Results 9,561-9,580 of 25,880 for speaker:Darragh O'Brien

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 34 - Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Supplementary) (24 Nov 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: First, in fairness, the Deputy accepted - I am not making this as a political point - the step towards €100 million to develop sites and reduce that debt is significant and is welcomed by local authorities.

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 34 - Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Supplementary) (24 Nov 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: We will work with the sector to resolve sites that are not suitable for housing. That is something that we will do, potentially, through the Housing Finance Agency, as well. We have seen the number of interest-only loans significantly reduce but there is still a burden there. I acknowledge that. The local property tax is an important stream of funding for local government. For those...

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 34 - Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Supplementary) (24 Nov 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: I think that all of us would agree the scheme for the derelict sites levy, and the collection of the levy, does not work to the level it should. As Deputies will know, we will bring forward a vacant property tax, which is important particularly for vacant properties. We have also changed the repair and lease scheme to make it easier to bring vacant and many derelict-----

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 34 - Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Supplementary) (24 Nov 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: I am thankful we have seen, over the past number of years, that while vacancy and dereliction is too high it is reducing, and reducing substantially year on year.

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 34 - Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Supplementary) (24 Nov 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: It is a brand new scheme.

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 34 - Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Supplementary) (24 Nov 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: The Deputy wants the scheme to be expanded yet his colleague who is sat beside him wants to abolish the scheme. I suggest his party makes its mind up.

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 34 - Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Supplementary) (24 Nov 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: The scheme opened in August and I know the Deputy would like the scheme to fail.

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 34 - Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Supplementary) (24 Nov 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: I know the Deputy would like the scheme to fail but it will not and will be a great hit.

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 34 - Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Supplementary) (24 Nov 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: There are other schemes such as the buy and renew scheme, which we need to move on, and the repair and release scheme. There is also using a compulsory purchase order, CPO, on vacant properties.

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 34 - Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Supplementary) (24 Nov 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: The Croí Cónaithe scheme has been extended to include rural homes, towns, villages and cities. There has been incredible interest shown in the scheme and very strong applications through it. The scheme is new and will work. I can come back to the Deputy about the scheme in quarter 1 next year, if I am still in this job.

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 34 - Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Supplementary) (24 Nov 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: I would love to discuss the scheme with the Deputy next year but maybe he will have changed his mind by that stage.

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 34 - Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Supplementary) (24 Nov 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: Perhaps the Deputy would talk to Deputy Ó Broin.

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 34 - Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Supplementary) (24 Nov 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: The Vice Chairman has asked good questions. The Croí Cónaithe scheme could be an important vehicle for us to bring a lot of derelict and vacant properties back into use. The scheme is already taking hold. Croí Cónaithe was launched on 8 August and in the past two weeks we have expanded the scheme to rural homes and cities. Vacancies are a scourge and we need to tackle...

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 34 - Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Supplementary) (24 Nov 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: Let us consider all of the things we have discussed here today. The Vice Chairman made a very good point in his opening remarks that the representatives of the local authorities, in their contributions here, all focused on housing delivery but perhaps not all of them use every tool that is available to them right now. We have got to support them to use all of the tools because they do a lot...

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 34 - Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Supplementary) (24 Nov 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: I agree with the Vice Chairman. We are working on quite a substantial cost-rental scheme in Ballymun at the moment. We have made changes to the cost rental equity loan, CREL, which underpins cost rental. That was done at the request of AHBs as well. I would like local authorities to do cost rental directly. We have opportunities to do that because the funding model is even more...

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 34 - Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Supplementary) (24 Nov 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: When we came into Government the LDA existed and was not just a concept. It had done some good work on master-planning and planning other sites. I wanted to bring those from the planning and concept stages into actual delivery of homes. We saw the first of them - in Mallow, County Cork, and Shanganagh Castle - break ground over the past few weeks. Work is also starting on St....

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 34 - Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Supplementary) (24 Nov 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: I mentioned earlier that the baseline review has commenced. It was delayed by Covid-19 and there was a delay with the CSO data. We expect to conclude the work on the baseline review in quarter 2 next year. That will provide the requisite clarity that many local authority members are seeking. We will be focused on that. The important issue then is that it is self-funding and is spent in...

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 34 - Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Supplementary) (24 Nov 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: The Deputy mentioned a few of the initiatives. We are seeing the URDF take hold throughout the country. We would like to see more of the fund used and we will do a review of it. We are seeing improvements in our cities and towns throughout the country. We will have another call on the fund too. The overall capital in this sphere of the Department will deliver a step change in housing...

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 34 - Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Supplementary) (24 Nov 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: The provision of affordable homes is very important. We will deliver affordable homes this year for the first time in many years, although not enough. We need to do more. Next year will be challenging, by the way. I do not want to leave anyone in any doubt. Increased interest rates, increased rates in funding and development finance and, in particular, inflation provide risk into next...

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 34 - Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Supplementary) (24 Nov 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: I will very briefly address that. That scheme is a supply-side measure. We have extended it to self-builds. I do not envisage it being available for second-hand homes. It is the supply itself that-----