Results 15,661-15,680 of 26,293 for speaker:Darragh O'Brien

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Schemes (20 Sep 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: Under Housing for All, my Department was tasked with undertaking an analytical exercise to examine whether the level of discretion available to Local Authorities under the Housing Assistance Payment (HAP) was adequate.  The Housing Agency undertook to carry out this analytical exercise on behalf of my Department to better understand what level of discretion should be made available to...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Schemes (20 Sep 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: On the 14 July, my Department launched the Croí Cónaithe (Towns) Fund. The Fund is initially focused on supporting refurbishment of vacant homes in regional towns and villages. The Fund is being delivered by local authorities, and will provide new choices for people to live in towns and villages in Ireland, initially through the provision of a grant to support the refurbishment of...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Local Authorities (20 Sep 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: The Local Authority Home Loan is a Government backed mortgage for those on modest or low incomes who cannot get sufficient funding from commercial banks to purchase or build a home. It has been available nationwide from local authorities since 4 January 2022 for first-time buyers and fresh start applicants. The loan can be used both for new and second-hand properties, or to self-build. To be...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Schemes (20 Sep 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: The Local Authority Home Loan is a Government backed mortgage scheme for those on modest or low incomes who cannot get sufficient funding from commercial banks to purchase or build a home. It has been available nationwide from local authorities since 4 January 2022 for first-time buyers and fresh start applicants.   The Local Authority Home Loan can be used both for new and...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Departmental Reports (20 Sep 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: Details of the studies, reviews and research projects undertaken or commissioned by my Department and currently underway, are set out in the attached table, together with the scheduled completion date. Information in relation to recently published reports is available on the homepage of my Department's website at:  The first annual update of Housing for All is due for completion in...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Land Issues (20 Sep 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: In accordance with Section 53 of the Land Development Agency (LDA) Act 2021 , there is an obligation on all relevant public bodies disposing of relevant public land to first offer it for sale to the LDA. The LDA is also currently preparing a report to the Government, which shall identify lands suitable for the purposes of the LDA Act. Under Action 19.9 of Housing for All it was also...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Schemes (20 Sep 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: Over the period to 2026, the Government's Housing for All strategy commits to delivering 10,000 Cost Rental homes and 18,000 Affordable Purchase homes which will be delivered by Approved Housing Bodies (AHBs), Local Authorities, the Land Development Agency (LDA), and the First Home shared equity scheme. Local authorities have begun collating information on delivery of affordable homes in...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Defective Building Materials (20 Sep 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: Following on from the Government decision of the 30 November 2021 in respect of the enhanced Defective Concrete Blocks Grant scheme, the Government approved the Remediation of Dwellings Damaged by the Use of Defective Concrete Blocks Bill 2022 on 21 June and the Bill passed through both Houses of the Oireachtas and was subsequently signed into law by the President. The purpose of...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Schemes (21 Sep 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: The Tenant (Incremental) Purchase Scheme was reviewed in 2021 in line with Programme for Government and Housing for All commitments, with a number of changes subsequently coming into effect from 1 February 2022. The changes include a reduction in the minimum reckonable income required to be eligible under the scheme from €15,000 to €12,500. The time an applicant is required...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Schemes (21 Sep 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: My Department provides funding under the suite of Housing Adaptation Grants for Older People and People with a Disability, to assist people in private houses to make their accommodation more suitable for their needs. The grants include the Housing Adaptation Grant for People with a Disability, the Mobility Aids Grant and the Housing Aid for Older People, each of which are 80% funded by my...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Planning Issues (21 Sep 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: I propose to take Questions Nos. 59 and 60 together. The compact growth of cities and towns of all sizes, in order to create more attractive places in which people can live and work, is a key objective of the National Planning Framework (NPF). My Department is in the process of developing Section 28 guidelines for Planning Authorities on Sustainable and Compact Settlement Guidance (SCSG)....

Written Answers — Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht: Housing Policy (22 Sep 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: Housing for All is the Government’s plan to increase the supply of housing to an average of 33,000 per year over the next decade. Housing for All is supported by an investment package of over €4bn per annum, through an overall combination of €12bn in direct Exchequer funding, €3.5bn in funding through the Land Development Agency and €5bn funding through the...

Written Answers — Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht: Housing Schemes (22 Sep 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: The Housing Agency provides a central support service that assesses applications for the Local Authority Home Loan on behalf of local authorities and makes recommendations to the authorities to approve or refuse applications. The final decision on loan approval is a matter for the relevant local authority and its credit committee on a case-by-case basis. Decisions on all housing loan...

Written Answers — Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht: Housing Policy (22 Sep 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: Modern Methods of Construction (MMC) has been identified as a key measure to address the different housing needs in Ireland and methods to support the development of MMC in Ireland are set out in the Government's Housing Policy - Housing for All. The Construction Industry Federation report developed to support the Construction Sector Group outlines that MMC is used to describe a range of...

Written Answers — Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht: Housing Provision (22 Sep 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: The Labour Demand Estimates for Ireland’s National Housing targets, 2021 – 2030 Report estimated that total labour demand from housing construction will need to rise from approximately 40,000 full time equivalent workers at present, to 67,500 workers by the middle of the decade, to achieve an annual average of 33,000 homes over the decade. As the backlog of housing output has...

Written Answers — Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht: Housing Schemes (22 Sep 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: The Housing for All Strategy delivers on the Programme for Government commitment to step up housing supply and put affordability at the heart of the housing system, with an ambitious target of 300,000 homes over the next decade for social, affordable and cost rental, private rental and private ownership housing. 18,000 Cost Rental homes will be delivered between now and 2030, to be...

Written Answers — Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht: Housing Schemes (22 Sep 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: The current cost guidelines for the acquisition of houses and apartments for social housing use were updated and issued to local authorities in May 2022. A copy of these, in tabular format for each local authority will be provided to the Deputy in accordance with Standing Orders.

Written Answers — Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht: Housing Schemes (22 Sep 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: Affordable homes made available through the Local Authority Affordable Purchase Scheme are covered by the Affordable Housing Act 2021 and associated Regulations. Delivery of these homes is primarily a matter for each Local Authority, though the Department supports delivery through grants from the Affordable Housing Fund (AHF). The Department does not set price ceilings for homes the AHF will...

Written Answers — Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht: Covid-19 Pandemic Supports (22 Sep 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: On 19 January 2022, the Government announced a Covid-19 recognition payment for front-line healthcare workers to recognise their unique role during the pandemic. This once-off payment is ring fenced to staff who were ordinarily onsite in Covid-19-exposed healthcare environments within the period from 1 March 2020 to 30 June 2021. It applies to eligible staff in the public health service and...

Written Answers — Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht: Housing Policy (22 Sep 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: The Housing Finance Agency (HFA) plc is a non-commercial semi-State company under the aegis of the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, limited by shares under the terms of the Housing Finance Agency Act 1981. The setting of interest rates is an operational matter for the HFA. The dedicated email address set up by the Agency to respond to queries and requests for information...