Niamh Smyth (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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156. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government the number of persons in counties Cavan and Monaghan who applied for Part V of the tenant purchase scheme in the past ten years, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7493/17]

Niamh Smyth (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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157. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government the change to the tenant purchase scheme which is excluding Part V applicants in the tenant purchase scheme in counties Cavan and Monaghan; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7494/17]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 156 and 157 together.

The Tenant (Incremental) Purchase Scheme came into operation on 1 January 2016. The Scheme is open to eligible tenants, including joint tenants, of local authority houses that are available for sale under the Scheme. To be eligible, tenants must meet certain criteria, including having a minimum reckonable income of €15,000 per annum and having been in receipt of social housing support for at least 1 year.

The Housing (Sale of Local Authority Houses) Regulations 2015 governing the Scheme provides for a number of specified classes of houses to be excluded from sale, including units provided to the Local Authorities under Part V of the Planning and Development Act 2000, as amended, houses specifically designed for older persons, group Traveller housing and houses provided to facilitate people with disabilities transferring from institutional care to community-based living.

The provisions of Part V of the Planning and Development Act 2000, as amended, are designed to enable the development of mixed tenure sustainable communities. Part V units are excluded from the Tenant (Incremental) Purchase Scheme to ensure that units delivered under this mechanism will remain available for people in need of social housing support and that the original policy goals of the legislation are not eroded over time.

My Department does not hold information on the number of households that have applied to purchase Part V housing through the tenant purchase scheme. The management of the scheme is a matter for individual housing authorities.

In line with the commitment in the Programme for a Partnership Government and reaffirmed in Rebuilding Ireland Action Plan for Housing and Homelessness,a review of the first 12 months of operation of the scheme is currently being undertaken by my Department. Any changes to the terms and conditions of the scheme which are considered necessary based on the evidence gathered will be brought forward. I expect this review to be completed by the end of Quarter 1 2017.