Ciarán Cuffe (Dún Laoghaire, Green Party)

These amendments deal with Part V of the planning Acts relating to taking in charge and housing supply provisions. Amendment No. 61 provides for an important change to section 96 of the principal Act. It will ensure the delivery options available under Part V, which deals with housing supply, will fully reflect the wider restructuring of the social housing investment programme. The shift in emphasis away from an over-reliance on bricks and mortar solutions towards more targeted, flexible supports such as the rental accommodation scheme, RAS, and, more recently, long-term leasing is part of the planned restructuring clearly signposted in the Government's housing policy statement, Delivering Homes, Sustaining Communities. What is now contained in the Bill in addition to the various options under Part V, including the transfer of land or houses on a permanent basis or, in some case, the payment to a planning authority of a financial contribution, provides that local authorities will be able to take houses in charge on a temporary basis under either RAS or a long-term leasing initiative.