Eamon Ryan (Dublin Bay South, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

Sometimes I believe we are too restrictive. I will not challenge that but it is good to hear from the civil servants sometimes because they do have the expertise.

On the broader point, we are ahead of target on the retrofitting targets. The warmer homes scheme is 100% grant funded for those on low incomes. The main criteria for that scheme is that the applicants are entitled to the fuel allowance. There were some 6,000 homes upgraded this year. This is very significant. Priority is given to those in houses that have the really worst BER rating, in the E, F or G categories. That tends to then target those who are using solid fuels because typically there would be a correlation between people with very poor BER rating for their home and the use of less efficient heating systems. There is huge demand for that not scheme. This is not surprising because it is 100% paid for. The scheme is working with some 6,000 homes upgraded in 2023. The Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage is responsible for the social housing stock. I believe it is due to do to 2,000 houses this year. I would love to see that figure go up every year. That is a matter for the budget allocation. One of the real things we need to do is look at how we aggregate and maybe mix between public and private, social housing other housing. If one is going into an estate-----