Damien English (Meath West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The Government’s Rebuilding Ireland - Action Plan for Housing and Homelessness recognises the key contribution that AHBs have to make to the delivery of housing supports in Ireland, building on their track record in terms of both housing provision and management. There are 546 approved housing bodies, AHBs, in Ireland, ranging from small voluntary-led, community-based organisations to large-scale national organisations. Together these bodies provide in excess of 30,000 social homes. It is estimated that AHBs have the capacity to contribute around a third of the 47,000 new social housing units that are targeted over the period to 2021 using a range of delivery methods. To support this, almost €1 billion of capital funding has been secured in order that AHBs can build and acquire new social housing units. This funding will be made available over the lifetime of the action plan through my Department’s capital assistance scheme and the capital advance leasing facility. In addition, a further sum amounting to almost €1 billion in current funding under the social housing current expenditure programme has been secured for the cost of payment and availability agreements and leases over the lifetime of the action plan.

The Government is committed to supporting the AHB sector to play a central role in the effort to meet social housing needs, in conjunction with local housing authorities. I stress to all the councillors, when we meet them, that we want that relationship between them and approved housing bodies to be strengthened. Councillors feel that they want to be closer to the AHBs, and we would agree with that.

The significant funding being provided for new housing delivery will enable AHBs to increase their revenue flows, including from rent, allowing them to enhance their staffing capacity. Other commitments in Rebuilding Ireland aimed at supporting the sector include the establishment of an innovation fund to support the development by AHBs of innovative financial models, such as special purpose vehicles or mutual bodies. We will also bring forward legislation in the coming months to provide for a statutory regulator to oversee the effective governance and financial management of AHBs. This issue has been raised today and we are working very hard on it. It is hoped that will be achieved in the next couple of months.

One of the committed actions of the Strategy for the Rental Sector, published in December, is the establishment an expert group to support the development of a not-for-profit rental sector in Ireland, addressing issues such as the need to grow the necessary institutional capacity, particularly within the AHB sector, whether through mergers, new entrants or strategic partnerships. I am expecting that this group will report by the end of the year.

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