Results 16,701-16,720 of 25,999 for speaker:Darragh O'Brien

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Social and Affordable Housing (21 Jul 2020)

Darragh O'Brien: Applications for social housing support are assessed by the relevant local authority, in accordance with the eligibility and need criteria set down in section 20 of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2009 and the associated Social Housing Assessment Regulations 2011, as amended. Under the Household Means Policy, which applies in all local authorities, net income for social housing...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Covid-19 Pandemic Supports (21 Jul 2020)

Darragh O'Brien: I intend to continue supporting measures taken by my Department to assist local authorities with the financial difficulties they are experiencing since the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic. At the outset and to minimise cash flow challenges, my Department arranged for the early payment of Local Property Tax (LPT) to all local authorities. As a short term measure, €136m was made...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Approved Housing Bodies (21 Jul 2020)

Darragh O'Brien: In advance of the formal establishment of the Approved Housing Bodies Regulatory Authority, as provided for by the Housing (Regulation of the Approved Housing Bodies) Act 2019, the oversight of approved housing bodies (AHBs) is conducted through the Voluntary Regulation Code (the Code), "Building for the Future, A Voluntary Regulation Code for Approved Housing Bodies in Ireland" underpinned...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Tenant Purchase Scheme (21 Jul 2020)

Darragh O'Brien: I propose to take Questions Nos. 290 and 291 together. The Tenant (Incremental) Purchase Scheme, which came into operation on 1 January 2016, 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...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Data (21 Jul 2020)

Darragh O'Brien: The table below sets out the amount of funding allocated by my Department each year since the introduction of the Lead Remediation Grant in 2016. It also shows the number of households that have benefited from the grant and the amount of funding recouped by my Department to local authorities each year. The Lead Remediation Grant is a demand-led scheme. Year Funding...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Social and Affordable Housing (21 Jul 2020)

Darragh O'Brien: The objective of Government is to focus strongly on new build, and in particular local authority-led new build activity. Delivering the necessary supply of social homes, however, requires a multi-faceted approach, harnessing capacity and delivery from all available channels including leasing. A traditional construction programme obviously requires significant year-on-year capital expenditure....

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Social and Affordable Housing (21 Jul 2020)

Darragh O'Brien: Under the Serviced Sites Fund (SSF), €310 million is available to provide infrastructure to support the delivery of more affordable homes on local authority lands. With a maximum SSF funding amount of €50,000 available per home, at least 6,200 affordable homes, to buy or rent, can be facilitated. To date, SSF funding of €127 million has been allocated in support of 35...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Homelessness Strategy (21 Jul 2020)

Darragh O'Brien: I have established a High Level Homelessness Taskforce, to provide a forum for engagement with key organisations working to address homelessness. The Taskforce will input on the implementation of the commitments on homelessness in the Programme for Government. The membership of the taskforce consists of the Chief Executives of the Dublin Region Homeless Executive, Crosscare, Depaul, Focus...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Policy (21 Jul 2020)

Darragh O'Brien: The Programme for Government provides that: the Government will establish a Commission on Housing to examine issues such as tenure, standards, sustainability, and quality of life issues in the provision of housing. Further scoping is necessary as to the most appropriate type of structure for the Commission and to flesh out the issues that it will be tasked with examining. The establishment of...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Ministerial Meetings (21 Jul 2020)

Darragh O'Brien: I can confirm that neither I, nor officials from my Department, have met with Property Industry Ireland or Irish Institutional Property to discuss the introduction of a Government-backed shared equity scheme for private sector homes. I will outline my detailed plans for affordable housing in the Autumn. In doing so I will take account of the measures already underway, such as: the Serviced...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Planning Issues (21 Jul 2020)

Darragh O'Brien: Under the Planning and Development Act 2000, as amended (the Act), all development, unless specifically exempted under the Act or associated Regulations, requires planning permission. Section 4 of the Act and Schedule 2 of the Planning and Development Regulations 2001, as amended, set out various exemptions from the requirement to obtain planning permission. There are no specific exemptions...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Departmental Contracts (21 Jul 2020)

Darragh O'Brien: My Department has not undertaken any contracts with company in question from 1 January 2016 to 14 July 2020. It has however used its services on three individual occasions to provide refreshments at events. The total payments between July 2017 and February 2020 is €1,240.29. Local Authorities are independent statutory bodies, with democratically elected councils and their own...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Housing Provision (21 Jul 2020)

Darragh O'Brien: My Department is supporting Dublin City Council in building the Dodder Bridge through the Local Infrastructure Housing Activation Fund. This project will assist Dublin City Council in its plans to secure social and affordable housing, optimum land utilisation and activation, and wider housing development on the Poolbeg peninsula. The National Asset Management Agency (NAMA) had invited...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Rental Sector (21 Jul 2020)

Darragh O'Brien: Legislative changes (the Planning and Development Act 2000 (Exempted Development) (No. 2) Regulations 2019) were introduced last year in relation to the regulation of the short-term letting sector through the planning code to help address its impact on the supply of private rented accommodation, particularly in urban centres of high housing demand i.e. rent pressure zones (RPZs). The planning...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Pyrite Remediation Programme (21 Jul 2020)

Darragh O'Brien: The Pyrite Resolution Act 2013 provides the statutory framework for the establishment of the Pyrite Resolution Board (PRB) and for the making of a pyrite remediation scheme to be implemented by the PRB with support from the Housing Agency. The full conditions for eligibility under the scheme are set out in the scheme which is available on the PRB's website, www.pyriteboard.ie. A person who...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Defective Building Materials (21 Jul 2020)

Darragh O'Brien: The Defective Concrete Blocks Grants scheme is targeted at assisting a restricted group of homeowners who have no other practicable options to access redress. It is not a compensation scheme and the regulations apply only in respect of qualifying works that have not commenced prior to confirmation of grant approval being issued in respect of a dwelling by the relevant local authority. ...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Defective Building Materials (21 Jul 2020)

Darragh O'Brien: The Defective Concrete Blocks Grant scheme applies to private dwellings in Donegal and Mayo that have been damaged due to defective concrete blocks. In respect of local authority housing stock, Section 58 of the Housing Act 1966 provides that management and maintenance is a matter for each individual local authority. This includes maintenance programmes and carrying out of responsive repairs...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Rental Sector (21 Jul 2020)

Darragh O'Brien: The Residential Tenancies Acts 2004-2019 provide that where a tenant has been in occupation of a dwelling for a continuous period of 6 months, with no valid notice of termination having been served during that time, a 'Part 4 tenancy' is established to cover the next 5 years and 6 months. Section 34 of the 2004 Act provides that a landlord must state a reason for the termination in any...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Planning Issues (21 Jul 2020)

Darragh O'Brien: The new Programme for Government, identifies the need to avoid over-concentration of particular housing types in areas, by requiring local authorities to complete housing need and demand assessments to inform delivery of an appropriate mix of housing typologies to cater for the needs of disparate household types and sizes. As I have indicated publically, I intend to review the...

Written Answers — Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government: Local Infrastructure Housing Activation Fund (21 Jul 2020)

Darragh O'Brien: I propose to take Questions Nos. 309 and 327 together. As one initiative of the Rebuilding Ireland Action Plan for Housing and Homelessness, the Local Infrastructure Housing Activation Fund (LIHAF) was primarily designed to fund the provision of public off-site infrastructure to relieve critical infrastructure blockages and enable housing developments to be built on key sites at scale. ...