Results 9,361-9,380 of 25,732 for speaker:Darragh O'Brien

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 34 - Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Supplementary) (24 Nov 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: Gabhaim buíochas leis an Cathaoirleach agus na Teachtaí. I welcome the opportunity to discuss with the select committee my Department's Supplementary Estimate for 2022. I am joined this afternoon by Ms Sinéad Kehoe, finance officer; Ms Sinéad O'Gorman, local government finance; and Mr. David Kelly, from the housing finance and delivery co-ordination unit in the...

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 34 - Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Supplementary) (24 Nov 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: I thank the Deputy for his contribution, kind words and ongoing engagement. I will focus on Irish Water first. In 2022, we had a capital allocation to Irish Water of about €1.4 billion. Next year it is about €1.6 billion. There is much work to be done but the good thing is that Irish Water now has sight of a multi-annual programme that is fully funded. There is certainly...

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 34 - Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Supplementary) (24 Nov 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: As the Deputy knows, because we have discussed and debated this, there will be very strong delivery in the last quarter. I am not being evasive in any way but I cannot give the final figure yet. We are working on every scheme out there.

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 34 - Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Supplementary) (24 Nov 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: What we have done and what we are doing today, particularly through the land acquisition fund, which will be transferred to the Housing Agency this year and is something for which the local authorities have been asking for a long-----

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 34 - Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Supplementary) (24 Nov 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: I am just trying to answer the questions as Deputy Ó Broin puts them. I am confident that there will be no capital surrender in respect of housing this year. In this technical Supplementary Estimate, we are reworking some of what is within it.

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 34 - Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Supplementary) (24 Nov 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: To add to the answer I gave to the Deputy's first question, we are trying to ensure maximum delivery this year. We will know exactly where we are in respect of the targets for new builds, leasing and acquisition. The overall target we set for this year is 10,500 social housing units. I am just using that as an example. I am confident that we will achieve that target. The mix within the...

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 34 - Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Supplementary) (24 Nov 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: As the Deputy knows, for the first time, we have set out housing delivery action plans that detail delivery over a five-year period in every local authority area, including his own. It is expected that those targets will absolutely be met.

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 34 - Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Supplementary) (24 Nov 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: Targets for the period of the plan are published within it. It is expected that all of these homes will be delivered. It is my absolute desire that this happens. Where local authorities do not meet targets, if there is a particular shortfall that does not relate to, for example, a project not being delivered but to another difficulty, we engage directly with those local authorities. I am...

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 34 - Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Supplementary) (24 Nov 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: I understand what the Deputy is saying. I had not intended to use a specific local authority as an example but the Deputy will be aware that I have had issues with two significant schemes in the Dublin City Council areas because of water ingress. These were expected to be delivered this year but I do not want to take on units that are deficient in any way and so they will fall into next...

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 34 - Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Supplementary) (24 Nov 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: None of us predicted Covid or the war in Ukraine.

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 34 - Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Supplementary) (24 Nov 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: If, as I hope, we get a clear year next year in which we do not have external issues, there are matters within our control that we can certainly improve on.

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 34 - Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Supplementary) (24 Nov 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: On the targets we have set for local authorities, we all know the pressures on housing. We need to do more there. I have given the example of Dublin City Council. That is what I expect to happen.

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 34 - Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Supplementary) (24 Nov 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: The Deputy will note that, in the targets we set earlier this year, we set a target for acquisitions of only 200. The reason for this is that I want to focus on new builds.

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 34 - Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Supplementary) (24 Nov 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: We are producing breakdowns of those figures but we do not have them quite yet. However, the vast bulk of that increase relates to tenants in situ. I am not being evasive but, in working through the data, I see that we are getting homes with tenants in situin every day. I encourage local authorities to continue with that. We will have that breakdown.

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 34 - Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Supplementary) (24 Nov 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: It would be. I want local authorities to accelerate work in this area.

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 34 - Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Supplementary) (24 Nov 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: We have asked Irish Water to accelerate its invoicing, that is, invoicing to be paid this year to take pressure off next year. On the design, build and operate piece, we are allowing Irish Water to reallocate those funds for additional costs. As the Deputy knows, we have introduced burden sharing at a ratio of 70:30 on the housing side under the inflation framework. For capital projects on...

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 34 - Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Supplementary) (24 Nov 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: We will revert to Deputy Ó Broin on that. I do not want to give him any incorrect information so I will revert to him in writing.

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 34 - Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Supplementary) (24 Nov 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: There is about €300 million in legacy debt on land that was purchased. The €100 million will very much be focused on land that can be activated next year. Not all that land will be rural, by the way. Once we-----

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 34 - Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Supplementary) (24 Nov 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: Some of it may have planning permission. There are a couple of land holdings. One in particular comes to mind but I will not mention where it is. There is a debt of €9 million on a piece of land that we could activate by writing out those debts. We know where that land is. I am sure that information could be shared but we will have to consider the debt piece and whether there is...

Select Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 34 - Housing, Local Government and Heritage (Supplementary) (24 Nov 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: I will see what we can share. The specific debt piece-----