Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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295. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government to set out the number of vacant local authority housing units that have been identified by the local authorities in the greater Dublin area; if a particular reason has been identified which might contribute to the delay in making such houses available to persons; the steps he has taken to date in this regard; the steps likely to be taken in the near future; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [52537/17]

Eoghan Murphy (Dublin Bay South, Fine Gael)
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Information on the number of vacant county council stock at any given time is not collected by my Department, as occupancy and vacancy of social housing changes continuously. This is as would be expected where there are approximately 130,000 such homes with tenancies that are subject to change.

My Department has been providing strong funding support to all local authorities to undertake remediation work to vacant social housing units and to re-let such housing, as soon as possible. The Voids Programme, introduced by my Department in 2014, is aimed at minimising the turnaround and re-let time of vacant units and returning them to use in a very energy efficient condition.

Accordingly, there is no particular reason for delays to arise in making social homes available in the greater Dublin area and since 2014, almost €100 m in exchequer funding has been made available nationally by my Department, with over 8,000 homes remediated and returned to use. I am satisfied that all local authorities appreciate the need to quickly remediate and re-let social homes that become vacant in an area of need.