Michael Ring (Mayo, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

643. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the assistance available from his Department for specific actions for local authority tenants (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20041/22]

Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

My Department provides funding under the Energy Efficiency Retrofit Programme (EERP) to support local authorities with the retrofit of local authority owned homes requiring insulation and energy upgrade works. Since the programme commenced in 2013 over 75,000 homes have been retrofitted with a total exchequer spend of €184 million under the scheme.

In response to the Programme for Government commitment, my Department launched a newly revised ten year Energy Efficiency Programme in 2021 for local authority owned housing. This new programme set a BER performance requirement of “B2” or cost optimal level. The upscaling of the works included in the programme sees a substantial overall increase in the funding made available for insulation, windows and doors and the installation of a Heat Pump and all associated works. The installation of gas/oil boilers or solid fuel or inset stoves are not financially supported by my Department under the energy efficiency programme. This does not however preclude local authorities from funding the provision of such heating systems from their own resources.

In 2022, the EERP will see a significant increase in funding to €85 million, allowing approximately 2,400 homes nationally to be upgraded to a B2 or cost optimal equivalent (BER). Allocations have issued to each local authority in this regard.