Results 1,681-1,700 of 2,386 for speaker:Michael Finneran

Social Housing Leasing Initiative. (21 Jan 2010)

Michael Finneran: This scheme, which was introduced in February 2009, was extended to voluntary bodies in September 2009. It was appropriate that many local authorities concentrated on dealing with their own unsold affordable stock during the first period of the scheme, as we did not want national stock to be sitting idle while people remained on the social housing lists. We will have to accept that local...

Social Housing Leasing Initiative. (21 Jan 2010)

Michael Finneran: The Deputy has asked three questions. I have already said that 1,331 affordable units have been approved under the social housing leasing initiative. The local authorities and the voluntary bodies have acquired 289 and 313 private properties, respectively. As I have said, applications in respect of hundreds of other private properties are being processed at present. The scheme has had...

Social and Affordable Housing. (21 Jan 2010)

Michael Finneran: The provision of affordable housing, including setting of the sale price, is primarily a matter for individual housing authorities. The sale price of an affordable home is determined largely by its cost. Where authorities consider it appropriate in the context of reduced open market prices and the continuing need to ensure value for money outcomes, they have the option to reduce the sale...

Social and Affordable Housing. (21 Jan 2010)

Michael Finneran: I reject the claim made by the Deputy on this matter. There is not a glut at this time. As I explained in an earlier question, our local authorities have been innovative and in the first nine months of 2009 they were successful in selling 1,300 affordable homes, which is a success that should not go unrecorded. In addition, I have taken 1,300 units into long-term leasing. At this time,...

Social and Affordable Housing. (21 Jan 2010)

Michael Finneran: I did not give directions.

Social and Affordable Housing. (21 Jan 2010)

Michael Finneran: I welcome the comments of Deputy Tuffy, which are very much in line with what I have put in place to make affordable housing available for social housing purposes under a number of headings. Following a number of requests from local authorities I have agreed that 200 properties should go into their stock in this way. I have also allowed 1,300 to go into long-term leasing, making a total of...

Social and Affordable Housing. (21 Jan 2010)

Michael Finneran: The figure of 1,300 houses represents only part of the overall delivery. In 2008, we dealt with 20,230 households.

Social and Affordable Housing. (21 Jan 2010)

Michael Finneran: We do not have figures for 2010 but I expect the rental accommodation and long-term leasing schemes to deliver between 4,000 and 4,500. On the list available to us, which I presume is the same one as Deputy Durkan has-----

Social and Affordable Housing. (21 Jan 2010)

Michael Finneran: The list is from the Custom House. It states that 20,000 out of a figure of 56,000 are already being supported by the State with rent supplement. I do not have the figures for 2009, but I believe the figure will be approximately 19,000. We are addressing the numbers on the lists. All over the world, particularly the United States which is a very wealthy country-----

Social and Affordable Housing. (21 Jan 2010)

Michael Finneran: -----there is no safety net. Our country is looked up to for the way we provided a safety net for homeless people under the rental accommodation scheme, even in the current difficulties. We are one of the few countries that have such a net. We are lucky to have had no deaths from homelessness because everybody is accommodated. There is a bed for everybody in this country and people are...

Written Answers — Home Loan Scheme: Home Loan Scheme (21 Jan 2010)

Michael Finneran: The Home Choice Loan is intended not to provide an incentive for households to enter the housing market, but to provide access to mortgage finance to facilitate certain first-time buyers who have themselves decided to purchase a home at this time. The scheme is therefore designed to respond, in a very targeted way, to a specific set of circumstances in the housing market whereby prospective...

Written Answers — Social and Affordable Housing: Social and Affordable Housing (21 Jan 2010)

Michael Finneran: To the end of last year, some 1,933 units were sourced and approved for leasing in order to meet the housing needs of persons requiring social housing support. Of these, 437 units are deemed to be operational on the basis of signed lease agreements in place. Given that I only introduced the Social Housing Leasing Initiative in February 2009, this represents significant progress and shows...

Written Answers — Homeless Persons: Homeless Persons (21 Jan 2010)

Michael Finneran: Implementation of the Government's Homeless Strategy will result in significant improvements in homeless services, involving action by a number of statutory and non-statutory agencies. At national level, a range of actions has been taken to ensure that implementation of the Homeless Strategy is firmly underpinned by a robust framework of policy, legislation, co-ordination and funding....

Written Answers — Social and Affordable Housing: Social and Affordable Housing (21 Jan 2010)

Michael Finneran: I propose to take Questions Nos. 22 and 28 together. The Government's key priorities in shaping the overall housing provision for this year have been to focus the impact of necessary adjustments on the areas in which there is scope to maintain output through more flexible approaches and where the policy context supports such approaches, and to continue to direct available capital resources...

Written Answers — Social and Affordable Housing: Social and Affordable Housing (21 Jan 2010)

Michael Finneran: From a social housing perspective, I see clear potential for real and meaningful synergies between the work of the National Asset Management Agency in ensuring the stability of the financial system and the role of my Department in responding to social housing need. For some time now the social housing investment programme has been undergoing a significant restructuring to shift the focus...

Written Answers — Social and Affordable Housing: Social and Affordable Housing (21 Jan 2010)

Michael Finneran: Part 3 of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2009, which provides the legal framework for the introduction of the Incremental Purchase Scheme (IPS), has been commenced and came into effect on 1 January 2010. The Part was commenced to allow incremental purchase arrangements to be applied to new housing units being supplied by housing authorities. The Housing (Incremental Purchase)...

Written Answers — Social and Affordable Housing: Social and Affordable Housing (21 Jan 2010)

Michael Finneran: The social housing leasing initiative encompasses a number of different strands, one of which provides local authorities with the option to lease vacant and unsold affordable units to approved housing bodies, for a fixed period of five years, with the units concerned being made available to households eligible for social housing support. At the end of the five year lease period, there will be...

Written Answers — Local Authority Housing: Local Authority Housing (21 Jan 2010)

Michael Finneran: The current ambitious multi-annual regeneration programme includes a broad range of projects from smaller estates in regional towns, to inner city flat complexes in Dublin City. In line with international best practice, each project encompasses a range of activities to deliver integrated physical, social and economic regeneration, incorporating masterplanning, social inclusion interventions,...

Written Answers — Social and Affordable Housing: Social and Affordable Housing (21 Jan 2010)

Michael Finneran: I refer to the reply to Question No. 2 on today's Order Paper. To date, some 27 housing authorities and four approved housing bodies have had projects approved under the social housing leasing initiative. These projects comprise over 1,900 units. No housing authorities have indicated that they will not participate in the initiative. In the first instance, many authorities rightly focused on...

Written Answers — House Prices: House Prices (21 Jan 2010)

Michael Finneran: I refer to the reply to Question No. 308 of 15 December 2009. The relevant Government Departments and agencies will be working in the coming months with a view to the development, as soon as possible, of the new house price database.