Results 4,541-4,560 of 8,196 for speaker:Alice-Mary Higgins

Seanad: Affordable Housing Bill 2021: Committee Stage (Resumed) (31 May 2021)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I move amendment No. 17: In page 8, between lines 32 and 33, to insert the following: “(7) In performing functions under subsection (1)housing authorities shall have regard to the appropriateness of the location of dwellings in respect of facilitating access to public transport, education services, health services and public amenities.”.

Seanad: Affordable Housing Bill 2021: Committee Stage (Resumed) (31 May 2021)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I accepted the argument from the Minister of State that some of this relates to the planning area. I reserve the right to bring back a version of this amendment but I accept the Minister of State's argument in respect of it. I hope that by Report Stage, when we will reintroduce amendment No. 15 in the name of Senator Fitzpatrick, we will have provided the local authorities or housing...

Seanad: Affordable Housing Bill 2021: Committee Stage (Resumed) (31 May 2021)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I move amendment No. 19: In page 9, between lines 13 and 14, to insert the following: “(3) A housing authority or a planning authority may only enter into an agreement undersubsection (2) where the dwellings specified in the agreement meet such criteria of affordability as may be set out in regulations developed by the Minister and laid before, and agreed by, both Houses of the...

Seanad: Affordable Housing Bill 2021: Committee Stage (Resumed) (31 May 2021)

Alice-Mary Higgins: This suite of amendments relates to the principle of affordability. It is an issue that was touched on earlier. There is a concern that there is no clear definition of affordability in respect of this Bill and no such definition ties itself to people and what they can afford. I remember similar debates about the minimum wage legislation when the Low Pay Commission legislation was going...

Seanad: Affordable Housing Bill 2021: Committee Stage (Resumed) (31 May 2021)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I ask the Minister of State to respond explicitly on amendment No. 19 because none of what he has outlined is at odds with that amendment. It simply provides that the Minister would lay the rules before the Houses of the Oireachtas. I accept that amendment No. 20 sets out a criteria and one that I think is important but amendment No. 19 does not set out any specific criteria. It allows for...

Seanad: Affordable Housing Bill 2021: Committee Stage (Resumed) (31 May 2021)

Alice-Mary Higgins: Yes.

Seanad: Affordable Housing Bill 2021: Committee Stage (Resumed) (31 May 2021)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I move amendment No. 20: In page 9, between lines 13 and 14, to insert the following: “(3) A housing authority or a planning authority may only enter into an agreement under subsection (2) where the dwellings specified in the agreement meet such criteria of affordability, to include a criteria that any such dwellings should be affordable to individuals on or below the national...

Seanad: Affordable Housing Bill 2021: Committee Stage (Resumed) (31 May 2021)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I move amendment No. 21: In page 9, between lines 13 and 14, to insert the following: “(3) Notwithstanding any national regulations which may be set out, a housing authority may specify such additional criteria in respect of the determination of affordability as it believes appropriate before entering into an agreement under subsection (2).”. I reserve the right to...

Seanad: Affordable Housing Bill 2021: Committee Stage (Resumed) (31 May 2021)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I move amendment No. 23: In page 9, line 22, after “priority” to insert “and the eligible applicants will be owner occupiers”.

Seanad: Affordable Housing Bill 2021: Committee Stage (Resumed) (31 May 2021)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I move amendment No. 24: In page 9, between lines 25 and 26, to insert the following: “(iii) require that a dwelling specified be affordable for the specific eligible applicant nominated,”.

Seanad: Affordable Housing Bill 2021: Committee Stage (Resumed) (31 May 2021)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I move amendment No. 25: In page 9, between lines 37 and 38, to insert the following: “(c) shall require that the dwelling specified meets any criteria for affordability as set out by the Minister or the relevant housing authority.”. I reserve the right to reintroduce amendment No. 25 on Report Stage.

Seanad: Affordable Housing Bill 2021: Committee Stage (Resumed) (31 May 2021)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I move amendment No. 26: In page 9, line 41, after “person” to insert the following: “except where such an amount would bring the total amount paid for the dwelling to greater than market price”. I have some questions for the Minister of State in respect of amendment No. 27. On amendment No. 26, I am trying to address the issue of the affordable dwelling...

Seanad: Affordable Housing Bill 2021: Committee Stage (Resumed) (31 May 2021)

Alice-Mary Higgins: To clarify my point, I am suggesting that the facility should be part of the contract. Of course I am not saying the contracts should be broken. However, we should be setting the terms of the contracts that the State, through local authorities and housing bodies, is signing with housing developers in such a way that it is made very clear that we are not going to disadvantage people to the...

Seanad: Civil Legal Aid (Exclusion of Value of Free or Partly Free Board) (Amendment) Bill 2021: Second Stage (31 May 2021)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I listened to the comments about diversity in the law and my colleague, Senator Ruane, has been pushing work in that area. It is a piece that is needed. I welcome the Minister of State to the House and commend Senator Boylan on what is a very important Bill and what has already been very consequential legislation. The existence of the Bill seems to have led to a change in policy being...

Seanad: Affordable Housing Bill 2021: Committee Stage (28 May 2021)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I welcome the Minister of State to the House. I wish to indicate support for this amendment. It is really important because, if we think back to the debates we have had on housing over the last five years, we know that points often have been made on the floor about concerns, about what might happen and about unintended consequences or sometimes even forewarned consequences to specific...

Seanad: Affordable Housing Bill 2021: Committee Stage (28 May 2021)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I agree with the broad thrust of the amendment. The caveat "Subject to its obligations in relation to the provision of social housing" is important because public land has a role in making affordable housing available for purchase. Also, public land has a really important role in the provision of public housing to people of all income categories. For example, publicly-owned public housing...

Seanad: Affordable Housing Bill 2021: Committee Stage (28 May 2021)

Alice-Mary Higgins: The fundamental problem with the open market being included is exactly as Senator Warfield has outlined, in that these houses cost any amount. There is an element of a blank cheque to this. When we talk about affordability, most people's understanding of it is we will be setting a ceiling on the price of houses and there will be houses at a price affordable to purchasers. However, what is...

Seanad: Affordable Housing Bill 2021: Committee Stage (28 May 2021)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I will make a few very practical points. To be clear, a number of people raised whether such houses could be purchased privately but that is not necessarily the concern I spoke about. My concern reflects some of the concern from Senator Warfield and others that we are talking about an open market dwelling without a ceiling. That is the concern. It is not an open market dwelling up to a...

Seanad: Affordable Housing Bill 2021: Committee Stage (28 May 2021)

Alice-Mary Higgins: To be very brief, I hear a lot about the perfect being the enemy of the good. However, we must remember that there is a concept called "the better", for which we could still all aim. I would suggest that the best way for the Minister of State and others who have expressed concern in this is to assert that the problem is that one really cannot come in and ask for a blank cheque. That is the...

Seanad: Affordable Housing Bill 2021: Committee Stage (28 May 2021)

Alice-Mary Higgins: I support the amendment. It is a sign that we see support from across the House. We are not speaking to Senator Fitzpatrick's amendment, but when we will come to it I will support the thrust of it. I have also tabled an amendment on public-public partnerships in the spirit of recognising that we are in a situation where there are other ways in which this can be done. We have heard about...