Mary Upton (Dublin South Central, Labour)
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Question 428: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs the number of inspections carried out by the Health Service Executive on private rented dwellings in the years 2006, 2007, 2008 and to date in 2009 were the HSE pays rent allowance; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [27325/09]

Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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The supplementary welfare allowance scheme, which includes rent supplement, is administered on behalf of the Department by the community welfare service of the Health Service Executive (HSE).

Rent supplement is intended as a short-term income support to eligible tenants living in private rented accommodation, whose means are insufficient to meet their accommodation costs and who do not have accommodation available to them from any other source. There are currently almost 90,000 people in receipt of rent supplement, an increase of 50% since the end of December 2007.

The Government approved a package of measures to update minimum standards regulations for rented accommodation early this year. Enforcement of these standards is the responsibility of local authorities. The community welfare service of the HSE is not qualified to undertake this work. However,accommodation occupied by rent supplement tenants should at least meet minimum housing standards.

Under legislative provisions introduced by the Department in 2006 and 2007, the community welfare service can decide that a rent supplement may not be payable where it has been notified by a housing authority regarding non-compliance with housing standards. The objective is to ensure that substandard accommodation does not come within rent supplementation.

The community welfare service must be satisfied that accommodation funded under the rent supplement scheme, is reasonably suited to the residential and other needs of the claimant. In determining whether the accommodation is suited to the person's accommodation needs, a community welfare officer must have regard to the household composition, the size of the accommodation unit and identify any special needs that the person may have. As part of this process, the community welfare officer would normally carry out a visit to the residential premises in question; this home visit is also used to confirm the applicant's residence at this address. The number of such visits carried out by a community welfare officer is not available.

Where a community welfare officer becomes aware of accommodation or blocks of accommodation which appear to be sub-standard, it notifies the local authority and it may advise prospective tenants at that premises that rent supplement will not be paid in respect of those tenancies.

Details of rent supplement tenancies are provided to local authorities via the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government on a quarterly basis and this information sharing assists in enforcing housing standards.

The Department is committed to working with and supporting the Department of the Environment Heritage and Local Government and local authorities in meeting their responsibilities in relation to the enforcement of housing standards.