Results 14,721-14,740 of 26,886 for speaker:Darragh O'Brien

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Local Authorities (22 Jun 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: The table following details the estimated annual pay bill reduction if salaries were reduced by 10%, 5% and 2%. Chief Executive Estimated annual savings 10% Reduction €473,934 5% Reduction €236,967 2% Reduction €  94,787

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Land Issues (22 Jun 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: With regard to the description of registered land on the current Property Registration Authority (PRA) map, Section 85 of the Registration of Title Act 1964 Act, as amended by Section 62 of the Registration of Deeds and Title Act 2006, provides as follows: “Except as provided by this Act, neither the description of land in the register nor its identification by reference to a...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Defective Building Materials (22 Jun 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: The relevant local authorities are responsible for the detailed administration of the Defective Concrete Blocks Grant scheme. This includes the assessment of applications for eligibility and payment of grants to successful applicants under the specific remediation option approved.  Individuals who purchased a dwelling on or after 31 January 2020 will generally not...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Departmental Expenditure (22 Jun 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: I propose to take Questions Nos. 287, 288 and 289 together. The Housing Assistance Payment (HAP) is a flexible and immediate housing support that is available to all eligible households throughout the State. To qualify for HAP, a household must be qualified for social housing support by their local authority. HAP tenants find their own accommodation in the private rented market. The Rental...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Departmental Schemes (22 Jun 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: Funding of €75 million is available nationally in 2021 for the Housing Adaptation Grants for Older People and People with a Disability scheme, in respect of private houses. Local authorities fund 20% of the overall budget from their own resources with the balance of 80% funded by the exchequer. This funding has increased year on year since 2014.  As...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: National Parks and Wildlife Service (22 Jun 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: The majority of the Heritage function, which encompasses both our built and natural heritage, and includes the National Parks and Wildlife Service, transferred to my Department last September from the former Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht. A further transfer of a small number of remaining functions, which required supporting primary legislation that was...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Departmental Schemes (22 Jun 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: As of 31 March 2021, there were 17,608 active tenancies supported under the Rental Accommodation Scheme (RAS). Details on the number of RAS tenancies is available on my Department's website, titled 'RAS Tenancies 2021 Quarterly Statistics', at the following link: gov.ie - Overall social housing provision (www.gov.ie)

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Departmental Funding (22 Jun 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: The Strategy for the Rental Sector sets out a series of measures to be introduced to ensure the quality of private rental accommodation by strengthening the applicable standards and improving the inspection and enforcement systems. The Strategy recognises the need for additional resources to be provided to local authorities to aid increased inspections of properties and ensure greater...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Departmental Schemes (22 Jun 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: Despite the challenges faced throughout 2020 and into 2021 due to the Covid emergency measures, local authorities and the Housing Assistance Payment Shared Service Centre (HAP SSC) have continued to provide a critical service to all HAP customers. Measures that were required to be taken in the context of Covid-19 did, however, have an impact on processing times for HAP applications. Data on...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Defective Building Materials (22 Jun 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: The Dwellings Damaged by the Use of Defective Concrete Blocks in Construction (Remediation) (Financial Assistance) Regulations 2020 provide for a grant scheme of financial assistance to support affected homeowners in the counties of Donegal and Mayo only, to carry out the necessary remediation works to dwellings that have been damaged due to the use of defective concrete...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Departmental Correspondence (22 Jun 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: The correspondence referred to in the question was received by my office on 14 June 2021 and a response will issue at the shortly. The Residential Tenancies Board (RTB) was established as an independent statutory body under the Residential Tenancies Acts 2004-2021 to operate a national tenancy registration system and to resolve disputes between landlords and tenants. A...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Provision (22 Jun 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: This Government is absolutely focused on ensuring that affordable, quality housing solutions are available to everyone in Irish society and this is reflected in the Programme for Government, "Our Shared Future". The Programme commits to putting affordability at the heart of the housing system through the progression of State-backed affordable housing. This commitment is reflected in Budget...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Defective Building Materials (22 Jun 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: The Dwellings Damaged by the Use of Defective Concrete Blocks in Construction (Remediation) (Financial Assistance) Regulations 2020 provide for a grant scheme of financial assistance to support affected homeowners in the counties of Donegal and Mayo only, to carry out the necessary remediation works to dwellings that have been damaged due to the use of defective concrete...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Departmental Schemes (22 Jun 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: The Housing Assistance Payment (HAP) is a flexible and immediate housing support that is available to all eligible households throughout the State. At end Q1 2021 there were nearly 61,300 households in receipt of HAP and over 33,900 separate landlords and agents providing accommodation to households supported by the scheme. In respect of the provision of HAP funding, Limerick City and County...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Legislative Measures (22 Jun 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: The Local Government (Charges) Act 2009, as amended by the Local Government (Household Charge) Act 2011, provides the legislative basis for the non-principal private residence (NPPR) charge.  The NPPR charge, which has since been discontinued, applied in the years 2009 to 2013 to any residential property in which the owner did not reside as their normal place of residence.  The...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Provision (22 Jun 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: Approved Housing Bodies (AHBs) are making an important contribution to social housing delivery, as envisaged under current Government policy.  My Department operates a number of funding programmes that assist local authorities to work in partnership with AHBs to construct, purchase and lease new homes and make them available for social housing. One such programme, that AHBs progress...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Departmental Schemes (22 Jun 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: The Tenant (Incremental) Purchase Scheme came into operation on 1 January 2016.  The Scheme is open to eligible tenants, including joint tenants, of local authority houses that are available for sale under the Scheme. To be eligible, tenants must meet certain criteria, including having a minimum reckonable income of €15,000 per annum and having been in receipt of social housing...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Wastewater Treatment (22 Jun 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: I propose to take Questions Nos. 305 and 306 together. Developer provided water services infrastructure, or DPI, refers to stand alone water services Infrastructure, such as wells, water treatment plants and wastewater treatment plants and associated pumping stations, that have been provided by developers as part of housing developments and that are not connected to the public water and...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Defective Building Materials (22 Jun 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: The Dwellings Damaged by the Use of Defective Concrete Blocks in Construction (Remediation) (Financial Assistance) Regulations 2020 provide for a grant scheme of financial assistance to support affected homeowners in the counties of Donegal and Mayo, to carry out the necessary remediation works to dwellings that have been damaged due to the use of defective concrete blocks. The...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Defective Building Materials (22 Jun 2021)

Darragh O'Brien: I propose to take Questions Nos. 308, 309 and 310 together. The Pyrite Resolution Act 2013 provides the statutory framework for the establishment of the Pyrite Resolution Board and for the making of a pyrite remediation scheme to be implemented by the Board with support from the Housing Agency. The provisions of the Act apply only to dwellings affected by significant damage...