Réada Cronin (Kildare North, Sinn Fein)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

I am in my office on the premises. I have a few questions. The national retrofitting scheme, and the fact that it benefits people who are already comfortable financially and can put up the money to match the grant, is almost an economy of scale for warmer homes. The more money you have, the more money you will get. We are in the middle of a cost of living crisis that started well before the war in Ukraine. We are now in real danger of having a two-tier system, where one group of people are living in damp, cold homes and the others can put solar panels on the holiday homes that they drive to in their EVs. What is being done to avoid this damaging situation? Can the witnesses see the difficulties that this kind of economic apartheid approach will cause?

Regarding the waiting list for the warmer homes scheme, some people have been waiting 18 months for a survey. Those who applied in August 2021 are being told they will have to wait 18 months, which will mean that this will not be done until 2023. I obtained that information in response to a parliamentary question I tabled. Many optics are at work here, but meanwhile heating bills are rocketing. What does the SEAI intend to do to clear the backlog in the warmer homes scheme? When will that be completed?

One of my constituents owns a bog and he fills his garage full of turf. He does not have the same romantic notions about it as I do, such as the smell of turf, etc. He would love to get his home retrofitted, but he is on a low income. How are the one-stop shops being designed to specifically support lower-income households and the owners of rental properties? All the Deputies here will confirm we are being notified of eviction orders constantly. We would like to see the SEAI plan to ensure there is going to be an uptake of the scheme by those in lower-income homes and also that it can be availed of by landlords to allow their tenants to benefit. We do not, however, want to see tenants being evicted.