Christopher O'Sullivan (Cork South-West, Fianna Fail)

I thank Deputy Gould for raising this important matter. I am glad to have the opportunity to discuss the second-hand acquisitions programme, which includes the tenant in situ scheme in Cork city. This Government and Department are committed to increasing the supply of new build social and affordable homes. Increasing the overall housing supply is key to addressing the housing challenge and in particular preventing and ultimately eliminating long-term homelessness. At the same time, there is a need to supplement this new build programme with second-hand acquisitions to respond to acute local situations where households in receipt of social housing supports such as housing assistance payment are at risk of becoming homeless or where there is an urgent need to acquire a property to respond to a particular need.

This second-hand acquisitions programme is targeted at four specific categories: to respond to tenants in situ who have received notice of termination; to support exits from homelessness services, to respond to the housing needs of people with a disability and older persons requiring urgent housing responses; and to buy and renew acquisitions which tackle vacancy. The introduction of the tenant in situ scheme in 2023 has seen a significant ramping up of second-hand acquisitions and, for example, in the period 2023 to the end of 2024, more than 3,300 second-hand homes were acquired, with 2,100 of them being tenant in situ acquisitions, at a cost to the Exchequer of more than €900 million.

The Government has approved capital funding of €325 million for the second-hand acquisitions programme for 2025, which is part of almost €2 billion in Exchequer funding committed for social housing provision in 2025. Cork City Council has been allocated €20 million for its acquisitions programme in 2025, which, as noted, includes tenant in situ as one of the priority categories for the second-hand acquisitions programme. Based on average unit acquisition cost from 2024, this allocation should allow Cork City Council to purchase in the region of 70 second-hand homes in 2025. The Department is aware that Cork City has a significant carryover of costs from its 2024 programme, including acquisitions that closed in early 2025, which is causing an additional burden in prioritising how best to proceed with tenant in situ acquisitions. I am informed that the Department is working closely with the council.

I appreciate Deputy Gould's concern. He has raised this before. He has raised the plight of his constituents who he knows who may have notice to quit or may be at risk of homelessness. I appreciate that and the efforts that he makes. I hope that every effort is made to resolve this. I think there are things that could be done. We are seeing situations where the new criteria that we have set out are being applied to houses for which discussions about buying them under the tenant in situ scheme had been entered into in 2024. Perhaps that can be looked at. I appreciate the equation the Deputy set out, that the allocation falls short of living up to the agreements or to tenant in situ acquisitions that were set in train in 2024. There is an issue. I understand that the Department is working closely with Cork City Council. Cork County Council is in a similar situation. It has been allocated around €15 million for 2025. Its commitments for 2024 that have not got over the line yet are around €13 million. Discussions and further work with local authorities will have to be done to resolve this.

I understand a Cabinet subcommittee on housing is meeting today. I do not know the outcomes of that yet. I am not sure if that meeting has finished. I will relay the points the Deputy made to the senior Minister. I will work with the senior Minister, Cork County Council and Cork City Council to try to resolve this. The Deputy is right that it has worked. It is a good scheme. It is continuing but it needs to work for all local authorities.

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