Eamon Gilmore (Dún Laoghaire, Labour)
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Question 315: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government his strategy for ensuring that housing development includes an appropriate social mix and provides necessary social infrastructure; if he intends to repeal the Planning and Development Amendment Act 2002 to ensure that developers are bound to create an appropriate social mix in housing developments rather than buying their way out of the arrangement. [18671/06]

Noel Ahern (Dublin North West, Fianna Fail)
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Under Part V of the Planning and Development Act 2000, each planning authority is required to prepare a housing strategy which forms an integral part of the development plan and is the framework for future housing provision within the functional area of the authority. Housing strategies must ensure that policies and objectives are in place that will counteract undue social segregation in housing developments between people of different social backgrounds.

In their negotiations with developers under Part V, local authorities are obliged to ensure that each agreement delivers the best possible result in terms of overall housing supply and social integration for their area. It is a matter for the local authority to accept or reject an offer made by a developer during negotiations, having regard to its housing strategy and whether it constitutes the best use of the resources available to it.

Where a developer proposes a financial contribution to satisfy his or her legal obligation under Part V, it is a matter for the local authority to accept or reject this approach. The developer may propose, but the local authority decides, and when making its decision is bound to consider what is required under its housing strategy.

I do not consider that the making of a financial contribution by a developer to satisfy a Part V contribution constitutes in any way a buy out of their obligation. Any funds provided in this way must be used for housing capital purposes including the provision of additional social and affordable homes.

My Department's policy, which has been communicated to all local authorities, is to favour the direct provision of social and affordable homes under Part V agreements. Statistics received from local authorities on Part V activity show that this approach is implemented in most cases.

Eamon Gilmore (Dún Laoghaire, Labour)
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Question 323: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government the date in summer 2006 on which he expects to introduce a new, simpler and streamlined affordable housing scheme; and the way in which this scheme will operate. [18679/06]

Eamon Gilmore (Dún Laoghaire, Labour)
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Question 324: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government the date in summer 2006 on which he expects to commence a pilot project on affordable homes for renting; the length of time the project will run for; and if and when it is planned to roll such a strategy out nationwide. [18680/06]

Noel Ahern (Dublin North West, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 323 and 324 together.

The new housing policy statement to be published later this year will set out more detailed approaches to the proposals related to affordable housing which were outlined in the Housing Policy Framework: Building Sustainable Communities published in December 2005. Work is well underway on developing approaches to streamlining schemes, and this will take account of some work commissioned by my Department from the Centre for Housing Research which builds on ongoing research into the experiences of the various affordable housing schemes. While it is not possible to set out the detail of how a streamlined approach will operate at this stage, it is intended that this work will be completed by the end of the summer. In advance of this work, my Department is currently examining the options available for the introduction of a pilot affordable renting project in the very near future.

Ciarán Cuffe (Dún Laoghaire, Green Party)
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Question 325: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government the change in methodologies that have been used in the compiling of the assessment of need of housing between the 2002 and the 2005 assessments; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18681/06]

Noel Ahern (Dublin North West, Fianna Fail)
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In accordance with Section 9 of the Housing Act 1988 an assessment of need for local authority housing is undertaken every three years, the last of which was undertaken in 2005. The 2005 assessment was the most rigorous to date and was the first time that an IT database was used to gather, collate and examine the results of the assessment. The procedure involved each local authority transmitting their assessment results in an IT format to the Local Government Computer Services Board for validation and collation.

In order to ensure a consistency of information gathered across local authorities my Department in co-operation with a number of local authorities and the LGCSB combined to develop a new generic housing application form which captured all the information necessary for a local authority to assess a housing application.