Results 14,421-14,440 of 20,797 for speaker:Alan Kelly

Nomination of Taoiseach (Resumed) (6 May 2016)

Alan Kelly: Yes. Hear, hear. Some respect, please, a Cheann Comhairle.

Nomination of Taoiseach (Resumed) (6 May 2016)

Alan Kelly: Hear, hear.

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Housing Assistance Payments Data (5 May 2016)

Alan Kelly: The Housing Assistance Payment (HAP) scheme is being rolled out across the country on a phased basis and is currently operational in 19 local authority area s with more than 8,900 households currently in receipt of housing support under the scheme. HAP was operational in 18 local authorities in 2015 and supported an additional 5,680 eligible households, with 2,100 of those households (36%)...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Irish Water (5 May 2016)

Alan Kelly: 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. Irish Water is a regulated utility and its operating and capital plans are reviewed by the Commission for Energy Regulation. Details of Irish Water’s proposed costs are outlined in their revenue and water charges plan...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Local Authority Housing (5 May 2016)

Alan Kelly: My Department provided funding to Sligo County Council as part of their acquisitions of social housing for the purchase of a house for the persons in question. A funding application dated 31 March 2016 for adaptations, including an extension to make the house suitable for special needs, was received in my Department an d is currently being reviewed. My Department expects to be in a position...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Social and Affordable Housing Funding (5 May 2016)

Alan Kelly: I propose to take Questions Nos. 115 to 118, inclusive, and 121 together. Information regarding the annual Estimates of public expenditure, including the amounts allocated to Housing, is available on the website of the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform at the following link: The following table contains the outturn figures for housing expenditure, broken down by capital and current,...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Social and Affordable Housing (5 May 2016)

Alan Kelly: TheSocial Housing Strategy 2020 includes a commitment tocommence work on a financial vehicle or other ways to raise funds for the social housing sector. Work on the development of this new funding model is being progressed under the oversight of a group which has been put in place to develop the financial aspects of the Social Housing Strategy. This group - the Finance Work Stream - comprises...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Social and Affordable Housing (5 May 2016)

Alan Kelly: The Social Housing Strategy 2020, launched in November 2014, provides for an investment with a capital value of €300 million in social housing through the public private partnership model. In total the programme is expected to deliver 1,500 social housing units. PPP units take a minimum of 3 years to be delivered. To enable delivery to commence as quickly as possible, the PPP...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Social and Affordable Housing (5 May 2016)

Alan Kelly: I propose to take Questions Nos. 122 and 123 together. The Social Housing Strategy 2020, published in November 2014, targets the provision of over 110,000 social housing units, through the delivery of 35,000 new social housing units and meeting the housing needs of some 75,000 households mainly through the Housing Assistance Payment. The Strategy is available on my Department’s...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Private Rented Accommodation Costs (5 May 2016)

Alan Kelly: An important part of the Social Housing Strategy 2020is its focus on the rented sector and its potential as a stable and secure source, of high-quality housing support for low and middle income households which is affordable to both tenants and the State. This work forms one of the key blocks of Pillar 2 of the Strategy, exploring ways of enhancing the capacity of the rental sector to...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Housing Adaptation Grant Data (5 May 2016)

Alan Kelly: Information on the funding provided to each local authority by my Department under the Housing Adaptation Grants for Older People and People with a Disability is available on my Department’s website at the following link: . The detailed administration of the grants is the responsibility of the local authorities and my Department does not hold information in relation to waiting lists....

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Emergency Accommodation Data (5 May 2016)

Alan Kelly: My Department’s role in relation to homelessness involves the provision of a national framework of policy, legislation and funding to underpin the role of housing authorities in addressing homelessness at local level. Statutory responsibility in relation to the provision of homeless accommodation and related services rests with individual housing authorities.My Department has no...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Social and Affordable Housing Data (5 May 2016)

Alan Kelly: Following the announcement I made on social housing targets in April last year, to be delivered by all local authorities via a combination of building, buying and leasing schemes and supported by over €1.5 billion in funding allocations, I have since approved substantial new social housing projects in May 2015, July 2015 and January 2016. Between these three major announcements, almost...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Homelessness Strategy (5 May 2016)

Alan Kelly: Whilst there is a necessary focus at the moment on providing suitable emergency accommodation for homeless families currently in hotels, the Government is fully committed to ending long-term involuntary homelessness by the end of 2016 through the housing-led approach articulated in the Government’s 2013 Homelessness Policy Statement and through the detailed measures set out in the...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Social and Affordable Housing Expenditure (5 May 2016)

Alan Kelly: The Social Housing Strategy 2020 – Support, Supply and Reform, published by the Government in November 2014, included a commitment to undertake summaries of social housing assessments on an annual basis from 2016. Arrangements to carry out the 2016 summary, which will provide updated figures of national housing need later this year, are well advanced. I am aware of the level of...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Local Authority Staff Data (5 May 2016)

Alan Kelly: I propose to take Questions Nos. 131 and 132 together. My Department gathers quarterly data on staff numbers in local authorities. The data gathered does not provide detail in respect of numbers working in the housing departments or homeless sections within each local authority and accordingly the information requested is not available in my Department.

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Housing Issues (5 May 2016)

Alan Kelly: I refer to the reply to Parliamentary Question No. 546 of 2 February 2016, which sets out the position in this matter.

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Social and Affordable Housing Eligibility (5 May 2016)

Alan Kelly: For a household to qualify for social housing support, a housing authority must carry out an assessment to establish whether the household is in need of housing and meets certain eligibility criteria, including in respect of income limits. As part of a concerted effort to deal with the issue of mortgage arrears, the Social Housing Assessment Regulations were amended in 2011 to provide that a...

Written Answers — Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Irish Water Administration (5 May 2016)

Alan Kelly: 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. Irish Water has established a dedicated team to deal with representations and queries from public representatives. The team can be contacted via email to or by telephone on a dedicated number, 1890 578 578.

Climate Change: Statements (4 May 2016)

Alan Kelly: Fair play to Deputy Daly.