Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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Question 86: To ask the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources the number of applicants each year and to date in 2009 for the warmer homes scheme; the waiting time for approval and participation in the scheme; if there are applicants who have applied in 2009 who will not be able to avail of this scheme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18779/09]

Michael D Higgins (Galway West, Labour)
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Question 101: To ask the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources when he will publish the findings of the fuel poverty action research project; when this was first due for publication; the number living in fuel poverty; the number of people who benefited from the warmer homes scheme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18721/09]

Eamon Ryan (Dublin South, Green Party)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 86 and 101 together.

The Warmer Homes Scheme is administered by Sustainable Energy Ireland (SEI) and delivered by community based organisations (CBOs), which work in partnership with their local network of poverty and community support organisations, including public health nurses, MABS and St Vincent De Paul, to identify and address the energy needs of vulnerable homes. The scheme provides structural energy efficiency improvements to private homes in, or at risk of, fuel poverty. These measures include insulation, boiler lagging jackets, energy efficient lighting and draft proofing measures.

To date, energy efficiency improvements in almost 24,000 homes have been made under the Warmer Homes Scheme. A breakdown by year is set out in the table. Some €20 million has been provided for the scheme in 2009, which includes €5 million being provided between ESB and Bord Gáis Éireann. This will enable structural improvements to be made to at least 15,000 homes this year. To date, nearly 3,000 homes have been upgraded in the first 4 months of this year.

Some 21 CBOs have to date been approved by SEI to provide the Warmer Homes Scheme service in their area. SEI is confident that national coverage under the scheme will be achieved by the end of 2009. SEI will be publishing a call for proposals this month, inviting new community organisations to participate in the scheme.

Each CBO is responsible for managing applications in its own operational areas. SEI is not directly involved in the application or delivery process. Once an application is made to a CBO, details are registered and the house is addressed in turn. I understand that there is a waiting period in some areas and that this can be up to 12 months in some areas. With the substantially increased funds available to the scheme this year, SEI expects the waiting time to decrease. This cannot happen overnight, as the CBOs concerned must increase their capacity to deliver through new staff and other resources.

The most recent research figures available on fuel poverty in Ireland are contained in a recent working paper by the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI). There are a variety of ways to measure fuel poverty including the proportion of household expenditure on fuel, the condition of the house and the subjective view of occupants about their energy needs.

The ESRI estimates that using the expenditure method, over 300,000 or 19.4% of Irish households may have experienced fuel poverty in 2008. Alternatively, using the subjective method, over 68,000 or 4.6% of households reported that they could not afford to heat their homes adequately.

There are many alternative definitions and measurements of fuel poverty. The Government's own working definition is the inability to afford adequate warmth in a home or the inability to achieve adequate warmth because the home is not energy efficient. By assisting vulnerable homes to become energy efficient, the Warmer Homes Scheme is designed to tackle the root causes of fuel poverty.

The Fuel Poverty Action Research Project was established by Combat Poverty and Sustainable Energy Ireland (SEI) to inform the future directions of energy efficiency programmes for vulnerable households. The project involved a rigorous assessment of the energy, environmental, thermal comfort and health benefits of the Warmer Homes Scheme. I understand that completion of the report was delayed by the accidental loss of some key interview data. To ensure the integrity of the analysis, these interviews had to be repeated. Combat Poverty is currently finalising the report and I am informed that it will be published shortly.

Table

Number of homes upgraded under the Warmer Homes Scheme 2000-2008