Eoin Ó Broin (Dublin Mid West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

That is stated in the circular. Every single property beyond those 75 units, no matter what it costs, has to go to the Department for individual sanction. That is what the circular says. That will take time and is causing problems.

Second, the Minister introduced a new and much more restrictive set of criteria. One criterion is that all other options have to be exhausted before the tenant in situ scheme can commence. That will cause significant delays. The Minister has also imposed a CAS-only purchase option on approved housing bodies. Approved housing bodies want to use the capital amounts loan facility. It is much more cost-effective and efficient for the tenant in situ scheme. The Minister is prohibiting that.

We already have a situation where there is enormous delay in the process. Introducing all these other layers of delay will mean landlords will walk away. It currently takes six to 12 months to get a tenant in situ through all stages, including conveyancing, in my local authority area. As regards the cost-rental tenant in situ scheme, the fact the Minister is only introducing legislation a year and a half after the scheme was opened shows that this element is even worse than it was six months ago.

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