowners. It recommends the constructive engagement by the key stakeholders, including the construction and quarrying sector, insurance industry and banking and mortgage providers, in processes that will lead to a resolution for homeowners. Immediately on receipt of the panel's report, I met the key stakeholders and outlined to them my preferred option for a solution to the pyrite problem and the role I believe they should play in the resolution process.

Mindful of the difficult situations faced by affected homeowners and of the time they have waited for a resolution to the pyrite problem until I set up the panel, I set a tight deadline of the end of September for the stakeholders to come back to me with their proposals. There are still five days to go and I live in hope that they will come back with the proposals.

Tommy Broughan (Dublin North East, Labour)
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The Minister has received nothing.

Phil Hogan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fine Gael)
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I have some correspondence. It would be disrespectful, if I set a date of the end of September, that Deputy Broughan would ask me to give an interim report.

Tommy Broughan (Dublin North East, Labour)
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Okay.

Phil Hogan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fine Gael)
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I will not be found wanting in making decisions about these matters and I have not waited around for anybody to encourage me to do so.

As I have made abundantly clear, in the absence of credible proposals from the stakeholders, I will consider an imposed solution along the lines recommended in the report of the establishment of a resolution board which could be funded by a levy on the construction-quarrying sectors and the related insurance sector.

Work is progressing on the implementation of a number of recommendations in the report. The National Standards Authority of Ireland is working on the development of a testing and categorisation protocol for reactive pyrite in sub-floor hardcore material and a method statement to provide guidance for the remediation of pyrite damaged dwellings. It has set up two broad-based technical standards committees with those who have the requisite knowledge and expertise in the particular areas and they have also sought written submissions from the public. Recommendations on the development of a mandatory certification system for buildings and a registration process for builders are currently being finalised by the Department under the building control reform programme that I announced last year.

Deputy Broughan is not a man to understate matters but there is not thousands affected by pyrite where their houses are crumbling. It has been identified by the panel and agreed by everybody that there are 850 houses in need of urgent remediation. There are other homeowners who have potential pyrite problems who have been identified and this is where the National Standards Authority of Ireland will be able to give the necessary assurance or otherwise. Certainly, we are conscious that one who has a potential pyrite problem does not want to escalate publicity about these matters because it has an implication for the value of one's property. We have a sensitive issue to deal with in respect of homeowners, particularly those who paid a great deal for those properties and who have mortgage problems arising from it.

We are working through these recommendations and next week I will review the submissions I received from the stakeholders.

I hope they come forward on a voluntary basis. Otherwise, I will go down the road, as indicated in the report, of imposing a solution.

Tommy Broughan (Dublin North East, Labour)
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I welcome that final commitment from the Minister. Unfortunately, given the history of this horrendous disaster for many thousands of householders, it is incumbent on the Government to be prepared to take vigorous action.

With regard to the Minister's plans for property tax or the household charge for next year, and for budget 2013, recommendation No. 13 in the report of the pyrite panel is that pyrite-affected homes be exempt from the property tax until such time as those homes are remediated. Does the Minister agree with that recommendation? This exemption, while not a solution, should be granted immediately. Pyrite-affected developments should be treated as unfinished estates, which is what they are. Therefore, it is reasonable that there would be an exemption in this regard. Is it the Minister's intention to provide for that this year and with regard to any future property tax?

Can the Minister give us an update on the NSAI's examination of pyrite testing standards, which he mentioned briefly in his response, and on the development of a remediation method statement for the certification of pyrite homes? As the Minister will accept, it is key for the future that householders will be able to provide a certificate to a purchaser stating the house was remediated fully and is in good condition. This is a key part of the Minister's responsibility. Is the Minister going to provide up-front funding to any proposed remediation scheme to reflect the State's failings in this matter? He has said it is not the State's responsibility, but the local authority and the State were there when these huge building programmes were undertaken, when we were building perhaps one third of the total output of countries such as the United Kingdom and approximately four or five times the output of countries such as Sweden, and when regulations were not being implemented.

A recent Fingal County Council notice sent to me, 216A, related to the quarry at Bay Lane, Kilshane, Dublin 11. Astonishingly, it found that no further action on planning grounds was required by the owners, Irish Asphalt Limited. Fingal County Council sent me a copy of that finding, but did the Minister receive a copy of it? As the Minister is aware, there was consultation on the Fingal quarries recently, but the quarry at Bay Lane, Kilshane, was the main interest.

I welcomed the Minister's announcement of an information helpline and an e-mail contact address for families affected by pyrite. How have people used those contacts and has the Department been able to help them?

Phil Hogan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fine Gael)
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The Deputy has put a number of questions. I established the free phone line to help people, as I understood from everybody, including the Deputy, that there were thousands of people concerned about and affected by pyrite. However, the Deputy will be surprised how few people rang the free phone line - fewer than 40. This does not indicate that it is a serious concern for thousands of people. I know there are some hundreds affected, but there are certainly not thousands. If there were, they would be ringing in for information.

Tommy Broughan (Dublin North East, Labour)
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The issue might be with their solicitors.

Phil Hogan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fine Gael)
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It was an eye-opener for me and a disappointment that there were not more people interested in the report, but perhaps the Deputy was not aware of that before now.

The Deputy has asked me to provide details of a scheme on which I have not come to any conclusions yet, because I am waiting for stakeholders to come back to me. Therefore, I will not provide details here. The NSAI and the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, Deputy Bruton, have that responsibility and, to be fair, the Minister responded immediately by setting up the process whereby the NSAI could generate a standardised test so that we can know once and for all whether there is pyrite.

The property tax is a matter for the Minister for Finance. I have submitted a report to him for consideration in the context of the budget and the issue mentioned by the Deputy concerning the recommendation in the report can be considered in that context.

Tommy Broughan (Dublin North East, Labour)
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Would the Minister be in favour of or sympathetic to that submission?

Phil Hogan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fine Gael)
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I will not get walked into that. I will take on board positive and constructive suggestions on many issues when it comes to the budget discussions. I have every confidence in the Minister for Finance, Deputy Noonan-----

Tommy Broughan (Dublin North East, Labour)
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The Minister is at Cabinet.

Phil Hogan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fine Gael)
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Arising from my experience in 1995, the Deputy would not expect me to respond on budget-related matters. I resigned on that occasion and did not get much sympathy from the Deputy or anyone else. Therefore, I will not walk into that again.

The State was not liable in regard to this matter, but I decided that the Government and the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government of the day should feel in some way responsible for helping homeowners. That is what I am doing. No other Minister had contemplated this previously.