Mattie McGrath (Tipperary, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the opportunity to speak on this Stage as I have significant experience in the voluntary sector, both through my local AHB, Caisleán Nua voluntary housing association in Caisleán Nua, County Tipperary, of which I am vice chairman and was chairman for ten or 12 years, and through the proactive works the housing associations undertake throughout the country to provide housing for families, older people, people with disabilities and the homeless, as well as the wide range of other social and community activities. They do that work in many areas, as the Minister will be aware. In my involvement in the sector over the past 25 years, it has grown fourfold and now plays an important role in complementing the role of local authorities, although in some cases it shows them up. When we were building houses, we received little support from our local authority and in fact many obstacles were put in the way.

Although housing associations in the past have often been overlooked, they now play an essential role in the revitalisation and redevelopment of both urban and rural communities. The sheer volume of unpaid hours - I stress unpaid - that voluntary board members of housing associations undertake has to be acknowledged, whether the work is in sourcing land locally or developing and managing housing projects, as well as providing local social health services. It has saved the State millions of euro. More often than not, local bodies and voluntary groups can acquire sites and get the goodwill of the community behind them more than can county councils or whatever.

The sector will have provided close to 40,000 homes by the end of 2019. The work has been ongoing for more than 100 years, despite some dedicated housing regulations. The sector has been regulated by a range of statutory regulators and regulatory requirements over the years, as Deputy Fleming noted. I welcome the changes made since the Bill was published, which now reflects more accurately the activities of the sector. I welcome the proposal to delete section 11 on the registration of fees for AHBs, which was unnecessary and counterproductive for the development of the sector, especially given that the sector has been hit with costs for annual tenancy registration, local property tax and, in some cases in recent years, HIQA registration. There is only so much the sector can be asked to do before it will have a negative impact on delivery and I believe that impact has arrived-----

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