Maurice Quinlivan (Limerick City, Sinn Fein)
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This Topical Issue relates to the circular titled Arrangements for Social Housing Acquisitions in 2023. As we all know, this circular was issued to local authorities regarding tenantsin situ. There is great concern and frustration among many local authorities that my colleagues and I, including Deputy Ó Broin, have spoken to. The recent decision to end the moratorium on evictions will lead to more homelessness and that is an undisputed fact. Many of those who have received and face a notice to quit have nowhere to go. No one in the Government will be able to answer the following question. Using my constituency of Limerick as an example, the cost of rental properties is far too high, having increased by 18% in the past year, and there are fewer rentals properties available. A search of daft.ietoday showed there are seven properties available in Limerick and its suburbs, including the city centre, Annacotty, Castletroy and Raheen. There is nothing available. In quarter 3 of 2021, 211 notices to quit were issued in Limerick. They are due to become active with the ending of the eviction ban. There is nowhere for these people to go. Despite consistently asking the question, we are yet to hear where these people are supposed to go.

Since the Government announced the ending of the eviction ban, my office has been inundated with calls from very concerned renters. Being served with a notice to quit is very stressful for most renters but trying to source accommodation is equally challenging. Properties that are available are often priced way too high for the average renting family. The Government knows how much stress its decision has caused to families up and down the State. The programme for Government suggests that everybody should have access to good quality housing to purchase or rent at an affordable price, yet the Government's actions make a mockery of this fine declaration. I again ask where these people are supposed to go.

Limerick City and County Council has repeatedly confirmed to me that there is zero capacity for homeless accommodation in Limerick, yet we anticipate more homelessness. It is incredible that the Government has continued with this decision. Our council in Limerick has plans for five social houses in Castleconnell, which are under construction, and Castle Rock. However, 453 individuals and families are waiting in the Castleconnell area. Realising the end of the eviction ban is the wrong move. Being too steadfast to consider a change in tack, the Government is now scrambling to put in place other options that do not seem to be deliverable.

The recent circular titled Arrangements for Social Housing Acquisitions in 2023 is full of ambition but short on detail. It acknowledges that councils can acquire up to 1,500 social homes and has targets for individual councils, with 75 houses to be acquired in Limerick. This needs to be backed up with supports for local council; otherwise it will be another failure. My local council in Limerick has indicated that it has received a huge number of inquiries from landlords about selling their property to the council. According to the council, there were 186 notices to quit under review by the council for acquisitions as of today. What are the guidelines and how does the council decide who should be made homeless and on behalf of whom should it purchase a property because this is not clear in the directive?

Among the issues with the circular, which I hope the Minister of State will address, I have the following questions in relation to the scheme. If councils have identified suitable properties, can they approach landlords regarding a purchase prior to a formal notice to quit being issued given that in many cases, we know a notice to quit is coming? Will he clarify what funding will be available to local authorities for refurbishment? Local councils cannot, and nor should they be expected to, inspect 100% of rental accommodation scheme, RAS, properties in a year. Many of these properties will be in a poor state of repair. Will the allocation of a refurbishment grant to tenants in situproperties be examined to allow for necessary works to take place? The failure to provide additional funding and staff would mean the scheme will not work. If existing staff have to administer this, other projects will be affected. What provision is being made to get staff and will funding be provided for same?

Niall Collins (Limerick County, Fianna Fail)
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On behalf of the Minister, Deputy Darragh O’Brien, I thank the Deputy for raising this important matter. Housing for All is the Government’s plan to increase the supply of housing to an average of 33,000 units per year over the next decade. This includes the delivery of 90,000 social homes, 36,000 affordable purchase homes and 18,000 cost-rental homes. Housing for All is supported by an investment package of over €4 billion per annum through an overall combination of €12 billion in direct Exchequer funding, €3.5 billion in funding through the Land Development Agency and €5 billion funding through the Housing Finance Agency. Under Housing for All, the Government will deliver 47,600 new build social homes and 3,500 social homes through long-term leasing in the period 2022 to 2026. Our clear focus is to increase the stock of social housing through new build projects delivered by local authorities and approved housing bodies.

Under Housing for All, there is provision for 200 social housing acquisitions each year. However, with increased pressures on housing and the exit of landlords from the market, the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage reinstated delegated sanction to local authorities in April 2022 to acquire social housing properties for a number of specific categories, including properties that allow persons to exit or prevent homelessness. One of the priority categories was to address homelessness, which would include the acquisition of a property to exit a household from emergency accommodation or the acquisition of a property that would prevent a household from becoming homeless. The Minister specifically requested that local authorities be proactive in acquiring properties where a housing assistance payment, HAP, or RAS tenant had received a notice of termination due to the landlord’s intention to sell the property. A circular also issued to local authorities, on 8 March, setting out these revised arrangements.

