Results 9,461-9,480 of 15,090 for speaker:Eoin Ó Broin

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (18 Apr 2023)

Eoin Ó Broin: What is the expectation for delivery of units this year?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (18 Apr 2023)

Eoin Ó Broin: I appreciate the LDA is one step removed, so it is hard to have annualised targets for them. Is it the hope, as it has been since the start of Rebuilding Ireland, to have annualised targets for social housing broken down by local authority? Will we also have the same for affordable purchase and cost rental through the AHBs and CREL? Is there any reason why that could not be done in the...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (18 Apr 2023)

Eoin Ó Broin: Okay. I have two separate questions in the two minutes remaining. Last year, as with the two years before, there was a shortfall in new builds on the social housing side. The total shortfall for the three years was 8,537 units. This is a conversation we have had before. Will those units be added to the targets as set out in the housing plan over the coming years, or will the targets set...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (18 Apr 2023)

Eoin Ó Broin: Is there any intention to attempt to make up the shortfall of 8,500 units over the past three years? That is a significant number of units lost for various reasons.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (18 Apr 2023)

Eoin Ó Broin: Is there an answer on the Croí Cónaithe towns?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (18 Apr 2023)

Eoin Ó Broin: It took about nine or ten months to fix it for the affordable housing fund, because we had significant delays in those purchases. I know that is now resolved. Will it take as long to fix this?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (18 Apr 2023)

Eoin Ó Broin: For the information of the Chair, local authority home loans are currently not allowing drawdown of mortgages. There is an odd situation where somebody is applying to a local authority for a home loan . The Croí Cónaithe towns refurbishment grant gets approved for both but cannot proceed, because the home loan lender is not willing to allow the drawdown of the mortgage until that...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (18 Apr 2023)

Eoin Ó Broin: There are also problems with EBS, AIB and Bank of Ireland. I will forward that directly to Ms Timmons.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (18 Apr 2023)

Eoin Ó Broin: I will continue the conversation about cost rental and CREL. I am not sure I agree with Ms Timmons that the concept is proven, in the sense that there is a concern, as she knows, because a lot of the cost rental that is being delivered at the moment is turnkey and has construction costs arising. Then, rents are rising. Some of the most recent cost rental developments, both in Delgany and...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (18 Apr 2023)

Eoin Ó Broin: Given that construction costs are what they are, has consideration been given to changing the overall financial structure? At one point, when Enniskerry Road was being developed as a pilot, the financing was for 25 years. That offered a rent of €1,600, so the financing was stretched out to 40 years. Is the review looking at the potential benefits of even longer term finance to bring...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (18 Apr 2023)

Eoin Ó Broin: In terms of the cost rental we have to date, one of the things we are beginning to hear is that there is a cohort of people who are taking up cost rental who are quite close to the point of purchasing or saving for a deposit, and that is leading to a higher than expected exit rate from the existing cost-rental schemes that have been tenanted in the last year. Is that something the Department...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (18 Apr 2023)

Eoin Ó Broin: Just so I am clear: I like the sound of the Housing Agency portal, is it the hope that the portal will also then have a central point where all of the cost rentals would also be advertised on it, and not just on the individual landlords' cost-rental sites? One of the challenges for people at the moment is that they have to chase the LDA site, the Tuath site and the Respond site. Having one...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (18 Apr 2023)

Eoin Ó Broin: One other solution to that, in particular in the larger local authorities that are carrying a lot of the cost rental, is for the local authorities to have a portal. South Dublin County Council had a portal at one stage but it has been closed. The council only advertises the small number of discounted market units that it is delivering. Even within a local authority area if there is a way...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (18 Apr 2023)

Eoin Ó Broin: I am not in any way being adversarial. If we go onto the website, none of them meet the criterion of 150 units, in particular in Archers Wood, which has houses, duplexes and apartments, which is sub that number. What is more concerning about Archers Wood is that it was a Cairn Homes development. Cairn Homes does not need the LDA to activate. It was building out and ready to sell. It does...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Housing for All: Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage (18 Apr 2023)

Eoin Ó Broin: But it is what is happening.

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Energy Prices (18 Apr 2023)

Eoin Ó Broin: 201. To ask the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment if the Commission for Regulation of Utilities has had any engagement with utility providers regarding a reduction in the prices they currently charge household customers, given the fall in wholesale energy prices; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17401/23]

Written Answers — Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment: Energy Prices (18 Apr 2023)

Eoin Ó Broin: 202. To ask the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment if he will provide advice to households that have already significantly reduced their energy usage but who are still experiencing difficulty in meeting costs; if further supports are to be made available to households in order to assist in meeting these costs; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17402/23]

Written Answers — Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport: Rail Network (18 Apr 2023)

Eoin Ó Broin: 260. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport if he will outline plans for the further development of the rail network over the next five years; if his Department intends to increase investment in new stations and routes; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16828/23]

Written Answers — Department of Finance: Credit Availability (18 Apr 2023)

Eoin Ó Broin: 403. To ask the Minister for Finance if he is aware of the practice of a bank (details supplied); his views on whether this practice is correct; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17598/23]

Written Answers — Department of Education and Skills: Special Educational Needs (18 Apr 2023)

Eoin Ó Broin: 516. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the efforts being made by her Department to ensure special school placements are available to all children who require them; and if she will provide advice for parents who cannot secure a place for their child for the coming school year. [16962/23]