Jan O'Sullivan (Limerick City, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I move amendment No. 19:

In page 46, between lines 24 and 25, to insert the following:“(f) in section 43(1) by substituting the following for paragraph (a) in the definition of “eligible household”:

“(a) a household assessed by a housing authority under section 20 as being qualified for social housing support, which has been allocated a dwelling to which this Part applies in accordance with an allocation scheme, and which applies to purchase the dwelling under this Part within 5 years from the date of such allocation, or”,”.

This amendment to Part 3 of the 2009 Act is required to clarify that in order for a household off the waiting list to be eligible to purchase a new house designated for incremental purchase the household must apply to purchase under Part 3 of the 2009 Act within five years of the date of being allocated the tenancy of that house. This was always the intention of the original provision but the existing wording of paragraph (a) of the definition of "eligible household" could be read as requiring the household to complete the purchase of the house within five years of allocation. This would be too onerous a requirement. I am proposing this amendment to make it clear that the requirement is for the household to apply to purchase within five years of being allocated the house. If the household does not apply to purchase under Part 3 of the 2009 Act within five years of allocation, the household will of course be eligible to apply to purchase the house under the new scheme of tenant purchase that I will introduce for existing local authority houses under Part 3 of this Bill.
I hope it is clear from the amendment that the household should have started the purchase, not that it shall have to complete it.