Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail)
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Under Housing for All, the Government will deliver 47,600 new build social homes and 3,500 social homes through long-term leasing in the period 2022-2026.

In September, I issued social housing delivery targets to each local authority for the period 2022-2026. Under Housing for All, each local authority is required to prepare a Housing Delivery Action Plan, which should set out details of social housing delivery over this period. The Action Plans should also set out an assessment of housing types and sizes. It is a matter for each local authority to ensure that it delivers the appropriate housing sizes in line with local need.

In delivering new social housing, the Government’s priority is to deliver new build social homes and there will be a reduced number of acquisitions under Housing for All, which will be targeted at specific priority categories. Further guidance on priority acquisitions will issue shortly to local authorities and will be reviewed on an ongoing basis.

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

The 2009 Act defines a household as a person living alone, or two or more persons, who the relevant local authority considers have a reasonable requirement to live together. In line with the Regulations, applicant households are assessed for eligibility in the first instance. Then, if deemed eligible, their accommodation needs are assessed taking account, for example, of the number of persons in the household, the age and gender of household members, and their inter-relationships.

Ultimately, decisions on the qualification of households for social housing support, the most appropriate form of such support, and the allocation of that support are a matter solely for the local authority concerned.

Sorca Clarke (Longford-Westmeath, Sinn Fein)
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84. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the status of the refurbishment earmarked in May 2018 for Granard, County Longford by an organisation (details supplied). [62080/21]

Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail)
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Approved Housing Bodies (AHBs) are making an important contribution to social housing delivery, as envisaged under current Government policy. My Department operates a number of funding programmes that assist local authorities to work in partnership with AHBs to construct, purchase and lease new homes and make them available for social housing. One such programme that AHBs progress construction projects through is the Capital Advance Loan Facility (CALF).

CALF funding is capital support provided to AHBs by local authorities to facilitate the funding of construction, acquisition or refurbishment of new social housing units. This loan facility can support up to 30% of the eligible capital cost of the housing project, with the housing units provided to local authorities for social housing use under long-term lease arrangements known as Payment and Availability Agreements. A nominal interest rate of 2% fixed per annum is charged by the local authority on the initial capital amount. Repayments on either the capital or interest are not required during the term of the loan (between 10 and 30 years), although where an AHB chooses to, repayments can be made during the term. At the end of the term, the outstanding capital amount plus the interest accrued, is owed and repayable to the local authority. The local authority issues the CALF monies to the AHB and the local authority, in turn, recoups same from my Department.

With regard to the specific project mentioned by the Deputy, I can confirm that the project did receive conditional CALF funding approval in 2018. The most recent update from both the AHB and Local Authority is that they are currently working collaboratively to progress the project to Tender stage, which is anticipated in early 2022, with expected final delivery in 2023.

My Department publishes a quarterly Social Housing Construction Projects Status Report, which sets out the continuing progress being made in advancing the national local authority and AHB new-build pipeline. The latest report, setting out the position at end Q3 2021, can be accessed at the following weblink:

www.gov.ie/en/publication/feea9-social-housing-construction-projects-status-report-q3-2021/.