Seanad debates

Wednesday, 10 December 2003

Report on Dublin and Monaghan Bombings: Motion. - Local Authority Funding: Motion.

 

The Minister of State should also initiate a survey on the availability of central heating in local authority houses. When I inquired about this three years ago, I was appalled to discover that up to 60% of all council and corporation houses in the country had no central heating. Senator Ormonde spoke about Tallaght but as she knows, some 70% of council houses there do not have central heating. All the houses that have been built in the last five years have such heating, but prior to that there was no stipulation to provide it. Thousands of local authority homes do not have central heating on these cold winter nights. The Minister of State should sort that out. Sometimes politicians are remembered for simple things, such as when the Tánaiste, Deputy Harney, dealt with the issue of smokeless coal. The Minister of State could be remembered as the person who introduced central heating in every local authority home. It would not cost much because he could demand that local authorities use their capital accounts to bring that about. In one fell swoop, he could resolve another form of poverty that is inflicted on people. The Minister of State should carry out the necessary survey, thus enabling the job to be done over the next three years by using local and national resources.

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