Thomas Pringle (Donegal South West, Independent) | Oireachtas source

The levels set for the HAP are in line with the rent assistance and I suppose the only positive difference with the HAP is that one does not get refused if one is paying a rent above the HAP level that is set. The rents are not based on the market in the local areas. In County Donegal, this morning there were five properties available under the HAP limit for a family with one child in a county the size of Donegal with 160,000 of a population and over 2,500 on the housing lists.

The HAP limits are not high enough and they need to be increased if the Government is serious about addressing this issue. While applicants are not turned down for being over the limit, they are still struggling to meet those rents and still have to pay the landlord the difference between the HAP limit and the amount that the local authority pays. No doubt Donegal County Council will work the scheme well because its housing office has always been proactive. If the Minister of State is serious about the success of this scheme, the limits need to be increased to reflect what is happening on the ground. A simple two-minute search on daft.ieby the Department will show the extent of the lack of properties available within the limits of the scheme.

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