Róisín Shortall (Dublin North West, Social Democrats)
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496. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the rationale for the use of public private partnerships to develop social housing; if it is his intention to continue using this programme to deliver social housing into the future following social housing PPP bundle 3; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [29467/22]

Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail)
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The Social Housing Public Private Partnership (PPP) Programme represents an additional strand of delivery in order to increase the supply of social housing. The current PPP Programme will deliver 1,500 social housing units, spread across three bundles of sites.

The Social Housing PPP Programme is being delivered through the ‘availability’-based PPP model. Under this type of contract, the PPP project company, as the private partner, designs, builds, finances, maintains and operates (DBFMO) social housing developments for a period of 25 years in return for a monthly payment (unitary charge) from the State. Payment is made by the State only once construction of the buildings is complete and the homes are ready for tenanting. This funding mechanism means that PPPs typically require no upfront capital from the State, so the private partner takes on the full construction and funding risks. PPP's also provide cost certainty for the State, with unitary charge commitments known before the contract is executed. In addition, projects are subject to comprehensive value for money testing in accordance with guidance from the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform.

Land provided by the local authority is made available by way of a licence, but remains in State ownership throughout. In addition, handback provisions are a key feature of PPPs, with the private partner required to hand back the assets to the State at the end of the 25 year operating period, in a specified condition with a pre-defined residual life. This ensures the assets are handed back in good quality for future use.

In terms of progress to date, in 2021 construction was completed on Bundles 1 and 2 of the Social Housing PPP Programme and the new homes are now fully tenanted. Bundle 1 delivered 534 houses and apartments across six sites in Dublin, Kildare, Louth and Wicklow in 2020 and 2021. Bundle 2 delivered 465 homes in 2021 across eight sites in Cork, Clare, Galway, Kildare, Roscommon and Waterford. Bundle 3 will deliver in the region of 486 new homes across six sites in Dublin, Kildare, Sligo and Wicklow and a number of the sites have commenced the statutory planning process.

In accordance with the commitment under Housing for All, and given the successful delivery of almost 1,000 homes to date under the Programme, my Department will increase the use of PPP's to deliver social housing. My Department is actively working with relevant stakeholders including the National Development Finance Agency, the Housing Delivery Co-ordination Office, and relevant local authorities on the development of further bundles. On foot of a call in January this year, asking local authorities to submit proposals for suitable sites to include in the new PPP programme, selection of sites for the new bundles is progressing well.