Results 8,021-8,040 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 will stay until midnight, if the Senator wishes.

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 féidir leis an Aire Stáit leanúint ar aghaidh.

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: It is a very good point. We wish to encourage local authorities and AHBs to do so. There are affordable purchase schemes approved in 15 local authorities. Deputy Flaherty mentioned earlier that we have expressions of interest going out for a scheme in Longford. We have schemes in Mayo and other areas. It is increasing. This is a new ask of a local authorities. I want, as best as...

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: Let us just stick with local authorities on the cost-rental side of things. We need more local authorities doing cost rental directly. They can borrow at lower rates through the Housing Finance Agency, HFA, and it makes the schemes more viable.

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: They need to be encouraged. We have changed the affordable housing fund to allow increased subvention from our Department within that. Tomorrow, for argument's sake, South Dublin County Council will be turning the sod on 134 cost-rental units. That is the first time South Dublin County Council has done that directly. Fingal County Council and Dublin City Council will be doing direct...

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 have been quicker out of the blocks than others. They are our colleagues and we need to encourage them. They are mandated through the Housing for All plan to deliver. One thing we have done is we have made and published our housing plan for each local authority. The housing need and demand assessments, HNDAs, are there. People can see the plan. It covers local authorities and AHBs...

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: Okay. I can talk to the Deputy about 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: I will mention a couple of things. I do not agree with a lot of what Deputy Gould has said but that will not surprise him at all. Looking at the numbers, output has increased by 10,000 in a year and the number of social housing units built is the highest since 1975. I put it to Deputy Gould that it would probably be higher if his party colleagues did not object to housing all over the...

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.

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: Tá brón orm. Sinn Féin said it would abolish it. I remember one throwaway remark its party spokesperson made one day. He said it was not enough. I asked him what would be enough and whether €50,000 or €70,000 would be enough for a vacant home grant. I take it that, if someone comes into Deputy Gould's constituency office in Cork city and says that he or she...

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 did not interrupt 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: Let me speak to something positive.

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: Go on. It would be the first.

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 will be very brief but I will first say that I did not mean to raise the Deputy's ire. However, Cork City Council delivered 517 new-build homes last year. That is a significant number.

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: Will Deputy Gould stop for a second?

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 sat here and listened to Deputy Gould and sometimes it was not easy to do so. I am just trying to give him some facts. He should give his local authority in Cork city some credit for the work it does.

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 Deputy has not even acknowledged that the council built 517 new social homes last year. It purchased a further 45 while the approved housing bodies purchased a further 11. That is not even including Part V leasing. There were hundreds of homes provided in the Cork City Council area last year. Including the housing assistance payment, 1,295 homes were provided. The figure on the...

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 will write to the committee with an update on An Bord Pleanála. This will be useful and of interest to the members. We have 15 board members in place now, which is the highest number ever. They are working through the backlog. Even comparing the number of staff in the organisation now to the number there in 2021, it will be seen that we have had an increase of approximately 60% 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 know that, but there was an issue with open space and also with the mix of units. It was quite a dense development, which I think is good, but there is a desire to row back from that now. Some discussion is under way in this regard. I agree with the Deputy. I want to see these units built and I will provide him with an update. Deputy O'Donoghue raised an issue that we are examining,...

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: There must be a space for rental accommodation as well, but the Part V requirement does apply. If the accommodation in question is not intended to be temporary, and some in the agricultural and horticultural sector are permitted to-----