Results 7,981-8,000 of 25,858 for speaker:Darragh O'Brien

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Resumed) (25 Apr 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: I am glad the Deputy asked that question, because they can. There were trans-boundary issues with people on housing assistance payment, HAP, in one local authority but on a list elsewhere. Through the directors of services for housing, that has been worked through. If for example, someone is renting in Kildare, but is a HAP tenant in south Dublin, Kildare can purchase the house....

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Resumed) (25 Apr 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: The changes take effect from 1 May. All local authorities will receive notification in advance of that and we have engaged with them before this. I wish to alert anyone who has not drawn down the grant that the grant is not drawn down until the very end.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Resumed) (25 Apr 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: Some people may play on that but that is the way it is. You do not pay for works until they are done and are invoiced.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Resumed) (25 Apr 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: Yes. The scheme has been opened up. The Act permits that.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Resumed) (25 Apr 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: That element was part of the debate and we went through the Land Development Agency Act. Cost-rental schemes on continental Europe allow ethical investment within that but cap creative return, and we can do that also. As a reference to tomorrow, the local authorities are now getting directly involved in cost-rental units, which is welcome, so that is local authorities, the LDA, approved...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Resumed) (25 Apr 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: I am seriously impressed by the St. Joseph's project in Waterford City and commend Waterford City and County Council on the work it is doing. First, we have targeted all local authorities with repair and lease targets. The targets have been issued to them. That has not been done before and I know that the Senator has strongly advocated for doing so. Second, I support the call for a...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Resumed) (25 Apr 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: Yes, I have sent targets to all local authorities in that regard.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Resumed) (25 Apr 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: Some are low targets because none has been done so we want to get the scheme up and running.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Resumed) (25 Apr 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: Which scheme is this? I apologise for interrupting Deputy Gould.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Resumed) (25 Apr 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: Is Deputy Gould making the point about all three of them?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Resumed) (25 Apr 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: That will be launched in-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Resumed) (25 Apr 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: I thank Deputy Duffy for his work and support. Those two Acts were crucial. The Affordable Housing Act set down cost rental on a nationwide basis in primary legislation. The Land Development Agency Act, as the Deputy rightly says, is designated for Cork and Dublin in particular, with regard to 100% social and affordable homes. There are some who would wish to ignore the fact that we had...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Resumed) (25 Apr 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: The uplift in the grant amounts will be applicable to them also. The Minister of State, Deputy O'Donnell, will comment on our engagement with local authorities.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Resumed) (25 Apr 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: With regard to affordable purchase and specifically the issues relating to Cork, Cork City Council has done a good job in leading there, as has Cork County Council quite significantly. There were issues with conveyancing on some of the initial cost-rental homes. There was the same issue in Lusk in north County Dublin. It had to be worked through. I have just seen a note that states 183...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Resumed) (25 Apr 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: The Affordable Housing Act was passed in 2021 and these were in the first batch of affordable properties. Any delay is not to be welcomed. To give more detail, I cannot give a guarantee to anyone about a mortgage lender or a private bank that is lending. Any lending institution or mortgage institution that is lending for a State-backed affordable home, where the State is in many instances...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Resumed) (25 Apr 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: No, I am not going there. It is going to the city council.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Resumed) (25 Apr 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: The time has elapsed but I ask the Chair to allow me 30 seconds to respond. The decision that we took to bring in the eviction moratorium was to provide additional space to provide more accommodation. We did this with more than 6,000 new social homes in the last quarter of last year. The tenantin situ scheme was expanded to at least 1,500 and there is also the cost-rental backstop. There...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Resumed) (25 Apr 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: I meet the chief executives of the local authorities on a regular basis, including the chief executive of Cork City Council and others throughout the country. All of our local authorities are fully tooled up to provide support for tenants. I will conclude on discussing the reason we did not extend the ban. Deputy Gould's party called for three different extension dates. Extending the...