Mr. Paul Benson:

The pathways are set out in the Bill. Obviously, it is not as clear in the scheme. Sligo is going through that process at present. Clare and Limerick have just gone through it. It worked well for Limerick. Unfortunately, Clare took a little bit longer.

If any homeowner has a concern, he or she can contact his or her local authority, the local authority can ask the Housing Agency, through the Minister, to carry out testing on a few homes in the local authority area, and if it produces a causative link between excessive pyrite or mica and damage to the home, the homeowner can get into the scheme. Alternatively, the Minister himself can ask the Housing Agency to do that and it will carry out the testing independent of the Department and the homeowner to determine if it is excessive pyrite or mica, and the regulations will allow a county to do this.