Thomas Pringle (Donegal, Independent) | Oireachtas source

Once again, the Government has stumbled blindly into yet another defective blocks fiasco of its own making. I know this will probably annoy and set off the Tánaiste, since he is convinced that the whole thing is sorted, but I am here to remind him again this week that it is not. Three weeks ago today, the Minister, Deputy Ryan, announced that SEAI grants would be available in a co-ordinated and specific way for homeowners with defective blocks. Now it turns out that those who qualified for enhanced home energy upgrades prior to this will not be able to carry over eligibility to the enhanced schemes. This targets the most vulnerable and socioeconomically deprived in County Donegal. As an example, the dry-lining grant aid will be halved in this scenario, external insulation grants will be decreased by almost 50% and many other headings will see homeowners receive 20% to 30% less on average. It is affecting those on working family payment, the one-parent family payment, domiciliary care allowance, carer's allowance and disability allowance. It is an own goal. Will the Tánaiste speak to the Minister to make sure it is changed and made more responsive?

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