The Government has agreed there will be increased provision for social housing acquisitions in 2023 and the Department will fund local authorities to acquire up to 1,500 social homes. This represents an increase of 1,300 on the original target for acquisitions. Local authorities have delegated sanction to deliver the 1,300 additional acquisitions, subject to those acquisitions being within acquisition cost guidelines issued by the Department. Where a person is on the social housing list in one local authority area but has secured a HAP tenancy in another local authority area, the arrangements in place will support the acquisition of the property, where appropriate. The City and County Management Association has assured the Minister that local authorities are collaborating on such situations and the Department will work closely with local authorities on this measure.

Under Housing for All, 250 additional posts have been approved for local authorities specifically to support the delivery of social housing. While the majority of the posts are technical, a significant number of administrative posts have also been approved.

Maurice Quinlivan (Limerick City, Sinn Fein)
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I thank the Minister of State for his answer but he did not answer any of the questions I asked. I have the circular from 8 March to hand. The councils are seriously worried and the Minister, Deputy Darragh O'Brien, needs to listen to this. They do not have the staff to do this. They do not have clarity on what they are supposed to do and who they are supposed to look after.

I can go through it again. I have already asked my questions but I will ask them again because I want to read them into the record. Local councils cannot, nor should they be expected to, inspect 100% of RAS or HAP properties in a year. That is not going to happen. They only ever inspect a small portion of these. Many of these properties will be in a poor state of repair and need significant work. Will the Minister of State confirm that a refurbishment grant to tenants in situproperties be examined to allow for necessary works to take place? Will he clarify what funding will be available to local authorities which, at present, or not aware of what the funding may be? Local authorities have no funding to carry out these repairs, as the Minister of State knows well.

The second issue is that there is no policy on how to administer cost rentals for people who have notices to quit, where the tenant's income exceeds the threshold for social housing. This is causing huge distress and needs to be clarified.

I understand it is only for new-build cost-rentals, which do not exist.

The third question is who is going to administer the scheme. A house is not purchased in a day and there is a long process that will take up many working hours of council staff who are already under huge pressure. What flexibility have councils to acquire additional staff to cope with this heavy workload? A failure to provide additional funding and staff simply means the scheme will not work, in particular if existing staff have to administer the scheme. They are telling me that all of their housing projects, including new builds, will be affected and delayed, meaning other targets and plans will be missed.

In regard to this scheme, if councils have identified suitable properties, can they approach a landlord with regard to a purchase prior to a formal notice to quit? We have known for a long time there are notices to quit in place. As the Minister of State knows, press conferences and announcements mean nothing. A robust circular with clarity, backed up by funding, is necessary to ensure these 1,500 houses can be secured by local authorities. Will the Minister redraft the circular and resend it to all of the local authorities to address the issues I have raised so the plan, unlike many of the other Government housing plans, might actually work.

Niall Collins (Limerick County, Fianna Fail)
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Housing for All is a clear priority for Government and we are committed to delivering on the targets across all pathways of the plan. The delivery of social and affordable homes is central to the plan and is expected to comprise approximately half of housing delivery over the next decade. The provision of individual local authority targets and the development of housing delivery action plans, addressing delivery over the next five years, has introduced a more strategic approach to housing delivery. Local authorities are working closely with their approved housing body delivery partners and the Land Development Agency to develop the pipelines to ensure that we meet these targets, which will in turn reduce reliance on the HAP scheme.

The increase up to 1,500 social housing acquisitions will allow local authorities to focus on properties where a tenant in receipt of social housing supports has received a notice of termination due to the landlord’s intention to sell the property. Local authorities have delegated sanction to deliver the 1,300 additional acquisitions, subject to the acquisition cost guidelines, and the approval granted for 250 additional local authority posts will support local authorities to acquire suitable properties. The Department has worked closely with the County and City Management Association, CCMA, to prioritise this initiative with a focus on prevention of homelessness and will continue to work closely with local authorities, the CCMA and all the key stakeholders to ensure the success of this programme.

I will make the Minister aware of the issues the Deputy has raised. I am well aware of them myself in Limerick, as the Deputy knows, because the same local authority covers his constituency and my constituency. As I have asked Limerick City and County Council the question, I know that last year it acquired fewer than 40 properties under the tenantin situscheme. In the past two weeks, however, I and my constituency office have referred eight cases for acquisition through the tenant in situscheme and I know that in the majority of those eight cases, the landlords have already been contacted to say they are being viewed as part of that scheme. I fully appreciate the issues the Deputy has raised but the scheme is there and is being beefed up. I am sure it will act as a very positive measure.

Maurice Quinlivan (Limerick City, Sinn Fein)
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If this is not clarified, it will not work.