Results 6,861-6,880 of 26,864 for speaker:Darragh O'Brien

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Departmental Reviews (14 Feb 2024)

Darragh O'Brien: The elected council of a local authority has the primary oversight role in the governance of the local authority, and the role of the chief executive is to carry into effect all lawful directions of the elected council in relation to the exercise of their reserved functions. The chief executive is also fully accountable to the elected council through, for example, the furnishing of...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Defective Building Materials (14 Feb 2024)

Darragh O'Brien: Arising from the Government Decision of 30 November 2021 in respect of the enhanced Defective Concrete Blocks (DCB) grant scheme, the National Standards Authority of Ireland (NSAI) was tasked with delivering a programme of work to carry out reviews of a number of technical matters, including a review of the impact of pumped cavity wall insulation on cavity wall construction and within homes...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Planning Issues (13 Feb 2024)

Darragh O'Brien: On 25 April 2023, the Government approved additional measures under the Housing for All Action Plan to incentivise the activation of increased housing supply and help reduce housing construction costs, including the introduction of temporary time-limited arrangements for the waiving of local authority “section 48” development contributions and the refunding of Uisce Éireann...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Water Quality (13 Feb 2024)

Darragh O'Brien: Uisce Éireann has statutory responsibility for all aspects of water services planning, delivery and operation at national, regional and local level. Under section 7 of the Water Services (No. 2) Act 2013, my Department has no operational function in this matter. However, it may be helpful to note that Uisce Éireann has established a dedicated team to deal with representations...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Regeneration Projects (13 Feb 2024)

Darragh O'Brien: The regeneration of the Oliver Bond House complex by Dublin City Council (DCC) has my Department's full support. My Department provided Stage 1 Capital Appraisal approval to DCC for the redevelopment for the flats in Blocks L, M and N, on the 16th March 2022. This allowed for a guarantee of Departmental support whilst also tasking DCC to investigate a review of options to find the most...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Departmental Data (13 Feb 2024)

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. This includes the delivery of 90,000 social homes by 2030. 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...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Energy Conservation (13 Feb 2024)

Darragh O'Brien: Since 2013, Exchequer funding has been provided through my Department's Energy Efficiency Retrofit Programme (EERP) to support local authorities with the retrofit of local authority owned homes requiring insulation and energy upgrade works. Over the period 2013 to the end of 2023, local authorities received over €308 million in funding to carry out energy upgrade works on over 79,000...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Vacant Properties (13 Feb 2024)

Darragh O'Brien: Local authorities will always have a level of vacancy in their housing stock. This will fluctuate over time, as tenancy surrender and re-letting of stock is an ongoing process. Therefore, ongoing data in relation to vacant local authority owned homes are not routinely collated by my Department. However, statistics in relation to social housing stock, at a point in time, are published by...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Rental Sector (13 Feb 2024)

Darragh O'Brien: On 7 December 2022 the Government approved the publication of the General Scheme of the Registration of Short-Term Tourist Letting Bill (STTL Bill) and the priority drafting of the Bill which provides for the establishment of a new registration system for short-term lettings to be operated by Fáilte Ireland in line with the commitment under Housing for All - A New Housing Plan for...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Schemes (13 Feb 2024)

Darragh O'Brien: Housing for All targets the delivery of 18,000 new Cost Rental homes to 2030. A strong pipeline is in place and under continuous development by Local Authorities, by Approved Housing Bodies using the Cost Rental Equity Loan, and by the Land Development Agency. All Cost Rental providers are legally obliged to make Cost Rental homes available in line with the provisions of Part 3 of the...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Homeless Persons Supports (13 Feb 2024)

Darragh O'Brien: The Housing First approach to addressing homelessness places direct access to housing first and foremost for vulnerable individuals using homeless services consistently or intermittently over a long periods of time, and those unable or resistant to accessing homeless services and who may then become habitual rough sleepers. These individuals often have complex support needs such as mental or...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Planning Issues (13 Feb 2024)

Darragh O'Brien: An Bord Pleanála (the Board) is the national independent statutory body with responsibility for the determination of planning appeals and direct applications for strategic infrastructure and other developments under the Planning and Development Act 2000, as amended, and certain other Acts. There are now more people working at the Board than at any time previously. Since October 2021,...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Referendum Campaigns (13 Feb 2024)

Darragh O'Brien: I refer to my reply to Question No. 81 of 31 January 2024, which sets out the position on the matter.

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Fire Service (13 Feb 2024)

Darragh O'Brien: My Department supports local authority fire and rescue services through setting general policy, providing a central training programme for fire service officers, issuing guidance on operational and other related matters and providing capital funding for vehicles, equipment and priority infrastructural projects. In Ireland, approximately three thousand two hundred highly trained...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Schemes (13 Feb 2024)

Darragh O'Brien: The Government has developed the Cost Rental Tenant In-Situ (CRTiS) scheme for tenants in private rental homes who are at risk of homelessness because a landlord intends to sell the property, but who are not in receipt of social housing supports. The scheme was established on a temporary administrative basis from 1 April 2023 and is managed by the Housing Agency, pending further policy...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Provision (13 Feb 2024)

Darragh O'Brien: The Housing Agency administers the Housing Agency Acquisitions Fund (HAAF), which has moved to a dual role to support both the ‘Housing First’ Programme and the new, pilot ‘Cost Rental Tenant in-Situ’ Scheme (CRTiS). The 'Housing First' Programme offers permanent housing to homeless people and then provides other supportive services to improve their quality of...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Provision (13 Feb 2024)

Darragh O'Brien: The Housing Agency is a non-commercial State agency under the aegis of my Department. The Housing Agency’s Projects, Procurement and Programmes (PPP) Team supports local authorities and Approved Housing Bodies (AHBs) in housing delivery through the provision of specialist advice in a range of areas, including design, regulatory compliance, project development and procurement. My...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Provision (13 Feb 2024)

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. 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 €4bn per annum, through an overall combination of €12bn in direct...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Provision (13 Feb 2024)

Darragh O'Brien: Details on the number of households qualified for social housing support in each local authority administrative area is provided in the annual statutory Summary of Social Housing Assessments (SSHA). The most recently published summary for all local authority areas was conducted in November 2022 and is available on my Department’s website at the following link:...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Schemes (13 Feb 2024)

Darragh O'Brien: The Housing Assistance Payment (HAP) scheme is a flexible and immediate housing support that is available to all eligible households with a long term housing need. Any household assessed as eligible for social housing is immediately eligible for HAP. At end Q3 2023, just under 115,000 HAP tenancies had been set-up since the scheme commenced, with 57,617 active tenancies being supported under...