Pádraig Mac Lochlainn (Donegal North East, Sinn Fein)
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To ask the Minister for Environment, Community and Local Government his plans to introduce guidelines for local authorities to facilitate a transparent housing waiting list system in which applicants would have access to their own standing via a reference number. [46203/12]

Jan O'Sullivan (Limerick City, Labour)
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As part of my role as Minister with responsibility for Housing and Planning I am overseeing a programme of social housing reform. I am currently finalising a review of the implementation of the social housing assessment regulations introduced in April 2011, the result of which I expect to publish as revised regulations and guidance in the coming weeks. I also intend to build on the Social Housing (Allocation) Regulations 2011 which came into force in May 2011. These regulations set out the conditions that housing authorities must take into account when making their allocation schemes. In my review of the policy, I expect to more closely align it with the new approach to the assessment of need and to put a greater emphasis on ‘time on the list’ as a criterion for allocating local authority housing. I believe that the ‘time on the list’ criterion will provide a much more transparent system for the operation of a waiting list than the current point based system operated by many authorities. It is a matter for housing authorities to communicate with both applicants for social housing support and current tenants, and I would expect such communication and access to information to be provided using all reasonable means to facilitate an efficient and effective service.

Catherine Murphy (Kildare North, Independent)
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To ask the Minister for Environment, Community and Local Government if he is considering any legislative changes that would permit citizens who occupy local authority housing to transfer between local authorities; if he is considering any legislative changes that would permit citizens who are on a housing waiting list to transfer to another local authority housing waiting list without generally affecting their relative position on the waiting list; if he will outline any potential changes he is considering to housing function in view of the package of reforms that he intends to make for local government; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [46188/12]

Jan O'Sullivan (Limerick City, Labour)
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In the context of the Housing Bill currently being formulated in my Department, I will consider whether there is a need for legislation in relation to a household receiving social housing support from one housing authority that wishes to transfer to another housing authority area, a practice currently operated on an informal basis by agreement between housing authorities. Under the Social Housing Assessment Regulations 2011, a qualified household entered on the waiting list of one housing authority on the basis of residency or local connection may be entered simultaneously on the waiting list of up to 2 other authorities in the same county . However, it is not possible for a household to apply to more than one housing authority for social housing support, or for a household on the waiting list of one housing authority to transfer its application to another authority and to carry forward to the new waiting list the time spent on the previous list. I have no proposals to change the position in this regard. As part of the programme of local government reform announced last week , I will examine the reserved functions of housing authorities to identify those appropriate for discharge at the new municipal district level and also the scope for greater discretion or responsibility at local level in relation to housing functions generally.