Mr. Paul Forde:

I am the director and chair of DBFL Consulting Engineers. In January last year, I was appointed by the Department to chair the expert group on the enhanced defective concrete blocks grant scheme. I am happy to be here today with my colleague from that expert group, Martin Lynch, who has already been introduced. We thank the committee for inviting us here to assist in its discussions and deliberations on the scheme.

I have been in practice as a consulting engineer for more than 43 years and I am a founding partner of DBFL Consulting Engineers. The committee has previously been furnished with my qualifications and professional memberships, among which is being a fellow of Engineers Ireland and the Institution of Structural Engineers. I have extensive experience, more than 15 years, in investigating and resolving pyrite problems in a wide range of buildings. I was appointed a member of the original Pyrite Resolution Board. I chaired the technical committee in drafting the Irish Standard, IS 398-2:2013: Part 2. Of particular relevance here is the fact that this part of the standard deals with methodology for remediation works.

In January 2022, I was asked by the Minister to chair the expert group to advise on the proposed enhanced defective concrete blocks grant scheme. The expert group was established to consider and advise the Minister on the technical issues which needed to be resolved. These included issues such as the damage threshold for entry to the scheme, the parameters around a second grant application, an independent appeals process, a review of the certificate of remediation and reconsideration of the rebuilding costs prepared by the Society of Chartered Surveyors of Ireland, SCSI.

The expert group met for the first time on 27 January 2022. At the beginning of March 2022, another member of the expert group, John O’Connor, and I met with the representatives of the Mayo and Donegal homeowners, including Ms Hegarty, and we discussed the terms of reference of the expert group. We met again on 9 March 2022 during which the homeowners’ views on all relevant issues were discussed. In each meeting, we were impressed by their representations and understood their concerns.

The expert group issued its first report on the enhanced defective concrete blocks grant scheme, including advices to the Minister, on 16 March 2022. This report dealt with the short-term technical issues in respect of which the Minister required immediate recommendations. On 29 April 2022, the expert group issued its addendum report, including advices to the Minister, in respect of the SCSI rebuild costs. On 30 September 2022, the Department requested that I set up a subcommittee of expert group members to review some of the original short-term issues. These included: the damage threshold for entry to the defective concrete block grant scheme; the building condition assessment report; the remedial works plan; and the certificate of remediation.

This request from the Minister followed hearings during the passage of the Remediation of Dwellings Damaged by the Use of Defective Concrete Blocks Act 2022. During this process, the Minister indicated that he would ask the chairs of the original expert group working groups, and Housing Agency representatives to review the previously issued advices in relation to the four short-term issues I just mentioned. The Minister also requested that this group consider the various contributions to the Oireachtas joint committee hearings and the lessons learned since the original report of the expert group was issued on 16 March 2022. The Minister further requested that advices be provided in respect of an appropriate definition of "damage" for the purposes of the proposed regulations.

The expert group addendum subcommittee was composed of the following people. I was the chair, and the members were John O’Connor, the former CEO of the Housing Agency, and chair of the Commission on Housing, Fiona Fleming and Peadar Espey, both from the Housing Agency, and Martin Lynch, the general manager of the Pyrite Remediation Board, who is here today. The addendum subcommittee met on several occasions in October and November 2022. We issued our addendum report, with advices to the Minister, on 20 December 2022.

On 23 February 2023, the Minister requested that I reconstitute the expert group and undertake an updating of the expert group’s addendum report in respect of the rebuilding costs. These rebuilding costs had been updated and issued by the SCSI on 28 February 2023. The expert group then met and our updated advices to the Minister were issued on 6 April 2023. Subsequently, on 3 May 2023, the Minister requested that the expert group undertake a further updating of our addendum report on costs. This further updating of the expert group’s addendum report was required following the issuing by the SCSI of rebuild costs for the mid-west region. They had previously only related to the north-west region. These rebuild costs were set out in the SCSI’s letter to the Department dated 18 April 2023. The expert group’s updated advices to the Minister were issued on 9 May 2023. The expert group’s recommendations for the Minister’s consideration are set out in each of these five reports I mentioned. I understand that these reports have all been made available to the members. Mr. Lynch and I are happy to take questions in due course. I thank the Cathaoirleach.