Michael Kitt (Galway East, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Ceann Comhairle for allowing this topic to be raised. I thank the Minister of State for coming to the House to deal with it. She will be aware that I raised this issue at an Oireachtas joint committee meeting some weeks ago. I mentioned that people in local authority houses have just a few weeks left to submit applications under the tenant purchase scheme. The Minister of State should give those people more time to buy out their houses. The 1995 tenant purchase scheme has enabled 10,000 families to purchase their own houses over the past ten years.

I understand the number has fallen but people are still very interested in this scheme.

It is important to point out there was up to a 30% discount under the 1995 scheme and up to a 45% discount under the 2011 scheme, which had certain attractions. A new scheme will be introduced in the new year but it will contain changes in that it will not refer to the length of tenure in houses, as in the current system, but rather the discounts will relate to family income. That is a little vague and perhaps the Minister of State will provide more information.

The Minister of State will need to bring in new legislation next year if these changes are to come about. There is talk of an incremental purchase scheme which will incentivise families to remain in the community following the purchase, and I make the point that this is equally true of the present scheme. The Minister of State is to extend the terms of the new scheme to all housing authority stock. Will she consider extending the terms to, for example, the voluntary housing sector, given many in that sector have applied to purchase houses although that is not available at present? Perhaps a new scheme will be considered in this area. I hope the Minister of State will address these issues, namely, the extension of the present scheme and when the legislation will be introduced.

It now appears tenants should apply both under the current scheme and also when the incremental purchase scheme is announced and published in legislation. What is very clear is that information should be made available to those who want to avail of this opportunity. If the date is not being extended, people will want to know they now have only one month to apply under the old scheme.

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