Róisín Shortall (Dublin North West, Social Democrats)
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394. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the powers available to local authorities to vet potential council housing tenants prior to offering them a council tenancy; the relevant legislation in place setting out the council’s powers; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [35429/20]

Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail)
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Applications for social housing support are assessed by the relevant local authority, in accordance with the eligibility and need criteria set down in section 20 of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2009 and the associated Social Housing Assessment Regulations 2011, as amended.

The oversight and management of the lists of qualified households awaiting accommodation, including the allocation and transfer of tenancies, is a matter for the relevant local authority in accordance with Sections 20 and 22 of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2009 and associated Social Housing Assessment and Allocation Regulations, respectively. Under Regulation 28 of the Assessment Regulations, a household’s qualification for support may be reviewed at the discretion of a local authority and Regulation 29 provides that the household’s qualification for support shall be reassessed at the point of allocation of support.

The application form for social housing support prescribed by the Social Housing Assessment Regulations 2011, requires applicants to provide details of any convictions under a number of specified statutes relating to anti-social behaviour and public order offences.

Section 15(2) of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, 1997 provides for a housing authority to request from another housing authority or a specified person (as outlined in Section 15(1) of the 1997 Act), information in relation to any person seeking a house from the authority or residing or proposing to reside at a house provided by the authority or whom the authority considers may be or may have been engaged in anti-social behaviour.

Furthermore, under section 45(6) of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2014, local authorities may refuse to provide, or cease providing, housing assistance in respect of a qualified household where the local authority considers that any household member is or has been engaged in anti-social behaviour.

Similarly, under this section, the local authority may also refuse to permit a person who proposes to take up or resume residence or enter or be in a dwelling the subject of housing assistance where the local authority considers that the person is or has been engaged in anti-social behaviour.

In addition, Section 55 of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions Act) 2014, provides for a relevant person (as outlined in Section 55(2) of the 2014 Act), upon a request from a housing authority, to provide the housing authority with such information in the possession or control of the relevant person as the housing authority may reasonably require for the purpose of enabling the housing authority to perform its functions under the Housing Acts 1966 to 2014.