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

With regard to the defective concrete block, DCB, scheme, I specifically structured the legislation to ensure we can add additional counties. Homeowners need to know that where they have defective concrete blocks and they meet the criteria set out in the primary legislation, the State is there to help them because of a market failure.

To answer Deputy Harkin, I await the final submission. I expect to add Sligo, as I said publicly a couple of weeks ago. Where a submission is made to formally add a county to a scheme, the local authority will collate the data it receives, carry out surveys with the assistance of the Housing Agency and then report back to the Department. I expect Sligo to be added to the scheme because we have the data from the county. I have not received the formal submission yet but it is imminent and I will let the Deputy know.

With regard to County Louth, I spoke to Deputy Ó Murchú about the matter last night on the margins of the proceedings. I have not received any details from Louth yet. The local authority has a role in that regard. In my county, Fingal, we have a very small number of affected homes - it is approximately 12 or 14 - which will be included. Again, we await that submission. Homeowners need to know that this Government will assist them. They must meet the criteria that have been set down and the mechanism to do that is via their local authorities. When we get a submission to the Department we will include them in the scheme. Sligo will be included very soon.

On the points raised by Deputies O'Callaghan and Ó Broin, conveyance and the management of multi-unit developments fall under the Department of Justice. Work is being done on conveyance by an interdepartmental group led by the Department of Justice. The principle of caveat emptor applies to everyone who buys an apartment built within the relevant period of time. The OMC accounts will show if there are levies being levied on homeowners. That would all come through in the conveyance. I take the point with regard to there being a legal onus. I know surveyors will not open up walls.

Even from financial data or talking to residents in an estate or prospective neighbours, most people will be aware of whether there are issues within their apartments. It should be a small number of cases but we will allow those people-----

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