Pearse Doherty (Donegal, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the fact that the Minister will let us make further contributions between now and Report Stage. I urge him again to consider the issue. The figures for the scheme tell us a very clear story. When one considers it overall, it works out at €1 billion of works. When one drills down into the detail of it, 70% of that €1 billion of works is being carried out between Dublin and Cork. This is not working the way it should in rural communities. The other 30% is heavily concentrated around the counties surrounding Dublin. There are issues such as the fact that the tenant may not have taxable income. Not every tenant in such communities does. The value of the works in these communities is less than what the value of the works would be in the cities because of different price pressures. It is not a question of awareness; the threshold is an issue. If it is to be extended for two years, it is worth considering this issue because we have enough data over three years. For counties only to have 200 or 300 properties under a scheme that has operated for three years now shows that it is not working. The works are taking place but they are either falling outside of the threshold or the tenants believe they do not have the taxable income to benefit from it.