Paudie Coffey (Waterford, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank Deputy Clare Daly for raising this important issue. The pyrite remediation scheme is a targeted initiative to assist a restricted group of home owners who have no other practical options to access redress. It is a scheme of last resort to repair homes affected by significant damage.

The pyrite remediation scheme involves a number of stages commencing with a validation process by the Pyrite Resolution Board to check each application for compliance with the scheme's eligibility criteria. This procedure is followed by a damage verification process carried out by the Housing Agency. The next stage involves a decision by the Pyrite Resolution Board on whether a dwelling will be included in or excluded from the scheme. Once a dwelling has been included in the scheme, tendering processes are arranged by the Housing Agency for the appointment of a design professional and works contractor for the preparation and execution of a remedial works plan in respect of the dwelling concerned.

The Deputy sought an update on the progress of the scheme. Since details of the scheme were published in February 2014, the Pyrite Resolution Board has received 627 completed applications. A total of 485 applications have been validated and forwarded to the Housing Agency for the verification stage. Of these, 295 have been approved by the board for inclusion in the scheme and applicants have been notified. A pilot project involving the remediation of five dwellings was completed in the latter half of 2014. The funds provided in respect of the pyrite remediation scheme in 2014 amounted to €2.2 million. Over the course of 2015, the board anticipates that remediation works will commence on projects comprising approximately 280 dwellings.

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