Jim Daly (Cork South West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Chairman. We face many challenges in housing policy. One of the first issues I noted when I took up my current position was that when public representatives ask local community organisations or housing bodies like Respond or Clúid to develop housing projects for the elderly in places such as Bishopstown or Mallow, the organisation or body in question will get 95% funding from the Department of Housing, Planning and Local Government to build those houses. The difficulty I have with such projects is that there is no future planning for the elderly, there are no on-site supports, there is no mix of tenure and there is no technology, etc. Ideally, a planning application for the construction of nine or 12 houses for the elderly would be submitted to the HSE for comment, input and suggestion. I have been seeking to drive that agenda since I was appointed to the Department of Health. I have been trying to bring the Departments of Housing, Planning and Local Government and Health together to work together. I am trying to bring an end to the arrangement whereby 95% funding is provided to organisations and bodies that provide nothing other than bricks and mortar. A more holistic approach is needed. We are making good headway. The two Departments are discussing the matter and are actively engaging on a committee that has been established. It is hoped that the Minister of State, Deputy English, and I will lead a conference before the end of the year that will consider how our Departments can look jointly at how this type of housing can best be developed. We are conscious of the challenges that exist. We are also active in the work that is being done to come up with an alternative approach. As I have mentioned, demonstrator sites are being rolled out by local authorities in specific areas so that future housing models can be assessed. Some academics and medical people will come in with all the best guidance regarding end-of-life care, etc.

The Chairman also asked about houses that are left vacant while people are availing of the fair deal scheme. This issue is the subject of ongoing consideration ahead of next month's budget. I do not want to commit overly to it on this side of the budget. It is being examined by the two Departments. At the moment, the difficulty is that 80% of the income of someone who is participating in the fair deal scheme goes to the State to help to meet the cost of his or her care. If that person has a house, there is a huge disincentive to rent it because 80% of the rental income would be given back to the State. I do not many how many of the 23,500 people who are availing of the scheme have houses that are idle because there was no one else living in them before they started to participate in the scheme. I can guess that there are thousands of such houses. It has been guesstimated that the number of idle houses in these circumstances is probably between 4,000 and 5,000.