Results 10,421-10,440 of 26,787 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: 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-----

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 know that. In that regard, we will be asking local authorities - we are working with them already on this - to identify to us the lands we can activate in the coming months. Some lands have permission; others do not. Permissions may have lapsed. As I stated to the Deputy in the House earlier this week, I will be seeking to bring forward, particularly in social housing, emergency...

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: Cork City Council let the genie out of the bottle. I was not going to say it. That site is one I can use as an example. There is €9 million debt on the site that can be activated and we can move on 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: It might be a different site. There are a couple of sites in Cork. The council identified sites to the committee directly. We are aware of the sites, where they are and what the legacy debt is on them.

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 her kind words, her support and the work she does daily. I will first deal with the questions on the resource side. We improved on the social housing staff by 250. That is within all our housing teams across the country. As of the end of September, 180 of those posts were filled. The jobs market is very hot at present, which is a good thing, in that we are nearing...

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 Deputy Duffy for his work and for his support. The last figure I saw for timber frame delivery in both public and private was about 48%. However, we are behind that on the social housing side. I have seen it in Limerick. Off-site construction is being used really well by Limerick City and County Council, particularly for infill sites in Moyross, which I have seen. It is also...