Joe McHugh (Donegal, Fine Gael)
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396. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government if he will consider the difficult circumstances pertaining to a family (details supplied) in County Donegal whose lives have been made extremely challenging due to having mica in their home; if their request to remain in their home while their new residence is being rebuilt will be considered; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43017/21]

Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail)
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The remedial options provided for under the Defective Concrete Blocks Grant scheme constitute a material alteration to an existing building. It is provided in order to remediate the issue of the defective blocks and return the building to a condition it would have been in if it hadn’t been affected by the use of Mica or Pyrite in the blockwork.

In relation to remedial option 1, this specifically provides for the demolition of the home and the subsequent rebuild on the original foundations. The option of building a new home, outside of the existing foundations, would not be supported by the legislation underpinning the grant scheme. This legislation specifically provides for the payment of a grant for the improvement of an existing dwelling and not the construction of an entirely new building on a new set of foundations. Under the scheme as currently formulated, a homeowner choosing to build a new home in a different location on the site and not using the existing foundations would disqualify themselves from grant assistance.

The working group which I established to review the current scheme is expected to report by the end of September and the issue of alternative accommodation and the associated costs is one of the issues under review. In addition, my Department is in onging dialogue with Donegal County Council on the particularly difficult circumstances of this case in efforts to identify a solution and will continue to provide as much assistance as possible in order to arrive at a suitable solution.