Róisín Shortall (Dublin North West, Labour)
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Question 70: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government the total number of persons listed as having applied for social housing and if he will provide this information on a local authority basis; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37442/10]

Michael Finneran (Roscommon-South Leitrim, Fianna Fail)
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It is open to any person or household to apply to a housing authority for an assessment of their housing need. The application process is the gateway to a broad range of social housing supports provided by housing authorities. The number of households that apply for social housing support from housing authorities continuously fluctuates as new households apply for housing support.

Under existing legislation, households can apply to multiple authorities which can result, therefore, in an application from the same household being processed by several authorities. In addition, households that have been in receipt of rent supplement for longer than 18 months do not always apply to the housing authority in order to receive social housing accommodation. My Department does not hold real time information on the number of persons or households that apply to housing authorities. The last statutory needs assessment in 2008 indicated that there were 56,249 households in need of social housing support.

The social housing reform programme, which was given legislative effect by the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2009, provides for a new process of housing needs assessment. Regulations will be made shortly to give detailed effect to the provisions of the Act. In an effort to standardise and bring about greater efficiency in the assessment process, the regulations will provide for a single application (that is a person or household may only apply once to one housing authority) in order to access social housing support. The regulations will also require that those in receipt of rent supplement for longer than 18 months will have to undergo the housing needs assessment process in order to be eligible for social housing support.

All of these changes to the current assessment system are being designed with a view to being able to carry out a statutory assessment in 2011 which will give a clearer picture of both the demand and need for social housing support.

Pat Rabbitte (Dublin South West, Labour)
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Question 71: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government the number of social housing units held by local authorities that have been vacant for a period of three months and more; his plans to put in place a strategy to deal with this problem; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37438/10]

Michael Finneran (Roscommon-South Leitrim, Fianna Fail)
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Information in relation to vacant local authority houses is a Local Authority Service Indicator and reports on these indicators are available on the Local Government Management Agency's website. The latest available figures relate to 2008 and report a significant decrease in the level of local authority housing stock that is vacant. The 2008 report shows that a total of 3,859 dwellings were empty, excluding those that were subject to major refurbishment programmes. This represents 3.2% of the total stock of 122,446 dwellings. The 2007 report showed that some 5,090 units were vacant out of a total stock of 118,276. Therefore there has been a decrease of 1,231 vacant units on the 2007 total – a 24% improvement.

I would point out that the management and maintenance of local authority housing stock is a matter for individual authorities under section 58 of the Housing Act 1966 and my Department has no direct responsibility for this issue. To assist local authorities in determining measures for further improvement in their housing stock, the Local Government Audit Service is finalising a Value for Money study on housing management and maintenance, which will include specific recommendations on how best practice can be achieved in relation to vacant stock.

In addition, my Department has provided a fund of €40 million under the Social Housing Investment Programme in 2010, to co-fund the retrofitting of vacant properties, both casual and planned, across local authority housing stock. Having regard to the rapid decline in local authority Internal Capital Receipts, amendments to the terms of the scheme in 2010 have included the reduction of the co-funding contribution required from within authorities own resources and a recent provision to allow local authorities to claim for higher costs in respect of works undertaken to longer term voids, to support authorities efforts to bring such stock back into viable use to meet housing needs. These retrofitting provisions will continue to have a positive impact on the ability of local authorities to deal with vacant stock.