Róisín Shortall (Dublin North West, Social Democrats)
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465. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government the way in which the affordable rental scheme will function; if the affordable rental pilot scheme which was announced in October 2015 was completed; if so, if he will provide a report on same; the likely breakdown between private and commercial landlords he envisions; his plans to place a limit on the number of either group involved; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [19839/17]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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Building on the announcement made in October 2015, Action 4.6 of the Rebuilding Ireland Action Plan provided 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 Strategy for the Rental Sector published in December 2016, the commitment on affordable rental is now 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 optimum number of units for rent, targeting middle income households, in mixed tenure developments. 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.

In this regard, an important policy intervention in the delivery of new housing supply under Pillar 3 of Rebuilding Ireland is the development of State-owned lands for mixed-tenure housing, particularly in the major urban areas, where demand is greatest. On 27 April 2017, I published details of some 2,000 hectares of land in public ownership, which has the potential to deliver up to 50,000 homes nationally. Full details of these sites can be accessed on the Rebuilding Ireland Housing Land Map at the following link: .

I have asked all local authorities to be innovative and proactive in developing these sites. The final model for each site will be the subject of careful consideration by the local authority concerned, the elected members included, who are best placed to know and provide for the housing need in their area. Indeed, the Dublin local authorities are well advanced in bringing large-scale sites forward for mixed tenure housing, with projects advertised that can deliver circa 3,000 mixed-tenure homes in the Dublin City Council and South Dublin County Council areas alone.