Results 8,501-8,520 of 25,880 for speaker:Darragh O'Brien

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Schemes (9 Mar 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: Housing for All – A New Housing Plan for Ireland is Ireland’s housing plan to increase the supply of housing to an average of 33,000 per year to 2030. Over 300,000 new homes will be built by the end of 2030, including a projected 90,000 social homes, 36,000 affordable purchase homes and 18,000 cost rental homes. The Plan is backed by investment with in excess of €20bn...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Rental Sector (9 Mar 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: The Residential Tenancies Board (RTB) was established as a quasi-judicial independent statutory body under the Residential Tenancies Acts 2004-2022 (RTA) 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: Housing Schemes (9 Mar 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: The Government recognises that more needs to be done to support home buyers and, as detailed in the Housing for All strategy, has introduced a multi-faceted approach to step up housing supply and put affordability at the heart of the housing system. This includes the provision of 36,000 affordable purchase and 18,000 cost rental homes in the period to 2030. For those with incomes too high...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Defective Building Materials (9 Mar 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: Oversight of financial institutions is outside the scope and remit of my Department but I confirm that I have engaged with my colleague, the Minister for Finance on these matters. The Minister for Finance advised that neither he nor his Department have any role in relation to the commercial decisions of individual regulated entities, such as decisions they may make on applications for...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Planning Issues (9 Mar 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: The draft Planning and Development Bill 2022 was approved by Government in December 2022 and is the culmination of the comprehensive review and consolidation of the Planning and Development Act 2000 (as amended) undertaken by the Office of the Attorney General. The key aim of the review was to put plan-making at the centre of the planning system by bringing increased clarity and...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Defective Building Materials (9 Mar 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: I received Government approval on 18 January 2023 to draft legislation to establish supports for the remediation of fire safety, structural safety and water ingress defects in purpose-built apartment buildings, including duplexes, constructed between 1991 and 2013. This legislation will provide a statutory basis for the establishment of a remediation scheme aimed at protecting the safety and...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Provision (9 Mar 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: I propose to take Questions Nos. 140 and 230 together. Housing for All was published 2 September 2021. The first annual update of the plan's actions was published on 2 November 2022. Under Housing for All, the supply of new homes is increasing: - In 2022, nearly 30,000 homes were completed. That is an increase of 45% from 2021 and 41% from 2019, pre-pandemic. The 2022 total exceeds the...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Provision (9 Mar 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: My Department publishes commencement notice data, broken down by local authority area, on a monthly basis which can be accessed at the following link: www.gov.ie/en/publication/a5cb1-construction-activity-starts / Similarly, the Central Statistics Office publishes quarterly data on dwelling completions, which is available on a Local Electoral Area Basis, at the following link:...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Schemes (9 Mar 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: The Tenant (Incremental Purchase Scheme) provides for the purchase by eligible tenants, or joint tenants, of local authority homes available for sale under the scheme. It seeks to incentivise purchasers to remain in their homes and support sustainable communities. The scheme was reviewed in 2021, with a number of amendments coming into effect from 1 February 2022. The amendments...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Emergency Accommodation (9 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 authorities....

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Provision (9 Mar 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: Following the publication of Housing for All, I asked local authorities to prepare Housing Delivery Action Plans. 18 local authorities, including Carlow, were set five-year Affordable Housing delivery targets and asked to include planned affordable housing delivery in those Plans. Carlow County Council published its final Plan last July. My Department has met with Carlow County Council...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Schemes (9 Mar 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: An Affordable Housing Fund application was submitted by Mayo County Council to my Department in September 2022 seeking funding to assist in the delivery of 13 affordable purchase homes in Springfield, Westport. I granted approval in principle to this application in November 2022 and scheduled delivery of these affordable homes will be in 2024. My Department, the Housing Agency and the...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Departmental Schemes (9 Mar 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: My Department provides funding to local authorities in respect of the Housing Adaptation Grants for Older People and People with a Disability, to assist eligible people in private houses to make their accommodation more suitable for their needs. Housing for All commits to reviewing the full suite of Housing Adaptation Grants for Older People and People with a Disability. A report on the...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Building Regulations (9 Mar 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: On 20 January 2023, I launched a three-month public consultation on proposed amendments to Building Regulations relating to fire safety (Part B) and the accompanying Technical Guidance Document B (TGD B). Fire safety regulations for dwelling houses were updated in 2017. The regulations currently out for public consultation relate to fire safety requirements in all other buildings. The...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Provision (9 Mar 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: My Department is working closely with Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council (DLR) to accelerate the delivery of housing on the local authority-owned sites at Old Conna and Rathmichael. Two such sites (Ballyman and Old Connaught) are part of my Department's accelerated delivery programme. In December 2022 my Department funded the pay-off of Housing Finance Agency site debts for these...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Provision (9 Mar 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: Housing for All sets out the range of actions intended to increase the overall supply of housing to 33,000 new homes on average per year over the next decade. Under the strategy, 54,000 affordable home interventions will be delivered between now and 2030 to be facilitated by local authorities, Approved Housing Bodies (AHBs), the Land Development Agency (LDA) and through a strategic...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Provision (9 Mar 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: My Department has not had any formal contact or discussions regarding the property referred to in the Question. Notwithstanding this, my Department is advised by Kerry County Council that the potential reuse of the former psychiatric hospital, St. Finan’s Killarney, for social and affordable housing purposes is under review by the Council in the context of its responsibility for...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Departmental Schemes (9 Mar 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: In line with the commitment in Housing for All, the expanded Local Authority Home Loan was launched in January 2022. It is a Government backed mortgage for those who cannot get sufficient funding from commercial banks to purchase or build a home. It is available to first-time buyers and "fresh start" applicants to purchase a new or second-hand property, or to self-build. Supporting home...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Fire Service (9 Mar 2023)

Darragh O'Brien: I propose to take Questions Nos. 159 and 166 together. The provision of a fire service in its functional area, including the establishment and maintenance of a fire brigade, the assessment of fire cover needs and the provision of fire station premises, is a statutory function of individual fire authorities under the Fire Services Acts 1981 and 2003. My Department supports fire authorities...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Traveller Accommodation (9 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. The Act provides that housing authorities have statutory responsibility for the assessment of the...