Written answers

Tuesday, 17 May 2016

Department of Environment, Community and Local Government

Social and Affordable Housing Provision

Photo of Frank O'RourkeFrank O'Rourke (Kildare North, Fianna Fail)
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364. To ask the Minister for Environment, Community and Local Government the number of social housing units to be built in 2016, by county and city borough; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9387/16]

Photo of Simon CoveneySimon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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The Programme for a Partnership Government has undertaken tosignificantly increase and expedite the delivery of social housing units, the targets for which are set out in the Social Housing Strategy 2020. The Strategy has targeted the provision of over 110,000 social housing units, through the delivery of 35,000 new social housing units and meeting the housing needs of some 75,000 households, mainly through the Housing Assistance Payment. Social housing targets have previously been set for each local authority out to 2017 and are available on my Department’s website, along with the associated provisional funding allocations, at the following link:

A key objective under the Social Housing Strategy and in the Programme for a Partnership Government is to increase social housing output in the immediate, medium and longer term. To meet this objective, it is necessary to avail of a mixture of delivery mechanisms. In the immediate term, the acquisition of homes and the refurbishment of vacant local authority dwellings offer quick solutions to accommodate households on the waiting list. Leasing and renting also offer much needed immediate supply.

Over 13,000 social housing units were delivered in 2015, the first full year of implementation of the Social Housing Strategy. This represents an 86% increase in unit delivery above 2014, which was achieved in a very difficult operating environment and represents a good start to the Strategy’s implementation. The targets for 2016 are again ambitious and I expect that over 17,000 social housing units will be provided this year, 1,500 of which are targeted to be delivered through the main capital supply programmes for the construction and acquisition of houses/apartments by both local authorities and approved housing bodies (AHBs).

Following from the substantial announcements of new social housing projects made in May 2015, in July 2015 and in January 2016, we now have a strong pipeline of new social housing construction, acquisition and turnkey approvals in place. Between these three announcements, almost €680 million has been allocated for over 3,900 social housing new builds, turnkey developments and acquisitions. Details of these approvals are available on my Department’s website at the following links:

It is these projects that will form the majority of the social housing units to be constructed between now and 2018. I am keen that local authorities advance these as soon as possible, but I recognise that all projects must proceed through the planning process and this and other factors have a direct impact on the timing for the advancement and the delivery of the approved construction projects.

While construction activity is ramping up, local authorities are using other approaches to deliver new social housing units in the more immediate term, including acquiring properties, with over 1,000 new social housing units secured through that approach in 2015 alone, and working with developers to build and acquire new ‘turnkey developments’.

The ongoing rapid-delivery housing programme will provide 500 units for homeless families across Dublin who are currently residing in commercial hotels. 22 units have been completed in Ballymun and another 131 units will be completed in the Dublin City area by end-2016. A further 350 units will be provided across the four Dublin authorities, with commencement on sites in quarters 3 and 4 of 2016 - these units are to be procured through a national procurement framework overseen by the Office for Government Procurement, which will be available by end-Summer and will also be available to all local authorities nationally for procurement of rapid-delivery units.

An enhanced role for AHBs in the provision of new supply is also central to the Government’s vision for the provision of social housing supports under the Social Housing Strategy. The Strategy will see the continuation and improvement of the Capital Advance Leasing Facility (CALF), with amendments made to accelerate delivery and assist AHBs in accessing private or Housing Finance Agency (HFA) finance for the purchase, construction or refurbishment of social housing units. The changes recognise the shift in investment required by AHBs towards construction and acquisition of new builds. Under this mechanism of local authority and AHB collaboration, a strong pipeline of new units was developed in 2015, with approval provided for 600 units to be built or purchased by AHBs in the period 2016-2017.

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