Written answers

Wednesday, 19 January 2022

Department of Housing, Planning, and Local Government

Local Authorities

Photo of Matt CarthyMatt Carthy (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)
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509. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the local authorities that sought funding to provide for asbestos removal in council homes in each of the years since 2000; the amount of funding sought in each case; the funding allocated for this purpose for each local authority in each of the years since 2000, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1104/22]

Photo of Darragh O'BrienDarragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail)
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The management and maintenance of local authority housing stock, including pre-letting repairs to vacant properties, responsive repairs and implementing planned maintenance programmes, is a matter for each individual local authority, in accordance with Section 28 of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provision) Act, 2009. 

Notwithstanding the legal obligations on local authorities in the area of management and maintenance of their housing stock, my Department provides funding under various stock improvement programmes such as Voids,  Energy Efficiency, Regeneration and the Remedial Works Scheme. There is not, however, a  dedicated funding programme that deals with solely with asbestos. Detailed figures are not therefore available in relation to funding provided for asbestos removal by my Department over the years in question. Further information may be available from the local authorities.

My Department is committed to supporting local authorities in the optimum management and maintenance of their housing stock. In line with commitments set out in Housing for All, work is underway with the local authority sector to transition from a largely response-based approach, to a strategic planned maintenance approach based on stock condition surveys. A national standardised stock condition survey template has been discussed with the local authority sector and generally agreed upon. The process of identifying asbestos within local authority homes has already been flagged in the context of the stock condition survey template as part of the transition to planned maintenance. 

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