Results 8,441-8,460 of 25,880 for speaker:Darragh O'Brien

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Vacant Properties (21 Mar 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: Pathway 4 of Housing for All sets out a blueprint to address vacancy and make efficient use of our existing housing stock. Many areas of cities, towns and villages of all sizes face the blight of vacant properties, which, if brought back into use, could add real vibrancy and provide new accommodation in those areas. The Croí Cónaithe Towns Fund is a key initiative which underpins...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Traveller Accommodation (21 Mar 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: The Housing (Traveller Accommodation) Act 1998 provides that the role of my Department is to ensure that there are adequate structures and supports in place to assist housing authorities in providing accommodation for Travellers, including a national framework of policy, legislation and funding. My Department ceased the practice of allocating specific budgets to individual local authorities...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Vacant Properties (21 Mar 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: I propose to take Questions Nos. 510 and 517 together. The management and maintenance of local authority housing stock, including pre-letting repairs to vacant properties, the implementation of a planned maintenance programme and carrying out of responsive repairs, are matters for each individual local authority under Section 58 of the Housing Act 1966. Since 2014, Exchequer funding has been...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Homeless Persons Supports (21 Mar 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: My Department’s role in relation to homelessness involves the provision of a national framework of policy, legislation and funding to underpin the statutory role of housing authorities in addressing homelessness at local level. Statutory responsibility in relation to the provision of emergency accommodation and related services for homeless persons rests with individual housing...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Animal Welfare (21 Mar 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: I propose to take Questions Nos. 514 and 515 together. The National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) staff of my Department are working across all regions of the country to address wildlife crime. Staff in NPWS are designated as Authorised Persons under the Wildlife Acts and Authorised Officers under the EC (Birds and Natural Habitats) Regulations 2011 and in that context they have powers...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: eGovernment Services (21 Mar 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: The Residential Tenancies Board, or RTB, was established as a quasi-judicial independent statutory body under the Residential Tenancies Acts 2004-2022 to regulate the rental sector; provide information to tenants and landlords; maintain a national register of tenancies; resolve disputes between tenants and landlords; and conduct research and provide information to inform policy. The remit...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Vacant Properties (21 Mar 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: Local authorities will always have a level of vacancy in their housing stock. This will fluctuate over time, as tenancy surrender and re-letting of stock is an ongoing process. Therefore, ongoing data in relation to vacant local authority owned homes is not collated by my Department. However, statistics in relation to social housing stock, at a point in time, are published by the National...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Housing Schemes (9 Mar 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: As the Deputy will be aware, a very ambitious programme of delivery of affordable housing - the first in at least 15 years - commenced in 2022. Under the schemes introduced via the Affordable Housing Act 2021, this saw significant delivery of cost-rental homes for the first time by approved housing bodies and also by one local authority that is expanding further. That was using the cost...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Housing Schemes (9 Mar 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: I agree with the Deputy. In the interests of co-operation, I will not highlight the fact that we have different views on affordable housing and how it is delivered. The first home scheme was the main deliverer last year. I can be quite specific on those approvals because I get that data on a weekly basis. Up to the Friday before last, there were approximately 1,100 first home...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Housing Schemes (9 Mar 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: I receive the first home data in real time. There is a good ICT system behind that. It is run by the First Home Scheme Ireland Designated Activity Company. We see the approvals nearly every week, which is why I can be very specific on that matter. I cannot be as specific in relation to the others because affordable purchase and cost rental, through the different delivery models, are...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Housing Schemes (9 Mar 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: I was saying the Deputy voted against the legislation.

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Housing Schemes (9 Mar 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: All the delivery mechanisms on affordable housing are facilitated by the Affordable Housing Act 2021----

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Housing Schemes (9 Mar 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: -----which the Deputy's party opposed.

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Defective Building Materials (9 Mar 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: To be clear, based on the surveys and the work done by the working group, about 14% of properties have been remediated already. Where those remediation works fall under the objectives of the scheme relating to fire safety, water ingress and structural issues - to be very clear - those costs will be covered. It obviously has to be certified work carried out by professionals and certified on...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Defective Building Materials (9 Mar 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: If the building is from between 1991 and 2013, it falls in the scheme. I have not set a backstop date as such. If the works were done before a certain date I want those to be included.

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Defective Building Materials (9 Mar 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: We have seen a significant increase in applications to that scheme for defective concrete blocks. Anyone who applies now for stage 1 or stage 2 approvals will get the uplift of the new defective concrete blocks scheme.

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Defective Building Materials (9 Mar 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: We need to pass the legislation. Co-operation across the House on this has been very good. Having legislation in place is a priority because we need bespoke legislation. People should not pause the works that they are doing or contracting because they are now safe in the knowledge that those costs will be covered

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Housing Policy (9 Mar 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: On the last question the Deputy asked, and looking at the Dublin Regional Homeless Executive, DRHE, data over the period of the eviction ban, homelessness stabilised. It did increase in some areas. The biggest single reason for that - about 25% of those presenting as homeless - was relationship breakdowns, and not due to other issues. The data are all published and are available.

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Housing Policy (9 Mar 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: Deputy Ó Broin might try to behave himself. I am answering Deputy Smith, who has put a very valid question here.

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Housing Policy (9 Mar 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: What we are doing is that we have acquired about 600 properties from July. There was a target of 200 for 2022. As Deputy Smith knows from dealing with constituents in our area, once the council enters into those negotiations there is a conveyancing period to close the sale. Some local authorities have been using figures of closed sales only, ignoring the fact that there are others in...