Róisín Shortall (Dublin North West, Labour)
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Question 125: To ask the Taoiseach if his attention has been drawn to the critical nature of the data on household vacancy rates as recorded in Table 46 of Volume 6 of the 2006 Census for projecting housing supply requirements; if he will seek a report or a detailed explanation from the Central Statistics Office on its interpretation of the high household vacancy rates as recorded in Table 46 specifically requesting a spatial analysis, an analysis of possible methodological shortcomings or possible inconsistent recordings by householders and enumerators, an explanation of the treatment of unsold new units, over the shop units, tenancy voids, semi-derelict units, units for sale and other non-standard units and an analysis of vacancy rates in terms of bed spaces or unit capacity; and if he will seek a revised estimate from the CSO of the number and rate of vacant housing units that would normally be available for occupancy. [15566/08]

Tom Kitt (Dublin South, Fianna Fail)
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Information on vacant dwellings arises as a direct result of the enumeration work carried out by enumerators at the time of a Census of Population. In the case of the 2006 census, attention was first drawn to the extent of vacant dwellings on publication of the Preliminary Report in July 2006. The tentative estimate at the time was 275,000 housing units. Table 40 of the Principal Demographic Results published in March 2007 provided a classification of the definitive number of unoccupied housing units distinguishing those where the residents were temporarily absent at the time of the census, vacant houses, vacant flats and holiday homes. This analysis which was provided on a county basis was also given as Table 43 in Volume 6 — Housing, and is reproduced in the table with this reply. A further spatial breakdown by electoral divisions, towns etc. has been made available on the CSO website since June 2007 distinguishing occupied and unoccupied housing units at the time of the census.

The CSO were aware from previous censuses, the most recent being in 2002, and from other household surveys such as the Quarterly National Household Survey, that conducting field operations was becoming more difficult. They therefore had to plan to mitigate these difficulties. The first decision they took was to stick to the tried and trusted model of using enumerators to deliver and collect census forms. The CSO employed 4,400 enumerators, each of whom covered on average about 350 households.

As part of their duties the enumerators had to list in their record books every building capable of being occupied on census night and mark the building on an up to date map of their enumeration area (EA). They then had to make contact with householders over a nine week period in April/May 2006, first to distribute blank census forms and then to collect the completed forms. Bearing in mind the increased complexity of Irish society with more people at work and greater mobility the enumerators made extensive use of calling cards in cases where contact with householders was not easy to achieve. The CSO issued each of the enumerators with a mobile phone and the phone numbers were entered on the calling cards to facilitate texting or phoning the best time for the enumerator to get the householder at home.

The enumerator's job entailed making personal contact with householders even where this involved multiple visits. The field supervisors contacted management companies for access codes in the case of gated communities of private apartments — a growing phenomenon as the CSO knows from some of its other surveys. From the CSO's experience with censuses they believe that using enumerators to establish personal contact with householders is the best method of ensuring a complete count and establishing which housing units are vacant at the time of the census. Alternative methodologies such as mailing out census forms and/or mailing back completed forms or transmitting them over the internet will not achieve the same coverage.

The fact that enumerators have responsibility for their own Enumeration Area is a powerful motivating factor. They have to account for every dwelling in their EA. When a household is temporarily absent on census night the householder is obliged to indicate where the household will be and if the address is elsewhere in the State the relevant enumerator checks to see that the household is enumerated there. Otherwise they will be approached later to fill out their census form at their original address.

The instructions issued to enumerators regarding the identification of vacant dwellings were very comprehensive. All buildings and places of possible habitation were visited. For regular habitable dwellings, before deciding that a particular dwelling was vacant enumerators were instructed to verify that that was indeed the case, by speaking with neighbours. They were to try to determine why the dwelling was vacant and note it in their records. Dwellings with a For Sale sign up and no sign of habitation were identified as vacant. If builders or decorators were visible contact was made to determine if the dwelling was occupied.

Holiday homes, which covered all dwellings which were only occasionally occupied, including city apartments used for week-end breaks etc. were identified by contact with neighbours. Derelict buildings (where the roof was partly or completely missing, or the entrance doors were missing) were not recorded, once the enumerator was satisfied that no person was living there. In the case of private accommodation with doors or windows bricked or boarded up (usually as a precaution against vandalism), enumerators were instructed that if the dwelling was habitable and they were clear that no one was living there to mark such buildings as vacant. Apartment/flat complexes being prepared for demolition where some flats were boarded up were not recorded unless someone was living in them.

Dwellings that were identified as "under construction" were not recorded as vacant dwellings. For census purposes, a dwelling was to be considered "under construction" if it was in the process of being built but was not yet ready for occupation. In the case of building sites where large numbers of houses were under construction, enumerators were instructed to make one listing in their record books. However, enumerators were specifically instructed in newly built housing estates that any dwelling that was ready for occupation but not yet occupied was to be separately listed and identified as vacant. In summary, the enumeration carried out by the CSO at the time of the 2006 census was comprehensive. As identifying vacant housing units can realistically only be done as part of a census operation it is not proposed to issue revised figures until after the next census has been carried out.