Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

This is an important matter. I will give the Deputy the official response as to what the target is. Applications for social housing support are assessed by the relevant local authority in accordance with eligibility and need criteria set down in the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2009. The regulations require that local authorities, subject to conditions, deal with social housing applications within 12 weeks. Local authorities prioritise housing needs assessments for those in greatest need and seek to process their applications within that prescribed timeframe. Some applications are taking longer than 12 weeks. I have had that experience myself. That can be for various reasons including incomplete information provided or simply the level of work that is there. Housing assistance payment application processing times vary across local authorities. I discussed this last night with officials to see if we can make sure there is more consistency in the timeframes. Applications are only accepted when the relevant sections are fully completed by the tenant and the landlord and returned to the local authority with the required supporting documentation. My Department and local authorities absolutely recognise the importance of minimising HAP processing times. I have been at pains to reiterate that to my colleagues in local government. We recognise the importance of keeping processing times under review at a local level so they are minimised to the greatest extent possible. Last year, we tracked the average processing time for HAP applications. At the end of 2021 that average was 29 days. To be honest with the Deputy, in some areas it is done better than in others. I want to see more consistency. All applications are not uniform in the sense that cases are different. The Deputy has raised a very important matter. I want to see us minimise the processing time as best we can to a reasonable level.

The average processing time last year, as I said, was 29 days.

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