Barry Cowen (Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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129. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government to outline his plans for the affordable rental pilot scheme and the substance of same; and the reason for the delay in rolling out this pilot scheme in view of the fact that funding was provided for it in budget 2016. [2347/17]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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Action 4.6 of Rebuilding Irelandprovides for the introduction of an affordable rental scheme to enhance the capacity of the private rented sector to provide quality and affordable accommodation for households currently paying a disproportionate amount of disposable income on rent.

As set out in the recently published Strategy for the Rental Sector, this commitment is to be progressed through kick-starting supply in rent pressure zones. Lands held by local authorities in rent pressure zones are to be brought to market on a competitive tendering basis, with a view to leveraging the value of the land to deliver the maximum number of units for rental targeting middle income households. The cost of providing rental units is to be permanently reduced by lowering the initial investment and development costs for providers - AHB or private - allowing the rental units to be made available at below market prices without the need for ongoing rental subsidies.

The local authorities concerned will identify a number of sites with the potential for up to 1,000 units of accommodation and will move forward, as soon as possible, to issue calls for proposals from parties interested in developing projects. As speed of delivery will be critically important, appropriate licence arrangements, incorporating clear timescales for delivery, will be a key feature of the process.

This programme is being co-ordinated with the dedicated measures in Rebuilding Irelandto accelerate housing output from the Major Urban Housing Delivery Sites including support from the Local Infrastructure Housing Activation Fund (LIHAF) where necessary. Possible project locations include O'Devaney Gardens and Oscar Traynor Road in Dublin. In tandem, new-build rental accommodation is also to be provided in the major build-to-rent projects planned for strategic development zones and other large sites in Dublin and other locations, such as Cherrywood in the Dun Laoghaire Rathdown County Council area.