Niamh Smyth (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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167. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government if he will correspond regarding housing assistance payment for a person (details supplied); his plans to address this issue; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [49113/22]

Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail)
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The Housing Assistance Payment (HAP) is a form of social housing support for people who have a long-term housing need. In order for a household to qualify for HAP, they must first be assessed as eligible for social housing support by their local authority. Any household assessed as eligible for social housing is immediately eligible for HAP and those households must source their own accommodation in the private rental sector. The accommodation sourced by tenants should be within the prescribed maximum HAP rent limits, which are based on household size and the rental market within the area concerned.

My Department is aware that some HAP recipients are making payments directly to their landlords, beyond the amount of HAP being paid on their behalf. While there is no legislative provision precluding HAP supported households contributing towards the monthly rent required by the landlord, local authorities have a responsibility to ensure that tenancies are sustainable and that households in HAP are in a position to meet the rental costs involved.

The Programme for Government commits to ensuring that HAP levels are adequate to support vulnerable households, while the supply of social housing increases.

Under Housing for All, the Department was tasked with undertaking an analytical exercise to examine whether an increase in the level of discretion available to Local Authorities under HAP is required. The Housing Agency undertook to carry out this analytical exercise on behalf of the Department to better understand what level of discretion should be made available to Local Authorities under HAP to maintain adequate levels of support.

Following receipt and analysis of this review, I, in cooperation with Government colleagues and the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform, approved an increase in the HAP discretion rate from 20% to 35% and for new tenancies to extend the couple’s rate to single person households. This will secure more tenancies and prevent new entries to homelessness. Both these measures came into effect from 11 July 2022.

Each local authority now has statutory discretion to agree to a HAP payment up to 35% above the prescribed maximum rent limit to secure appropriate accommodation for a household that requires it, or up to 50% in the case of homeless households in the Dublin region.

A separate review of the discretion available to Homeless HAP tenancies in Dublin, which is up to 50% above the prescribed maximum rent limits, is currently being undertaken by my Department, in conjunction with the Housing Agency.

Tenants in the HAP scheme are required to sign a rent contribution agreement to pay a weekly rental contribution to the relevant local authority, in line with the local authority’s differential rent scheme. As set out in the rent contribution agreement, this weekly rental contribution must be paid by them so that they remain eligible for the HAP scheme. Where a person has a change of circumstances, such as a loss of income, they should notify the relevant local authority. The local authority can reassess those tenants and adjust their differential rent accordingly.

The HAP Shared Services Centre (SSC) manages the collection of all HAP tenants’ differential rents, on behalf of the relevant local authority, and the payment of all HAP rents to landlords on behalf of tenants supported by the HAP scheme. The HAP SSC follows a clear communication policy if rental arrears issues arise. This policy includes regular and early written communication with tenants, landlords and the relevant local authority.

The approach taken by the HAP SSC has been very effective with minimal levels of rent arrears arising for HAP tenants. At end Q2 2022, the scheme had a 97% differential rent collection rate with minimal arrears arising for tenants or local authorities. Therefore, only a very small number of tenants have fallen into difficulty with their differential rent.

At the end of Q2 2022, over 104,700 HAP tenancies had been set-up since the scheme commenced, of which there were over 60,700 households actively in receipt of HAP support. My Department continues to keep the operation of the HAP scheme under review.