Mary Fitzpatrick (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank all of the witnesses for attending the committee today. The updating of the directive is something we are all supportive of and renovating existing housing stock is probably the most sustainable way to increase our housing stock. Combined with the €20 billion Housing for All and €8 billion for retrofitting, there is clearly a very strong commitment from the Government to do everything that can be done to increase the energy efficiency of our built environment. That is for all of the obvious reasons, such as warmer homes and more affordable homes, as well as local employment and the environmental benefits. I say all of that just to reinforce how important is the work that the Department and SEAI are doing and how it important it is for our country and society generally. I welcome and support that.

Unfortunately, I will have to leave the meeting as I have another meeting that I have to go to, so no disrespect is intended and I apologise in advance.

I am based in Dublin Central. The social housing retrofitting that has been done by Dublin City Council has made a huge impact in terms of the quality of life of people living in my constituency. The retrofitting of homes in Cabra and other parts of the constituency has changed the quality of people's lives, so it is very welcome. The new developments that are being delivered under Housing for All at Dominick Street, Seán Foster Place, St. Bricins and the net-zero housing are fantastic and are really changing how people are living in the city.

I have two questions, although they are not so much questions for the witnesses but simply to put them on the radar. With the local authorities - Dublin City Council is mine but this would go for the others too - it is very important that while there are issues and we all know there are massive challenges in terms of meeting our housing need and in terms of renovations and our environmental targets, we need to continue to encourage and support them to be ambitious about tackling the existing built housing stock. I am thinking of flats in Dublin Central like those at Henrietta House, Greek Street flats, St. Michan’s and Constitution Hill. They are there and they are built, but far too many of them are not up to standard and they need to be brought up to standard. I would encourage the Department and the SEAI, with the local authorities, and Dublin City Council in particular, to push that agenda and encourage them to be ambitious about it.

Over the last ten years, Dublin City Council did have a bit of a false start. I presume Deputy Flaherty was referring to Longford when he said the local authority there feels it has cost overruns and so it is going to draw back. We cannot allow that to happen with our local authorities. We hope to work with local authorities to ensure they continue to be ambitious. The changes and the improvements that can be delivered are enormous in terms of people's real daily lives but also in a broader sense.

The other issue I want to bring up is private homes. The SEAI is doing great work and I commend it on supporting a number of groups in the city, with citizen activation, citizens taking ownership and educating themselves and sharing their experience, and all of that is very important. It was said there are five one-stop shops operating already, which is great. How long do the witnesses think it is going to take to get to a full complement of one-stop shops? I appreciate our challenges but they might give us some indication.

In terms of the low interest rate loans, how will they work, how will people access them and, most critically, how soon do the witnesses think people will be able to access them? I would appreciate answers to those questions.