Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour) | Oireachtas source

The Deputy has extensive experience of membership of the Government and during the long period in which Fianna Fáil was in government there was much talk but never any action on this important issue. If people are renting and likely to be renting in the long term, our aim and objective are to ensure a family has secure long-term accommodation. That is the best and most stable solution for them. It has taken a significant amount of work and I am very grateful to the local authorities in Limerick which have undertaken pioneering work in this regard, as they have in respect of Gateway, to install systems which are new to local authorities. To refer back to the comments made by Deputy Joan Collins, local authorities have housing departments and specific expertise in assessing the suitability of accommodation and so forth. The Department of Social Protection which is more of a payments agency would not have the level of resources or skills local authorities have related to housing.

Staff in the community welfare service have discretionary powers to award a supplement for rental purposes in exceptional cases where it appears that the circumstances of the case so warrant it. These discretionary powers are available when dealing with, for example, people who are homeless or at risk of losing their home.

That is what is happening in terms of what has been established in Dublin, where there is co-ordination among officials in different agencies dealing with those who are homeless or at risk of homelessness. In Limerick, those officials have the same discretionary powers. However, I will speak to the Minister of State, Deputy Jan O'Sullivan, about co-operation with Limerick City and County Council and whether arrangements there could mirror those in Dublin.

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