Paul Murphy (Dublin South West, Socialist Party)
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1078. To ask the Minister for Environment, Community and Local Government if he will legislate or issue a ministerial directive, as necessary, to the local authorities to permit persons (details supplied) who have surrendered their homes to the banks to join the housing allocation lists, which is currently a condition for making a successful application for rent supplement. [37911/15]

Alan Kelly (Tipperary North, Labour)
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Under the Social Housing Allocation Regulations 2011 made under section 22 of the Housing Miscellaneous Provisions Act 2009, housing authorities are required to make an allocation scheme setting out the manner in which housing authorities allocate dwellings to households on their waiting list and to households who have been approved for transfers, and must also set out how housing authorities will determine the order of priority for the allocation of dwellings. In order for a household to qualify for social housing support, a housing authority must carry out an assessment to establish whether the household meets specified eligibility requirements and has a housing need. One of the housing need criteria prescribed in the Social Housing Assessment Regulations 2011 is that the household has a mortgage that is deemed to be unsustainable under the Mortgage Arrears Resolution Process. Qualification under this criterion is not dependent on the making of a possession order as my Department has advised housing authorities that, upon receipt of written confirmation from the lender that a household’s mortgage has been deemed unsustainable, an authority may consider the household to have a housing need, even though the household may, at that time, remain the legal owners of the dwelling concerned.

Under the Housing Act 1988 it is a matter for the local authority to determine whether a person is homeless. A homeless household is not required to undergo a social housing assessment in order to be placed in temporary accommodation which the housing authority may arrange itself or which may be operated by a State funded service provider.

Section 63(3) of the Local Government Act 2001 provides that, subject to law, a local authority is independent in the performance of its functions. Section 6 of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2009 specifically provides that the Minister’s power to issue policy directions and guidelines to housing authorities in relation to their housing functions shall not be construed as enabling the Minister to exercise any power or control in relation to any individual case with which a housing authority is or may be concerned. While I am, therefore, precluded from intervening in relation to individual cases, I would recommend that the person concerned maintain contact with the relevant local authority, and ensure the authority is kept informed of all relevant information pertaining to the case.