Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I will let my colleagues come in on this but will take the Deputy’s last point first. Local authorities are moving well on retrofitting their stock. There is an opportunity in older estates where homes may have been purchased. Fingal County Council is going to run a pathway scheme in relation to making an offer to the whole estate while retrofitting social homes within it. It is something the local authorities are up for but there are some complications, none of them insurmountable. Fingal is taking a lead on that and rolling out a scheme. It has already surveyed residents in the estate it is focused on, including those in private dwellings, to see what the take-up will be. Economies of scale could be offered for people on the work being done and increased efficiency.

District heating is being led by the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications, with involvement from our Department. We are part of the steering group and will support the lead Department with regard to planning policy on the roll-out of district heating.

The public consultation on wind energy guidelines for onshore concluded in February 2020, which is some time ago. Technical noise elements are being dealt with in the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications. To be frank, that is what has delayed that. We will implement them from a planning perspective once that comes forward. There has been a change in that on the landscape in Common Agricultural Policy, CAP, 2023 so they had to be updated from a noise perspective. We are working closely with that Department.

On offshore, I mentioned MARA is a significant change. We will have one consenting body and a body responsible for our maritime area. We will stand that up on 17 July. That is what we are planning to do. The chief executive will be in place on 10 July. The board is in place but will be stood up and the chairperson is selected. We have an implementation team. The office will be in Wexford. That has been well received by the wind sector as improving our consenting process and making sure there is effectively a one-stop shop. We have resourced An Bord Pleanála. Through panel E, we have a full-time board member looking at the marine area, which will support the planning process for offshore renewables. We have highly exacting targets for 2030. The Minister, Deputy Eamon Ryan, is heavily involved in that. We have put the planning framework and resources in place for a marine team in An Bord Pleanála and to resource MARA.

The taking in charge process the Deputy mentioned is something on which I have engaged with local authorities. Some complexities arise from time by time where there may be a bond left if the previous builder is no longer in place or there is not a sufficient bond in place. Local authorities work with us on that if funding is required for them to contract the work to bring an estate up to a standard such that it can be taken in charge. I am aware, as the Deputy is, of a number of estates, thankfully lessening over time, which still are not fully taken in charge after a significant period.