Thomas Gould (Cork North-Central, Sinn Fein)
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On Tuesday, the Taoiseach said in this Chamber that he could not understand how €20 million had already been allocated for Cork City Council for the tenant in situ scheme. He could not understand where the money was. He did not doubt its sincerity, but he could not understand what had happened. That is a shocking admission from a Taoiseach. Let us lay out the facts here today.

Cork City Council purchased 173 homes last year, eight more than it was originally sanctioned for. It received sanction for 50% more in June and was allowed to proceed. The Department sanctioned eight extra units. That meant 135 homes were purchased and closed in 2024, with an additional 38 homes bringing the total to 173 homes agreed and approved by the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage at the end of last year. This saved 100 children and 134 adults from becoming homeless, equal to 40% of Cork City Council's homeless prevention measures.

This year, the Government provided €20 million. From that, €5.5 million has already been spent on 135 houses purchased last year and a further €12.7 million is needed to complete the purchase of 38 homes by the end of last year. An additional €3.5 million is needed for the refurbishment of the homes purchased last year. Despite €20 million in funding, Cork City Council has a deficit of €1.7 million. The problem is that the council agreed to buy 33 homes and notified families and landlords that they would do so. Families now face homelessness.

I raised this issue with the Taoiseach yesterday. I asked him a question and want to ask the Minister of State a straight question. Is the Government going to provide money to Cork City Council to purchase 33 homes for the 33 families who will be homeless in the next week or two? It is a straight question and I am looking for a straight answer. This is not for me. This is for the people I represent in Cork who are at risk of homelessness. They will have to tell their children over the weekend or next week that they will become homeless because the Government decided to cut funding for the tenant in situ scheme.

We told the Government this in March when we debated our Private Members' Bill and asked that the tenant in situ scheme be saved. The scheme works. It is one of the few things the Government did right. Tenants want houses to be purchased, landlords are willing to sell and local authorities want to purchase them. The only problem is that the Government will not provide the money. This is happening at a time when the country is awash with money and we have billions of euro to do this.

Cork City Council did its job and what the local authority was supposed to do. It should be commended for it. The Government did not do its job because it is not providing the funding.

I was contacted by a woman who works in the public sector and does not want to speak out publicly because of her job. She will be homeless. Imagine that she will have to go into a government job and tell her colleagues that she and her daughter will be homeless because the tenant in situ scheme is gone. This is a straightforward question. Before the Minister of State names everything that the Government is going to do and what it has spent, I want to ask him one question. Is this Government going to give the money to Cork City Council to save those 33 families from homelessness? Yes or no?

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

Thomas Gould (Cork North-Central, Sinn Fein)
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The Minister of State is wrong. It is not continuing. We have a letter from Cork City Council from 4 April, stating that the tenant in situ scheme has stopped in Cork City Council. We have tenants who went into the council, looking for the forms to apply, and the council would not even give them the forms. It said that it has no money left. I read out where all the money has gone. The Minister of State gave me an answer about €20 million. The €20 million is gone. There is no point talking about money that is spent. There are homes there. I spoke about a lady who was mentioned at a special meeting in Cork City Council on Tuesday at which every councillor in Cork supported a Sinn Féin motion to keep the tenant in situ scheme operating, including Fine Fáil, Fine Gael and the opposition. Everyone supported it. The Minister of State said he is working closely with others.

Annette Hawkins and her child will be homeless next week. She has been living in the house for 21 years and the Minister of State and his Government will be making her homeless next week. Jason Cashman, another man, is going to be homeless next week. He would have been homeless in February but the landlord let him stay there because the landlord thought the house was being bought. We have 33 families who are going to be homeless between now and the summer. Where are they going to go? The Minister of State is talking about discussions, about how it is going to be looked at, his personal opinion and ending long-term homelessness. Homelessness will go through the roof in Cork. Two hundred children are already in emergency accommodation in Cork and Kerry. This scheme saved 100 from going into emergency accommodation last year. The Minister of State's policy will potentially put 100 more children into emergency accommodation.

Does the Minister of State not get it? Does he not understand? Why has he put limits? People want to live in the houses. They do not want to be homeless. I ask the Minister of State for a straight answer. Will he and the Government give the money to save the 33 families from homelessness? Many more families need a tenant in situ scheme. It is a crazy decision and an absolute disgrace. Shame on the Minister of State. I am asking a straightforward question. Will he give them the money? Yes or no?

Christopher O'Sullivan (Cork South-West, Fianna Fail)
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Since the second-hand acquisition programme was established, Cork City Council has delivered a significant programme, complementing its strong record of new build output in the city. Over the past three years, Cork City Council has acquired 285 second-hand properties, scaling up significantly in 2024, with 135 homes acquired, of which 79 were tenant in situ acquisitions. Taking Cork County Council's acquisitions over the last three years, including both local authority and approved housing body acquisitions, the council represents approximately 7% of all acquisitions nationally, based on the number of units. I can reconfirm that the tenant in situ scheme is not closed in Cork City Council.

Thomas Gould (Cork North-Central, Sinn Fein)
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It is closed in Cork. I have it in writing here that it is closed in Cork.

Christopher O'Sullivan (Cork South-West, Fianna Fail)
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The allocation of €20 million to the council in 2025 represents 6% of the total fund available across 31 local authorities. To date, €6.8 million has been paid to Cork City Council in 2025. The Deputy is right that that represents strong delivery in the tenant in situ scheme. In fairness to them, I know that Cork City Council and Cork County Council have strong delivery of new builds for social homes, which has to be commended. Housing for All has always been flexible and has always been up for review. Where challenges are presenting themselves, like they are presenting themselves in Cork City Council, where there are commitments from a previous year, in fairness, local authorities have to work within parameters and budgets and because the tenant in situ scheme is such an effective solution, the council has obviously gone over what it was allocated in 2024. I get the Deputy's point and the equation. Through those commitments, there is a shortfall in the 2025 acquisitions. My understanding is that the Department will work closely with Cork City Council and Cork County Council to get through this.

Thomas Gould (Cork North-Central, Sinn Fein)
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Is that a yes or a no?

Christopher O'Sullivan (Cork South-West, Fianna Fail)
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I cannot give a yes or no answer. As I said, the Cabinet subcommittee on housing is meeting. I will certainly work with the Deputy and the local authorities to try to find a resolution to this, because I agree with the Deputy that the tenant in situ scheme is a key way of preventing homelessness.

Thomas Gould (Cork North-Central, Sinn Fein)
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Will the Minister of State have an answer by next week? That is all I am looking for. These people have families. They have children and jobs. They want an answer by next week.