Eoghan Murphy (Dublin South East, Fine Gael)
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To ask the Minister for Environment, Community and Local Government the steps being taken to protect tenants from paying the household charge in an instance in which the landlord wrongly imposes the charge on a tenant. [40116/12]

Phil Hogan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fine Gael)
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The Local Government (Household Charge) Act 2011 and the Local Government (Household Charge) Regulations 2012 provide the legislation underpinning the household charge. Under the legislation, an owner of a residential property on the liability date of 1 January 2012 is liable to pay the household charge by 31 March 2012, unless otherwise exempted or entitled to claim a waiver.

Section 1 of the Act provides a definition of “owner” for the purposes of the Act, which, in relation to a residential property, means—

(a) a person (other than a mortgagee not in possession) who—

(i) in the case of a residential property that is let under a lease or held under a tenancy for a term not exceeding 20 years, is entitled to receive the rent under that lease or tenancy whether in his or her own right or as trustee or agent for another person, or

(ii) in the case of a residential property that is not so let or so held, would, subject to paragraph (b), be so entitled if the residential property were so let or so held, whether in that person’s own right or as trustee or agent for another person,

or

(b) where the property is let under a lease or held under a tenancy for a term exceeding 20 years, the person (other than a mortgagee not in possession) who is the lessee under that lease or tenant under that tenancy.

Michael McCarthy (Cork South West, Labour)
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To ask the Minister for Environment, Community and Local Government the number of persons in County Donegal who are currently exempt from paying the household charge because they are in receipt of mortgage interest supplement; the number from County Donegal who received an exemption because they live in an unfinished housing estate; if a breakdown is available listing the numbers of employed and unemployed persons who have paid this charge; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40143/12]

Phil Hogan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fine Gael)
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The Local Government (Household Charge) Act 2011 and the Local Government (Household Charge) Regulations 2012 provide the legislative basis for the household charge. Under the Act, an owner of a residential property on the liability date of 1 January 2012 is liable to pay the household charge, unless otherwise exempted or entitled to claim a waiver.

The household charge is on a self-assessment basis and it is a matter for an owner of a residential property on the liability date to determine if he or she has a liability and, if so, to declare that liability and pay the charge.

I am informed by the Local Government Management Agency (LGMA), which administers the household charge system on a shared service/agency basis for all county and city councils, that as of 20 September 2012 , 113 households in County Donegal had registered for a waiver from the charge on the grounds of being in receipt of mortgage interest supplement. 369 households had registered for a waiver on the grounds that their property forms part of an unfinished housing estate as set out in the Regulations. A further five households had registered under both criteria.

Information on the employment status of people who have paid the household charge is not collected.