Results 2,461-2,480 of 25,713 for speaker:Darragh O'Brien

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Schemes (19 Sep 2024)

Darragh O'Brien: Applications for social housing support are assessed by the relevant local authority, in accordance with the eligibility and need criteria set down in section 20 of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2009 and the associated Social Housing Assessment Regulations 2011, as amended. Decisions on the qualification of households for support, the awarding of medical priority, the most...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Water Services (19 Sep 2024)

Darragh O'Brien: There are a number of housing estates across the country that rely on developer provided infrastructure for their water services. These estates have not been taken-in-charge and their water services are not connected to the public (Uisce Éireann) network. The water services infrastructure, provided by the developer of such estates, is more commonly called DPI. My Departments’...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Defective Building Materials (19 Sep 2024)

Darragh O'Brien: The Interim Remediation Scheme for the funding of eligible emergency fire safety defect works in apartments and duplexes has been in place since December 2023. The Scheme, which is being administered by the Housing Agency on a nationwide basis, is open to applications from apartment Owners’ Management Companies (OMC) via the Housing Agency’s website. In the period since the...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: House Sales (19 Sep 2024)

Darragh O'Brien: In May 2021, conscious of the need to increase stock for home ownership, the Government introduced a series of measures designed to prevent the bulk buying of houses and duplexes. Apartments were not included in this measure. The Section 28 Guidelines for Planning Authorities “Regulation of Commercial Institutional Investment in Housing” aimed to prevent multiple housing and...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Rental Sector (19 Sep 2024)

Darragh O'Brien: The Residential Tenancies Board (RTB) was established as quasi-judicial, independent statutory body under the Residential Tenancies Acts 2004-2024 (RTA) to operate a national tenancy registration system and to resolve disputes between landlords and tenants. The RTB published the Q1 2024 Rent Index on 12 September 2024. The quarterly index tracks price developments in the Irish rental...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: House Sales (19 Sep 2024)

Darragh O'Brien: Pathway 3 of Housing for All recognises that lack of viability is constraining the development of apartments for the purpose of sale rather than rent in the built-up areas of cities that are more suited to higher-density residential development. Per section 3.4 of the Plan, Government has established the Croí Cónaithe (Cities) Fund to support the delivery of residential apartments...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Schemes (19 Sep 2024)

Darragh O'Brien: The social and affordable housing development at Shanganagh is being delivered in a partnership between Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council and the Land Development Agency (LDA). In addition to social housing, the scheme will deliver 306 cost rental and 91 affordable purchase homes. In line with the Affordable Housing Act 2021, the administration of affordable housing schemes is a...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Schemes (19 Sep 2024)

Darragh O'Brien: The allocation of local authority dwellings, including the prioritisation of certain categories of households, is a matter for the local authority concerned, in accordance with their allocation scheme made under section 22 of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2009 and associated Regulations. This legislation requires all local authorities, as a reserved function, to make an...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Schemes (19 Sep 2024)

Darragh O'Brien: On 5 June I received Government approval for a Local Authority Purchase and Renovation Loan (LAPR), which is an expansion of local mortgage lending to support the purchase and/or renovation of homes which are eligible for the existing Vacant Property Refurbishment Grant. The introduction of the Local Authority Purchase and Renovation Loan significantly expands the number of homes eligible...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Vacant Properties (19 Sep 2024)

Darragh O'Brien: Addressing vacancy and maximising the use of existing housing stock is a primary objective of this Government as reflected in Pathway 4 of Housing for All. The Vacant Homes Action Plan, which I published in January 2023, sets out the various actions that were being pursued to return vacant properties back into use as homes. Earlier this year, I published an update on the Action Plan which...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Provision (19 Sep 2024)

Darragh O'Brien: My Department is currently developing revised housing targets for the period 2025 onwards. This work is being undertaken with regard to, among other things, recently published research by the ESRI on population projections and structural housing demand. I expect it to be completed and revised targets to published later in the Autumn. The ESRI research presents 12 scenarios of housing...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Provision (19 Sep 2024)

Darragh O'Brien: A cornerstone policy of both the existing and the proposed revised National Planning Framework (NPF) is the achievement of a greater regional balance in population and employment growth. The goal is to see a roughly 50:50 distribution of growth between the Eastern and Midland region, and the respective Southern, and Northern and Western Regions, with 75% of the growth to take place outside...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Wastewater Treatment (19 Sep 2024)

Darragh O'Brien: My Department is providing significant investment in rural water and wastewater infrastructure to support the development of our rural towns and villages. Uisce Éireann, through its Small Towns and Villages Growth Programme is providing water and waste water growth capacity for smaller settlements across the country drawing on expenditure provided for this purpose. My...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Defective Building Materials (19 Sep 2024)

Darragh O'Brien: I commenced the Remediation of Dwellings Damaged by the Use of Defective Concrete Blocks Act 2022 ('the 2022 Act') on 22 June 2023, which contains the enhanced grant scheme and adopted the related Regulations on 29 June 2023. I set up an Implementation Steering Group for the enhanced Defective Concrete Blocks (DCB) Grant scheme, comprising officials from the relevant local authorities, the...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Policy (19 Sep 2024)

Darragh O'Brien: I propose to take Questions Nos. 179, 180, 181 and 182 together. The Tenant (Incremental) Purchase Scheme provides for the purchase by eligible tenants of local authority houses which are available for sale under the scheme. All applications for the Scheme must satisfy the requirements outlined in the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2014 and the Housing (Sale of Local Authority...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Water Supply (19 Sep 2024)

Darragh O'Brien: I can confirm that, under my Departments’ Rural Water Programme, grant assistance is available to assist households dependent on private individual water supplies who are incurring capital expenditure. Each local authority is responsible for the administration of the grants in their area. In each local authority there is a Rural Water Liaison Officer who deals with the day to day...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Energy Infrastructure (19 Sep 2024)

Darragh O'Brien: I received this report together with Parliamentary Question No. 876 of 9 September 2024 which was disallowed. As this report was also received in the context of ongoing litigation I am not in a position to comment further.

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Wastewater Treatment (19 Sep 2024)

Darragh O'Brien: In December 2023, I announced the successful projects that are approved funding under my Department's Multi-annual Rural Water Programme for the waste water collection and treatment needs for villages without access to public waste water services. I can confirm that Galway County Council applied and were approved funding under the Programme for a project in the village of Craughwell. ...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Vacant Properties (19 Sep 2024)

Darragh O'Brien: The management and maintenance of local authority housing stock, including pre-letting repairs to vacant properties, the implementation of a planned maintenance programme and carrying out of responsive repairs, are matters for each individual local authority under Section 58 of the Housing Act 1966. My Department also provides annual funding support to local authorities in preparing vacant...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Provision (19 Sep 2024)

Darragh O'Brien: I propose to take Questions Nos. 188, 191, 195, 196 and 197 together. 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. This includes the delivery of 90,000 social homes, 36,000 affordable purchase homes and 18,000 cost rental homes. Housing for All is supported by an investment package of over...