Results 10,121-10,140 of 25,799 for speaker:Darragh O'Brien

Written Answers — Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht: Housing Provision (22 Sep 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: The Labour Demand Estimates for Ireland’s National Housing targets, 2021 – 2030 Report estimated that total labour demand from housing construction will need to rise from approximately 40,000 full time equivalent workers at present, to 67,500 workers by the middle of the decade, to achieve an annual average of 33,000 homes over the decade. As the backlog of housing output has...

Written Answers — Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht: Housing Schemes (22 Sep 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: The Housing for All Strategy delivers on the Programme for Government commitment to step up housing supply and put affordability at the heart of the housing system, with an ambitious target of 300,000 homes over the next decade for social, affordable and cost rental, private rental and private ownership housing. 18,000 Cost Rental homes will be delivered between now and 2030, to be...

Written Answers — Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht: Housing Schemes (22 Sep 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: The current cost guidelines for the acquisition of houses and apartments for social housing use were updated and issued to local authorities in May 2022. A copy of these, in tabular format for each local authority will be provided to the Deputy in accordance with Standing Orders.

Written Answers — Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht: Housing Schemes (22 Sep 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: Affordable homes made available through the Local Authority Affordable Purchase Scheme are covered by the Affordable Housing Act 2021 and associated Regulations. Delivery of these homes is primarily a matter for each Local Authority, though the Department supports delivery through grants from the Affordable Housing Fund (AHF). The Department does not set price ceilings for homes the AHF will...

Written Answers — Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht: Covid-19 Pandemic Supports (22 Sep 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: On 19 January 2022, the Government announced a Covid-19 recognition payment for front-line healthcare workers to recognise their unique role during the pandemic. This once-off payment is ring fenced to staff who were ordinarily onsite in Covid-19-exposed healthcare environments within the period from 1 March 2020 to 30 June 2021. It applies to eligible staff in the public health service and...

Written Answers — Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht: Housing Policy (22 Sep 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: The Housing Finance Agency (HFA) plc is a non-commercial semi-State company under the aegis of the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, limited by shares under the terms of the Housing Finance Agency Act 1981. The setting of interest rates is an operational matter for the HFA. The dedicated email address set up by the Agency to respond to queries and requests for information...

Written Answers — Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht: Housing Schemes (22 Sep 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: The income thresholds for the Housing Adaptation Grant for Older People and People with a Disability scheme are set by secondary legislation, namely, S.I. 670 of 2007 which was updated by S.I. 104 of 2014. The scheme is means tested and operates on a sliding scale with the highest percentage grants available to those with the lowest incomes and vice versa. Grant assistance is not available...

Written Answers — Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht: Housing Provision (22 Sep 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: My Department publishes comprehensive programme level statistics on a quarterly basis on social housing delivery activity. This data is available to the end of Quarter 1 2022, and is published on the statistics page of my Department’s website, at the following link: www.gov.ie/en/collection/6060e-overall-social-housing-provis ion/ My Department also publishes the Social Housing...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Schemes (21 Sep 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: The Tenant (Incremental) Purchase Scheme was reviewed in 2021 in line with Programme for Government and Housing for All commitments, with a number of changes subsequently coming into effect from 1 February 2022. The changes include a reduction in the minimum reckonable income required to be eligible under the scheme from €15,000 to €12,500. The time an applicant is required...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Schemes (21 Sep 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: My Department provides funding under the suite of Housing Adaptation Grants for Older People and People with a Disability, to assist people in private houses to make their accommodation more suitable for their needs. The grants include the Housing Adaptation Grant for People with a Disability, the Mobility Aids Grant and the Housing Aid for Older People, each of which are 80% funded by my...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Planning Issues (21 Sep 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: I propose to take Questions Nos. 59 and 60 together. The compact growth of cities and towns of all sizes, in order to create more attractive places in which people can live and work, is a key objective of the National Planning Framework (NPF). My Department is in the process of developing Section 28 guidelines for Planning Authorities on Sustainable and Compact Settlement Guidance (SCSG)....

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Defective Building Materials (20 Sep 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: Following on from the Government decision of the 30 November 2021 in respect of the enhanced Defective Concrete Blocks Grant scheme, the Government approved the Remediation of Dwellings Damaged by the Use of Defective Concrete Blocks Bill 2022 on 21 June and the Bill passed through both Houses of the Oireachtas and was subsequently signed into law by the President. The purpose of this Act is...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Policy (20 Sep 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: I propose to take Questions Nos. 257 and 292 together. I refer to the reply to Questions No. 210, 230 and 232 of 14 September 2022 which sets out the position in the matter.

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Water Services (20 Sep 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: Since 1 January 2014, Irish Water has statutory responsibility for all aspects of water services planning, delivery and operation at national, regional and local levels, including the Water Supply Project – Eastern and Midlands. Irish Water takes a strategic, nationwide approach to asset planning and investment, and meeting customer requirements. The prioritisation and progression of...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Local Authorities (20 Sep 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: With the support of the Housing Delivery Co-ordination Office (HDCO) in the Local Government Management Agency (LGMA), my Department undertook a review of the requirements for affordable housing staff resources in those local authorities with an identified strong demand for housing from households with an affordability constraint. Key considerations in this review included the type of...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Schemes (20 Sep 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: The First Home Scheme, launched on 7 July 2022, supports first-time buyers in purchasing new houses and apartments in the private market through the use of an equity share model. The scheme also allows for applications from certain non-first time buyers under the Government's 'Fresh Start' principle. Full details of the First Home Scheme, including eligibility criteria, are available on the...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Further and Higher Education (20 Sep 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: The information requested is not held by my Department.   The Commissioner of Valuation is independent in the exercise of his functions under the Valuation Act 2001, as amended. The Valuation Office provides a professional valuation service to Government Departments, State Agencies and other public bodies. This work relates to capital and rental valuations, including valuations...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Local Authorities (20 Sep 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: The funding system that applies to local authorities in Ireland is a complex one, as those authorities derive their income from a variety of sources including commercial rates, charges for goods and services and funding from Central Government including my Department but also other government departments and state agencies. Most of the funding from Central Government to local authorities must...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Local Authorities (20 Sep 2022)

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. Since the programme commenced in 2013 over 75,000 homes have been retrofitted with a total exchequer spend of €184 million under the scheme. In...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Departmental Transport (20 Sep 2022)

Darragh O'Brien: The Climate Action Plan sets out an ambitious course for national decarbonisation to deliver a scale-up in emission performance across all sectors over the coming decade to meet 2030 targets and to set a trajectory to meet 2050 objectives. The plan recognises that climate change is a complex issue that requires transformative responses from every sector in society and that all measures,...